Re Apex Letter to the Borough

Apex Contract January 6, 2009
Gennaro A. Marino P.E.
409 W. Main Street
Kutztown, Pa 19530
610-683-7977
e-mail kmayor@ptd.net
Blog www.marinoreport.com
Mayor Sandy Green
Kutztown Borough Council
Kutztown Borough Solicitors Dietrich & Mooney
Kutztown Borough Manager Khalife
Information Technology Director Caruso
Dear Borough Officials,
ITD Frank Caruso stated recently that breaking the Hometown Utilicom contract by Apex was no loss. This isn’t true because you all know that the Borough counted on the Apex Student Housing for many additional subscribers. You all also know that the contract with Apex, originally made with Grande, requires Apex to supply and install all the infrastructure in the development for HU services and it would be turned over to the Borough upon completion free of charge. Hometown Utilicom received this and many more concessions from the developer in exchange for Borough Water and Sewer for the development which is outside the Borough. The Borough Council had no obligation to but made the decision to sell the utilities outside the borough to gain Subscribers for Hometown Utilicom. The original developer bought the Apex property for $440,000 and after the Borough Council voted to give the developer water and sewer the property was sold to Apex for $3.2 million.
This sweetheart deal for the Borough was concocted by the Borough Elected Officials and Borough Manager Jaymes Vettraino to keep Telecom competitors out of the development. Aside from the Borough blackmailing the developer into this one sided contract there were many opportunities here for corruption by Borough Officials.
The scheme fell through when the Borough (Hometown Utilicom) could not produce or provide the internet services as was promised by HU and Apex opted to end the contract. Ex- Borough Manager\Treasurer Keith Hill, who initiated HU knew HU would fail, sued the Borough and I, when I was Mayor, and was awarded an insurance settlement $162,000. Borough Officials helped Mr. Hill in his case. He will also receive a healthy pension from the Borough. Mr. Hill then unethically and immediately went to work for SS&M, the Borough Engineering firm. He later went to work for Atlantic Engineering the contracting firm that Mr. Hill recommended and awarded the contract to install the fiber system which I think was over $2 million.
Ex-Borough Manager\Treasurer Vettraino also left the Borough because he knew that HU would fail and this Apex contract, which he negotiated, would be an embarrassment just as it turned out to be. While he was employed by the Borough he also gave out a $225,000 contract to a computer firm without a public bid, which is illegal, and the firm, New World Systems, is located in his hometown of Morton Michigan. The firm failed to fulfill the contract of utility billing.
The present Borough Manager\Treasurer Gabriel Khalife has continued the policies of Mr. Hill and Mr. Vettraino of not publicizing any financial records of HU.
You have engaged in illegal and unethical activities with the approval of Borough Solicitors Dietrich and Mooney. It is illegal for a municipality to legislate to favor a business venture that is owned by the legislators. The Editorial in The Reading Eagle of January 3,2009 agrees with this.

Sincerely,


Gennaro A. Marino P.E.