RA Meeting Video and Analysis

WATCH TODAY'S RA MEETING HERE
Thanks Skoorey for filming it!


Excellent analysis by Puck which I ripped from the comment section -

OMG. What a joke. First, the Chair hadn't even read the contract(s), then asks for 30 seconds to do so. 30 seconds??? But, he decides after that thorough review that Jobs for FR, i.e. FROED,--for no given reason--deserves the contract. FROED wants more money per month than CRES-RI, while CRES-RI asks for a lower monthly fee, but includes a 2.5% commission for real estate transactions. The RDA members' vote to award the contract to FROED and then negotiate the monthly fee with FROED. But they never considered awarding it to CRES-RI and then negotiating the real estate commission with them. Why solicit proposals in the first place if you can change the terms of them after the fact? Doing so means that neither proposal was set in stone and that either one could be revised after it was selected for award. That makes no sense at all.

Worse still, the Chair said the RDA doesn't even know if it has enough money to pay for the services they want FROED to provide.

And since when is one of the bidders--in the person of Ken Fiola--allowed to walk in on the award conference? Why wasn't the other bidder there as well? Were they invited?

Nothing about this theater of the absurd should surprise me, but I foolishly hoped these vaunted leaders would at least be better actors and present the illusion that this was a fair, well-considered award. Duh. My bad.

Stephanie, thank you for recording this. It's people like you, Shamrock, Lefty and a few others that keep my long-strained hope alive that someday this city's potential will stop being squandered by selfish, feeble-minded fools.

FROED's Fate

The Fall River Redevelopment Authority contract with their staffing agency, the Fall River Office of Economic Development, aka "FROED," aka "Jobs for Fall River," aka Ken Fiola, expired in May. At that time the RA opted to extend FROED's service by 90 days. That 90 days expired last week. This prompted me to search for whether the city/RA made a public request for proposals to fill the staffing position upon the termination of FROED's contract.

Consider this quote from RDA attorney, Peter Bogle, regarding FROED's past bids for the RA staffing contract "FROED was the only qualified respondent on proposals to staff the RA for past contracts. Its staff management includes accounting, clerical support, marketing and negotiating on behalf of the Redevelopment Authority." So where does the RA/city advertise this opening? I did not see an advertisement on the city website, the Central register, the Herald News....google...... A friend of mine was able to find an ad in a publication I had never heard of and that now escapes me.

If the RA truly wanted to replace FROED, they would have advertised the opening with more than a trivial amount of effort. Somehow, despite the clear lack of publicity for the opening, a competing bid was submitted against FROED. I have little detail on the submission but I do know the RA is voting on it Wednesday at 9:15am.

FROED is just plain terrible and I don't think any competing organization could do a worse job. However, realistically, is the RA ever going to replace FROED? The Mayor sits on FROED along with some highfalutin Fall River residents and business people who, while some may not live in Fall River, probably enjoy the perks of a FROED board of directors position (*read: loans): This is not easily let go.

Anyhooo, I urge anyone who can make it to the RA meeting on Wednesday at 9:15am (presumably at government center) to attend. Express your concern the FROED has 32 (founded in 1978) years to improve Fall River and has not. We can't afford to continue paying Ken Fiola $170,000 a year to loan our tax money to his board members, let buildings sit and rot, and give TIF agreements to chain doughnut stores and gas stations.

The Headlines Say it All

The casino industry is in a major slump. Casino layoffs and bankruptcy are becoming par for the course in the casino industry. Yet, many casino supporters and their leader Will Flanagan insist that the casino will end Fall River's problems. Will it? A recently opened casino in the similarly situated town of Bethlehem, PA laid off nearly 100 people within their first year. Can Fall River handle that? Because it is a distinct possibility. Casino revenues are down, casinos are going bankrupt, casino workers are losing their jobs.

No need to read the following articles, these recent headlines pretty much say it all:

Connecticut slots revenue down at Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun 7/15/2010

Twin Rivers files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy 6/23/09

Casino layoffs destined to affect Norwich 10/30/2008

Atlantic City Casino Revenue Declines For 22nd Consecutive Month In June 7/12/2010

Analysts: Weakness in Gaming Industry Continues 7/28/2010

Layoffs at casino in Bethlehem: Less than a year after a grand opening that rivaled the glitz and glamour of a Las Vegas revue, Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem is laying off 80 employees. 5/1/2010

200 plus layoffs for President Casino gambling boat 4/22/2010

Slipping into Bankruptcy? Foxwoods Struggles With Debt as Gaming Revenue Slumps 9/3/09

Lie down with dogs, get up with fleas - Fall River is about to get itchy

What?! Government officials are getting bribed? .... Fall River wants in on that action.

