WARREN Local unions vie for Sam's Club job

The new store is expected to replace the one in Niles.
WARREN -- Local building and construction unions want a shot at putting up the new Sam's Club store off state Route 46, but, they say, the general contractor hasn't responded to their letters and calls.
The Western Reserve Building and Construction Trades Council which represents 15 construction trades and more than 5,000 workers said Monday that despite their efforts to set up a meeting, Westra Construction of Harrisburg, Pa., hasn't responded.
Donald T. Crane, president of the council, said he doesn't understand the contractor's reluctance.
"We're extremely competitive here, and our apprenticeship program is second to none," he said.
Workers
Crane believes the Harrisburg contractor must be bringing workers from that area.
The Youngstown company that was awarded the steel erection portion of the Sam's store in Boardman was told its bid was too high for the Warren project, Crane said.
Richard Riegel, a regional manager for the Harrisburg company, said the project was bid out a month and a half ago.
"There will be a lot of union trades used on this project, but I can't comment about which ones," he said.
Crane presented letters written to the company by representatives of various unions.
"By checking Sam's Club receipts locally, it can easily [be] determined that we patronize Sam's Club on a regular basis because we believe in supporting those firms that employ us," wrote David J. Knickerbocker, business representative for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local No. 66.
"Records show that 60 percent of your sales may be directly related to union personnel and their families," Knickerbocker wrote.
Crane said the council hasn't attempted to contact the project's developer, DeBartolo Property Group of Pepper Pike.
Generating talk
The store has generated much discussion in recent months.
The building will be in Warren, less than a half-mile from a Sam's Club in Niles, on Cafaro Co. property behind Eastwood Mall.
That store is expected to close when the new one opens.
The street that will lead to the new store, however, is in Howland, and township officials have complained about the additional traffic they expect the store to generate along the already-congested state Route 46/82 corridor.
The township revoked the zoning permit last week for a new gas station to be constructed in the township as part of the Sam's Club development.
The township said the gas station didn't meet the minimum square footage requirement.