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Businessman and lawyer join port authority board
By Jordan Cohen
WARREN
Trumbull County commissioners said their unanimous appointments of businessman Sam Covelli and attorney David Detec to the Western Reserve Port Authority on Wednesday signal that the tumultuous board is righting its ship.
“These two candidates are what we need right now,” Commissioner Frank Fuda said after the votes. “Things are moving in the right direction.”
Covelli, whose Panera Bread franchise operations are headquartered on East Market Street, will serve on the authority board through 2017. He replaces Scott Lynn, who resigned in May.
Fuda said Covelli made it clear to him that he plans to play an active role on the board. “He told me, ‘I want to contribute [and] I don’t want to be just a member,’” Fuda said.
Mauro Cantalamessa, his fellow commissioner, called the Covelli appointment “a no-brainer.”
In his application letter, Covelli cited his 40 years of business experience. “I believe I can be helpful in bringing a level of business expertise to the board that would be beneficial,” he wrote.
Detec, principal attorney with the Youngstown firm of Manchester, Newman & Bennett, wrote that he “would be an asset” on the board to help spur economic development. His application cited his “extensive experience in business law issues [and] commercial transactions” as well as his 30 years of experience in oil and gas law.
Detec will complete the unexpired term of James Floyd, which ends Dec. 31. Floyd also had resigned in May.
Cantalamessa said commissioners haven’t discussed whether Detec will be reappointed after that date, but had nothing but praise for the new board member.
“I did research on him, and he’s fiscally responsible and brings a legal background,” the commissioner said. “They’re both solid candidates.”
WRPA board President Ron Klingle described himself as “ecstatic” over the appointments. “These two understand business and know what it takes to entice business to come to the Valley,” Klingle said.
Authority responsibilities, originally limited to the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport when it was created in 1992, were expanded with creation of an economic development division in 2008. The latter role led to public conflicts and several board resignations after allegations of conflicts of interest and improper real-estate activities.
The WRPA’s public turmoil led to calls for commissioners to dissolve the authority.
Signs that those conflicts may be nearly over were evident after the appointments when the Trumbull commissioners were joined by their Mahoning County counterparts to meet in executive session to discuss “personnel” matters. Mahoning Commissioner Anthony Traficanti revealed the group planned to discuss applicants for the position of economic development director, which has been vacant since the WRPA board relieved Rose Ann DeLeon of her duties last March.