A few months ago I read an article in the Providence Journal titled something like "City Councilors Arrested by FBI on Bribery Charges." I clicked on the article hoping it wasn't Fall River but with a suspicion that it was. It was not Fall River, it was North Providence so that was a bit of a relief.

The ProJo article told the tale of 3 North Providence city council members and a developer by the name of Richard Baccari. The councilors agreed to change zoning laws for Baccari's development in exchange for $25,000.

Having recently been implicated in a $25,000 bribery scheme, any sensible government officials would probably hesitate to deal with Baccari. But not our dear FROED/Ken Fiola/RDA/Mayor Flanagan. They have proposed to build the UMass biopark on land Baccari owns in Freetown.

Last year, it was brought to my attention that the offramps being built to the biopark originally had a different plan. For some reason unknown to me, the plans for the offramp were changed so that they would run directly through Baccari's land in Freetown. And, that Baccari could potentially make alot of money as a result of the new plan for the offramps. I thought nothing of it at the time because the biopark was coming along as planned. In retrospect, the offramp plan changes certainly seem suspicious.

How convenient for this private developer Baccari, recently implicated in a government bribery scheme, that he could potentially make a ton of money with FROED's (and Will Flanagan too) help.

"Flanagan acknowledged business talks with the company’s Richard Baccari, the company’s president and CEO." Fall River Herald News July 23, 2010

"Baccari's relationships have always drawn the attention of law enforcement" Channel 10 I-team investigates

FROED's Contract with the Redevelopment Authority Expires in May

CLICK HERE for FROED's Contract with the Fall River Redevelopment Authority

Some highlights:

• FROED's contract is up on May 9, 2010!
• See how much the city pays FROED

Ken Fiola's Salary

In a March 2009 article in the Herald News, Fall River Office of Economic Development (FROED) (legally incorporated as Jobs for Fall River, Inc.) president, Alan Amaral was asked about Fiola's salary. Amaral said the board has a legal contract and he’d release it with Fiola’s permission. Amaral said it is at least $100,000 and “is commensurate with his abilities and experience.”

Amaral's answer is scummy because FROED is a non-profit and as a result, Ken Fiola's salary is public record.

Without further ado:
KEN FIOLA'S SALARY
2005 $156,699.00 plus an additional $6,262 in deferred payments
2006 $155,209.00 plus an additional $6,217 in deferred payments
2007 $162,257.00 plus an additional $6,429 in deferred payments

Ken Fiola's Taunton counterpart earns approximately $70,000. That is $100,000.00 less then Fiola. To add further insult, Taunton is actually doing well so their money is well spent on their economic development director.

www.guidestar.org is a free service (you just need to set up an account and password) that offers information on non-profits. FROED's IRS 990's are available on that site. The 990's indicate where FROED's money is spent, salaries, director information, and much more - check it out.

Short Sea Shipping Not Coming to Fall River

I have long heard of Fall River's desire to host a short sea shipping port. In May 2008, Lt. Governor Tim Murray visited Fall River to discuss short sea shipping with Mayor Robert Correia. At that time, Mayor Correia expressed an interest in short sea shipping. Short sea shipping would be highly beneficial to the city and would likely bring hundreds of jobs to Fall River. Therefore, it was rather unsettling to learn that Fall River will not be in the running for federal stimulus money to develop a short sea shipping port. According to the Providence Journal, Providence, RI; Quonset, RI; and New Bedford, MA have applied for the federal stimulus money under the America’s Marine Highway program. According to the three proposals, the jobs created are estimated from 500 in Quonset to over 1,000 in Providence and New Bedford.

Fall River needs jobs.

Fall River needs Jobs for Fall River, Inc. (aka Fall River Office of Economic Development) to succeed in attracting jobs for Fall River!

While Rhode Island submitted both of its proposals to the federal Department for Transportation for consideration, Massachusetts chose to only submit one proposal. The Projo article does not state who made the decision to drop the Fall River proposal from consideration.

We elected a 30 year State Representative as Mayor for his promise that his experience would provide “Leadership that gets things done.” How can Fall River’s proposal for short sea shipping be eliminated at the state level and not even submitted to the federal government?

Once Fall River’s proposal was submitted to the state agency, did either Mayor Correia or Ken Fiola follow-up the proposal with a call to determine whether the proposal would be submitted to the federal government?

