LAWRENCE COUNTY LaGrotta: I'll take probe to court

'The games they have played for years are over,' the lawmaker warned.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- State Rep. Frank LaGrotta says he is ready to go to court later this week to get the information he wants about a New Wilmington company.
A. General Maintenance, owned by Steve and Cherie Catale, was awarded a $236,133 painting contract and a $93,330 lawn-care contract May 13 by the Lawrence County Housing Authority.
"I think this contract should be negated because the company that received the bid had never performed the work before," LaGrotta said.
Last week, LaGrotta questioned the bidding process and the qualifications of A. General Maintenance, a company that was registered with the state only on April 14. The company was originally given the contracts April 8, but the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rejected them because A. General Maintenance was the sole bidder.
Housing officials put the work out for bid again and had two bidders, A. General Maintenance and Wecare Lawn Care of Youngstown. Wecare's bid was about $250,000 higher than A. General Maintenance. LaGrotta also had questions about Wecare, which is not registered with the state of Ohio as a business.
LaGrotta's comments
"The game is over. The games they have played for years are over. Their unwillingness to answer my questions on this contract are forcing me to ask HUD to investigate all of their consulting contracts," LaGrotta said of the housing authority.
LaGrotta said he wants to see a list of equipment, qualifications and jobs completed, with references, by A. General Maintenance on painting and lawn care.
"I want to see why they are qualified to get this much in tax dollars. If I don't have that demand satisfied by the housing authority by midweek, I fully intend to go to court and ask a judge to issue an injunction," he said.
The Catales did not return calls seeking comment.
Last week, LaGrotta said he also was looking into a possible pre-existing relationship between Steve Catale and Lawrence County Housing Authority board member Gary Felasco. Felasco is also the elected Lawrence County treasurer.
LaGrotta contends a Lawrence County attorney told him that Steve Catale, Felasco and Nick DeRosa, New Castle Area Schools assistant superintendent, were partners in Parkstown Skating Rink, now known as Valle Maria Manor Inc., at the corner of U.S. Route 224 and Youngstown Road in Union Township.
LaGrotta said a pre-existing relationship between Steve Catale and Felasco that was not disclosed at the time the contract was voted on could negate the contract.
DeRosa said Monday that he has no partnerships with Felasco and the three were not partners in the skating rink.
Business partners
DeRosa said he and Steve Catale are partners in C & amp;D Real Estate and own two pieces of property, a vacant lot at 122 and 124 Cochran Alley and a building at 109-111 N. Mercer St.
Both properties are marked "court stayed" in the county computer system, but there are no court orders to support it.
DeRosa said he does not know how a "court stay" was placed on the properties.
DeRosa said they bought the lot, building and other buildings at a "free and clear sale" operated by the county tax claim bureau. County real estate records show C & amp;D bought the vacant lot for $2,100 on May 5, 2000, and the building was bought the same day for $17,100.
The tax claim sale was under the direction of Felasco, who became the county tax claim bureau director in January 2000. County records show that C & amp;D owes $1,303.26 in unpaid taxes on the lot from 2000 and $7,816.13 on the building.
Didn't receive statement
DeRosa said he never received a tax statement, but both properties are up for sale.
"I don't know what happened. We are going to pay as soon as we sell. We bought all of those buildings at that sale. I never got a tax statement," he said.
Felasco has also come under fire recently for not paying real-estate taxes on his Cunningham Avenue home since 2000. An improper "court stay" was put on that property, keeping it from the yearly sale for nonpayment of taxes.
Felasco has said he has no excuse for not paying his taxes. He said he did not know how the "court stay" was placed on the property and he did not instruct anyone to do it.
Lawrence County commissioners removed Felasco as tax claim bureau director and Pennsylvania State Police are investigating.
cioffi@vindy.com