So, since Fall River’s proposal for short sea shipping was not submitted, there will be no federal stimulus funds for Fall River to develop its port. The residents of Fall River are owed an explanation regarding what happened with the city’s proposal. All we are left with is this quote from Ken Fiola, “It’s a shame. The state should have applied for both and let the feds pick and choose.”

Fall River is out of contention to receive stimulus funds for short sea shipping. Hundreds of short sea shipping jobs won’t come to Fall River.

…. It’s a shame, indeed.

I don't know whether it is the New Jersey license plates contrasting with the super important Fall River Mayor's license plate, which is proudly displayed in the back window (click to enlarge), OR whether it is the rental car parked in the Mayor's space, there is just something about the shot that I like.


While we are on the subject.....I have heard differing reports of how many people were at Mayor Correia's Portuguese Cultural Center (huge venue) campaign fundraiser on Thursday. The numbers have varied widely between 35-50 people. What I DO know is that he was scheduled to be at a student event the next morning and didn't bother to show up (maybe he was afraid of getting booed).

I can understand why the Herald News would do an article on proms. I can understand why the Herald News would do an article on how 'tough economic times' affect prom business; but why the heck would the Herald News think that the daughter of Ken and Carole Fiola, both of whom make lots and lots of money, is an appropriate representative kids weathering 'tough economic times.' "despite the lousy economy, Fiola’s not giving up her one shot at splurging for the junior prom." My thoughts:

shamrockblogga 11 hours ago
Using Lauren Fiola as the poster child for a prom goer splurging, despite the tough economic times, is just distasteful and a slap in the face. Luckily for her, her family is not feeling the effects of tough economic times, but rather, her family is partly responsible for tough economic times.

A $300 dress is a month's worth of food for many in Fall River. A $30 tanning package is a month of electricity for others. But her family can afford this, this is not a case of someone going all out despite the economy. I am sure there were plenty of kids in $50 dresses paid for by parents who worked an extra shift to buy it...and THAT is going all out in tough economic times. NOT a kid who's bmw suv driving mother spent pocket change on a dress made out of zebra and pasties."

This is not a reflection on the kid, I am sure she is a great (and I "reported abuse" for the nasty comment on the HN - but they haven't taken it down), she just isn't the appropriate figure to represent tough economic times. There are plenty of kids who didn't get to go to their prom because they didn't have any money.

Has anyone else noticed the garbage smell over the past two weeks?

Jobs for Fall River Inc.

The Fall River Redevelopment Authority opted to award the (predetermined) contract for the sale of 64 Durfee Street to Peabody Properties so that Fall River may further develop its #1 growth industry, low income housing.

After the hasty award, to a company that contributes to the political campaigns of the local powers that be(Bob Correia and Carole Fiola to name a few), I thought that either way, at least this project would result in some jobs for locals; after all, the actual incorporated name of FROED is "Jobs for Fall River."

I read Ken Fiola's recommendations for the award to Peabody and he touted the benefits of the Peabody award including job creation. I assumed that job creation meant "Jobs for Fall River."

I drove before 64 Durfee this week and saw a group of people protesting. They were local out-of-work constuction workers. They are concerned with Peabody's track record of hiring out of state, non-union workers, many from as far as Texas, for minimum wage and no health insurance benefits.

This was the flyer the out-of-work locals were handing out:

What the heck is the matter with FROED/RDA aka "Jobs for Fall River." They have shown no interest in creating jobs for Fall River. This situation reminds me of the time Ken Fiola errantly rewrote TIF (tax break) agreements to remove the 'jobs for fall river' requirement AFTER the city council had issued final approval on the tax break agreements. Ken Fiola/FROED/RDA/Jobs for Fall River removed the language the city council agreed upon requiring company practices for the hiring of Fall River residents and construction job preference for MA union workers.

While I respect the union flyer's request that we contact the RDA (FROED/FIOLA) and request that they require Peabody to hire local workers, FROED/RDA/FIOLA'S track record is evidence that they won't oblige.

VIDEO: SAVE OUR ARTS OVERLAY DISTRICT RALLY

"Winston Churchill said that, 'Americans can be counted on to do the right thing after they have exhausted all the alternatives' and it seems like the [Fall River] city government right now, is working on the Churchill plan"

Jeff Carpenter, Arts United

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE SAVE OUR ARTS OVERLAY DISTRICT RALLY

The Truth by City Councilor Steve Camara

SAVE THE DATE/TIME
Friday, 2/27/09 @ 3:30pm on WSAR 1480am

In the interest of TRUTH, I ask you to tune in on Friday, 2/27/09 @ 3:30pm on WSAR 1480am when I will be a guest of Mike Herren's Talk Show. Some of you know me well and others hardly at all. I want you to know me better. As I consider my political future and as I recognize that my possible candidacy for higher office is perceived by some to be a threat to the status quo, I want to assure you that I am willing and able to move forward and do what I can to change the political climate of our City to allow it to move in a direction that will be better for all who live, work and visit here.

Mike Herren announced on Wednesday that he had "Breaking News" which turned out to be that he "uncovered" "public information" that exposes my "hypocrisy" concerning 64 Durfee Street, The Durfee College of Technology Building, which is in the process of being sold to Peabody Properties for a development that most, if not all, of us opposed. The short of it is that Mike Herren has discovered that I own residential property which houses people and some of these people are "subsidized". I have stated that three (3) of my twenty-seven (27) Downtown (Pine and Purchase Street) apartments [approximately ten percent (10%)] have Section 8 certificates. Mike claims I have many more people with "subsidies". Moreover, Mike claims that because I received CDA loans and grants to reconstruct/rehabilitate/restore two (2) of my houses (286-292 Pine Street and 214-216 Purchase Street) that these loans constitute "subsidized tenancies".

This is the beginning of what will be continuing attacks on my character and integrity to assure I will not be a candidate for higher office. It is an attempt to silence my advocacy for the kind of development that will create a better Downtown and Lower Highlands neighborhood. My properties provide decent and affordable housing for people of varying income levels, integrated into the neighborhood rather than "warehoused" in a single building.

The facts are simple. Since 1979, I have purchased five (5) properties and I have spent a whole lot of money buying and reconstructing these properties to improve the character and integrity of a neighborhood that was on the verge of both physical and social decay. Earlier this decade, I spent approximately one million dollars ($1,000,000) to buy and reconstruct two (2) of my houses, creating nine (9) units, three (3) of which are handicapped-accessible and all of which are de-leaded and asbestos-free. Also, I was required to provide a sprinkler system, a fire-prevention requirement of the building and fire codes for multi-family houses of four (4) or more units (286-292 Pine Street is a six (6) unit building). Approximately six hundred thousand dollars ($600,000) was a CDA low-interest (3 or 4%) loan with a small grant [approx. seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000)] for creating handicapped-accessible housing and de-leading the units. This money is available to any property owner who can demonstrate that the investment will enhance the neighborhood in which the property is located. The balance, approximately four hundred thousand dollars ($400,000.00), came from other personal sources, mostly equity accounts from my other properties.

Clearly, this million dollar investment is significant for a six-family house and a three-family house; however, I chose to undertake this for several reasons including my desire to "bring back" these houses from the verge of decay and to protect the investment I had made in my other houses that are abutters to and surround these two (2) houses. Assuredly, if I sold these two (2) houses I doubt that I would recoup my purchase price and reconstruction investment at this time. However, I know that I share with other investors of historical properties the desire and the satisfaction of "saving" a piece of history and the hope that someday there will be a return on the investment.

If you want more information, please feel free to question me. If you do listen to the program and are inclined to call (the "talk show" number is 508-673-1480) and your participation is appreciated.

Mike Herren is presenting the effort we put into the 64 Durfee Street issue as a means to attack personally The Fiolas, Alan Amaral, John Almeida, Nick Christ, Dave Raymondo and the integrity of the "power structure" of Fall River. My focus is to develop a new "power structure" that is both democratic and visionary.

Finally, while I understand that some of you feel that the WSAR talk shows should be ignored, I know that all forms of media and other forms of outreach must be used in order to advance support from the public for both causes and candidacies.

Steve Camara

RDA/FROED Meeting Video 2/24/09 on 64 Durfee

UPDATE FULL VIDEO AVAILABLE


CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL MEETING VIDEO
_______________________________________________

Although I didn't enjoy the outcome, this hour long meeting was great. Due to technical diffuculties I only have the first 12 mins so far. I will update this later today.

I am thrilled at the amount of people that showed up and hopefully this increased scrutiny of FROED/RDA will continue because I think they need it.


CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

"Beyond Reproach" or Caught Rewriting TIF Agreements?

I keep hearing that we should not question the motives, righteousness, virtue, honor, etc of Ken Fiola, executive vice president of the Fall River Office of Economic Development. To reiterate some points I have made in the past:

RECAP

• Ken Fiola should not be the treasurer of his wife's campaign because he is functionally/constructively a municipal employee and that is a violation of campaign finance law.
• Ken Fiola, as treasurer, should have recused himself from reviewing and making recommendations in favor of Peabody, where Peabody is a regular contributor to his wife's campaign funding. It is my contention that it is a violation of state ethics rules.

"BREAKING NEWS"

Fiola was clearly pleased to "break the news" on wsar yesterday that Burbank had a potential funding source from a "corporation" that wasn't yet incorporated. Despite the fact that this is legal business practice and that Burbank made no false representations about the fact that their funding was not yet incorporated, the wsar program yesterday with Ken Fiola and Alan Amaral hinted that there was something fraudulent afoot.

So here is my (old) "breaking news" on Mr. Ken "beyond reproach" Fiola who recently recommended the awarding of a TIF (tax increment finance) agreement to yet another company that contributed to his wife's campaign which could result in approximately $240,000 in tax benefits.......He was caught by the city council in 2000 REWRITING TIF agreements AFTER the City Council approved the specific wording of the agreements. Fiola, who gets paid handsomely for his duty of getting "Jobs for Fall River (the actual name of FROED)" rewrote one particular TIF agreement, among others, granting Quaker a 20 year TIF. The council approved of a TIF agreement with Quaker in May 1999. The agreement granted Quaker a 20-year TIF exemption. In return Quaker pledged to build a roughly 358,000-square-foot facility on Jefferson Street, and also to hire 700 new employees. According to Councilor Brian Pearson, the language in the Quaker TIF the state received and approved greatly differed from the TIF agreement the council had authorized earlier. Fiola's erroneously altered wording in the agreement removed the wording the Council had inserted in the agreement stating its "preference" that Quaker use local contractors "who have registered apprenticeship programs with the commonwealth of Massachusetts to encourage the training of a skilled work force." JOBS FOR FALL RIVER ........FAIL

According the the councilors in the same Herald News article, SEVERAL TIF agreements had been changed. Is Ken up to his old tricks again???????????? Nah, he is BEYOND REPROACH

RELATED ARTICLES TO KEN FIOLA REWRITING TIF'S

http://www.zwire.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=1171001&BRD=1710&PAG=461&dept_id=99784&rfi=8

http://www.zwire.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=1166953&BRD=1710&PAG=461&dept_id=99784&rfi=8

Save 64 Durfee Rally !!Today!!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT-PASS IT ON

Tune in today, Monday, February 23, 2009, WSAR 1480 and call at 508-673-1480.

Al Lima and Ken Fiola will be on the Mike Herren show to discuss 64 Durfee Street.

Any and all who can call to support Al will be helpful and then, join us and bring others to the RALLY at 64 Durfee Street to Save the Arts Overlay District!

64 Durfee Street - Audio from the RDA/FROED meeting

An audio copy of the RDA/FROED meeting from 1/21/09 recently came into my possession, unfortunately the sound quality isn't very good. The only person that comes across clearly on the audio is John Almeida and a small portion of Nick Christ.

Email me ( shamrockblogger@gmail.com ) if you would like a copy of the original and I will try to get one to you as soon as I can depending on the demand. Maybe you have louder speakers than me and can hear it better. There are some great comments that are kind of discernible by Steve Camara, Jeff Carpenter, Ray Hague, and a very fierce Cathy Ann Viveiros giving John Almeida 'the bizness.'

A summary of the "best of" John Almeida

“Since I’m really not frankly an art buff”

“What other communities and cities and towns have had the opportunity to do, isn’t necessarily going to be happening here although some wish that it could”

“When I showed up to my first meeting of the redevelopment authority I saw on the conference table a big bag and all that was in that bag was crap; and they said put your hands in, pull some out, put it in the bag and deal with that bag one at a time”

“I don’t want to be here a long time because I don’t want to stay here a long time, cuz I honestly don’t think it’s necessary to be here a long time, maybe I’m dead wrong ‘kay? It’s not the only item on our agenda and when you look at our agenda”

“I didn’t require [RA] members to, in writing, evaluate the proposals, we had no previous discussions amongst ourselves about the proposal, we were to meet, vote, THEN discuss”

“If I gave you the impression that time is of the essence here that isn’t necessarily the case because we cannot afford to do this wrong, we cannot afford to do this wrong.”

“What else do we [RA] own that we have had for 20 years? [someone answers ‘the City Pier’] “We’re going to have Glow Ring Manufacturing developed on that site…….but I don’t mean to make light of it”

64 Durfee's Fate

The RDA (and FROED) meeting to determine the fate of 64 Durfee will be: Tuesday, February 24, 2009, at 3:30PM at FROED (the room is labeled "Jobs For Fall River") Office, One Government Center, 6th floor for the Redevelopment Authority meeting when it is expected to act on the issue of 64 Durfee Street and its re-use (attendees for this meeting should meet at the cafeteria of Government Center/first floor (behind the elevators) at 3:00PM

Save the Arts Overlay District RALLY

You have been invited by Arts United, Lower Highlands/Historic Downtown Neighborhood Association, Save Our Neighborhoods to SAVE THE ARTS OVERLAY DISTRICT RALLY!

Location:

64 Durfee Street, Former Durfee College of Technology64 Durfee StreetFall River, MA 02720

Monday, February 23, 5:00PM

SAVE THE ARTS OVERLAY DISTRICT!

JOIN US at 64 Durfee Street (former Durfee College of Technology) for a rally, sponsored by Arts United, Lower Highlands/Historic Downtown Neighborhood Association and Save Our Neighborhoods to support re-use of 64 Durfee Street for a mixed use, artists' live/work/sell space with venues for commercial and entertainment uses!

BRING EVERYONE YOU KNOW!

PASS IT ON!

Ken Fiola's Recommendations to RDA

Ken Fiola's Recommendations to the Redevelopment Authority on 64 Durfee.

Peabody's Low Income Housing Proposal

I know it is easy to be impressed by nice pictures, but did anyone read Peabody's proposal for 64 Durfee Street? Because all evidence indicates that FROED/RDA/Correia have not. They are vigorously arguing that this proposal will not be low income housing.

“I take exception to the opponents coming to their conclusion that this will be a low-income housing project,” Redevelopment John Almeida said of Councilor Cathy Ann Viveiros’ description. Mr. Almeida, I suggest you and your cohorts read Peabody's proposal...page 7 for example which states, "To finance the re-development of this project we intend to apply for Low Income Housing Tax Credits." Page 7 also indicates that Peabody will be using other sources of low income housing funds to develop this property, such as "Housing Innovations Fund," a program for the creation and retention of alternative forms of housing for low ­income and extremely low income persons and families.

Peabody's proposal states that they will look to the Fall River Housing Authority, the Department of Housing and Community Development, and the Department of Transitional Assistance (aka welfare) to pay the rent on many of the units.

If this isn't low income housing, I don't know what is; but with the likelihood that 64 Durfee with be sold to Peabody Properties, I am looking on the bright side, maybe someone will get arrested over this.

Finding a Pattern

Fall River Community recently did a post about campaign contributions Carole Fiola received from E.A. Fish of Peabody Properties. Peabody recently bid on 64 Durfee Street. This got me wondering if the Fish contributions are just a coincidence or if they are part of a pattern. (*Bob Correia also received contributions from Fish).

Ken Fiola is the husband of Carole and treasurer of her campaign. In his role as Executive Vice President of FROED, is charged with making recommendations to RA on awarding contracts, choosing between submitted proposals on projects, and helping to award tax increment financing (TIF) agreements.

Hartwell Commons, developed by Frank and Nicola Marchione of Catahoula Corp., was recently awarded a TIF agreement at the request of FROED/Fiola and Mayor Robert Correia. Correia accepted numerous campaign contributions from the Marchiones as did Ken Fiola as Treasurer of his wife, Carole Fiola’s, campaign.

4/9/2003 Marchione, Frank
16 Ice Pond Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$200.00

4/6/2004
Marchione, Frank
16 Ice Pond Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$200.00

12/2/2004
Marchione, Frank
16 Ice Pond Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$140.00

4/21/2006
Marchione, Frank
16 Ice Pond Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$200.00

5/1/2007
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$200.00

4/28/2008
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Business OwnerHoneydew Donuts
Fiola, Carole
$200.00

11/24/2008
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
DeveloperSelf Employed
Fiola, Carole
$200.00
________________________________________________
4/12/2007
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$300.00

8/24/2007
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$250.00

8/13/2008
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$250.00

8/18/2008
Marchione, Frank
31 Semple Village Road Attleboro, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$250.00
12/1/2008

Marchione, Judy
31 Semple Village Rd. Attleboro, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$500.00

1/16/2008
Marchione, Nicola
4 Lee Street Walpole, MA 02081
Correia, Robert
$250.00

4/18/2008
Marchione, Nicola
4 Lee Street Walpole, MA 02703
Correia, Robert
$100.00


I'm starting to see a pattern..........