INVOICELESS … or … ‘IT FELL THROUGH THE CRACKS’ … ‘[MAYOR] THREW A LOT OF GOOD PEOPLE UNDER THE BUS’
BY DAN VALENTI
PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY
(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY MARCH 13, 2024) — The Maypo Administration would love the Kapanskis to forget to recent fiasco over the nearly-$50,000 “missing invoice” the mayor dismissed by saying “it fell through the cracks.” The money involved one day of tree service from a March 14, 2023 storm.
THE PLANET‘s Right Honorable Good Friends on the city council paid the bill without asking questions, “no harm, no foul.”
Since the council failed in its oversight duties, THE PLANET did some quiet probing of our own, hearing from a knowledgeable source who can’t be identified for obvious reasons. “Invoiceless” spoke on condition of anonymity.
INVOICELESS: “I was disgusted with the [mayor’s] “fell through the cracks” remark. He threw a lot of good people [city employees] under the bus when he said that. Nothing “fell through the cracks.” An entire year the paperwork was never produced? Why would the city buy $50,000 of services and not bill it? Why would a local business do nothing about $50,000 in unpaid services?
Invoiceless said she/he had found no evidence of wrongdoing but added that only a through examination of all billing practices could make a “reliable determination.”
A Deep Probe into the city’s purchasing habits is warranted. How are services sought and bought? Are jobs sent out to competitive bid? Are the parameters of purchases spelled out up front and written up? Who oversees the process? Who checks the checkers?
The frank, bottom-line question: Is a bunco operation being conducted from city hall? If not, wouldn’t city hall be anxious to have that shown by an independent, thoroughly objective audit?
———- ooo ———-
This brings to mind the exchange in the THE PLANET‘s “Comments” section of our Feb. 29 column, an exchange between former councilor Charles “Sir Chaz” Kronick and Nutmeg. We highlight it here:
NUTMEG: As an accountant who’s worked in both private and public sector, I’m aghast at the level of incompetency. It is an utter lack of financial processes and controls.
In government accounting, when you sign a purchase order/contract you obligate (or set aside) operating funds so that money is available to pay future invoices. This is an important accounting transaction because not only are you recognizing the liability, but also if for some reason an invoice gets lost, it would be caught as an “unpaid liability” in financial review at fiscal year end.
Now on the the vendor. Also incompetent? hmm. How can an unpaid invoice of near $50k be overlooked for this long? I’m assuming this is a small independent contractor and not some division of a billion dollar global company. Perhaps this vendor also recognized the incompetency of the city’s DPW/ purchase/ finance and saw an opportunity to slip them a mickey.
Without the PO, order confirmation, how could the City verify much less dispute the charge? What prevents a vendor from issuing invoices backdated by as much as a year for services not done?
SIR CHAZ: A valid question. If no PO or contract against which you could dispute an invoice, then a vendor could easily falsify charges. In some cases, this “lack of control” by financial manager(s) is deliberate action leading to embezzlement/ fraud allegations. An audit would confirm either incompetence or intent to commit fraud.
NUTMEG: A story to share – back when I worked for a billion dollar global manufacturing company, we accountants had identified unusual purchasing activity by a buyer at our west coast office location. He was deliberately buying parts at excessively high prices. His purchase orders on parts stood out like a sore thumb. Turns out he was in collusion with certain vendors. The controller and legal department of our company took action and he was fired.
SIR CHAZ: The Pittsfield Charter mandated a civic finance commission to provide citizen oversight. For obvious reasons, the Mayor violated that charter by not staffing it. Councilor Warren in 2022 petitioned to scrap the commission and strip it from the Charter. I had argued to keep it and staff it. … This case beckons for that charter to be revised to mandate the civic finance commission to be staffed either by election of the people or members nominated by ward councilors. It is unacceptable for city oversight commissions to be staffed by mayoral nominees.
Without an honest accounting, who knows how much has and is “falling through the cracks?
—————————————————————–
“Elections are eye masks politicians put on citizens to steal taxpayers blind” — Sir Donald Turpentine, Knight of the Bath.
“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”
LOVE TO ALL.
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SARCASM: Kufflinks allegedly Cooks the Books? Shocked. Shocked. Peter Marchetti allegedly throws good people under the bus? Shocked. Shocked. Pittsfield always raises municipal spending by at least 5 percent per fiscal year going back the early-1980s? Shocked. Shocked. Like the fictional Kapanski family, I will go back to pounding sand.
Jon Melle
50K for bike lane plungers?
The Mayor Ann / Tire Town money laundering operations, are alive and well.
Much like Daltons imaginary ladder truck, being used to loot taxpayers financially. Just after Berkshire county District attorney, broomed the million dollar fiduciary embezzlement at fire department ( when perpetrator returned the stolen assets) .
Imagine Timmy ” the fixer” Shagrue , got his 10% , to conceal the criminal behavior.
Which Tree company received the payment?
Is this vendor name public or part of the secret? This scenario screams for a public inquiry with independent parties. If this situation popped up on its own one can just imagine what might be found if a set of independent eyes were to scope out the whole set of books.
And once again, it also screams out for the need of a forensic audit. Since the mayor poops his pants every time the words are mentioned perhaps the peoples second in command representative, who begged for votes from the taxpayer, should step up and demand one ASAP. White you need to step up. Or down and let someone else do the peoples job.
Is there anyone left from the state that provides any oversight for obvious mismanagement issues in cities and town? Shouldn’t Farley step in and demand an audit immediately and if not why not?
Perhaps a local media outlet could get comments from the mayor and VP as well as treasurer to clear this up for the public??/ Do the Gemini Petes think the public deserves a real explanation or not?
Snark,
An order authorizing $48,820 for the Department of Public Services to pay Northern Tree Services for debris clearance and restoration work after a March 2023 storm was approved.
https://news413.com/2024/02/28/pittsfield-council-approves-public-services-monies-after-oversight/
And that was for one day of work? Was this a bid project or is this guy connected?
Snark,
I was just posting the vendor who provided the service to your question of , if the vendors name was public. Don’t know much more about the issue.
I find this quote interesting:
“Due to an “administrative oversight,” the invoices were misplaced but have since been validated in collaboration with the tree company.”
Collaboration is the new vibrant and dynamic.
There’s a lot of information in the phrase “invoices were misplaced but since validated in collaboration with the tree company.
What is an ‘administrative oversight’? Did someone pick up the wrong rubber stamp?
Good one, CHAZ. Isn’t it interesting that nearly all of the “new information” regarding this questionable business transaction has surfaced a year after the fact and only after THE PLANET put a spotlight on it.
Agree with you. Something is totally fishy with this invoice. With all these former “administrative oversights” it doesn’t say much about former Mayor Barry’s accounting techniques and also questions why in the hell Mayor Maypo has not replaced Kerwood and Morales.
I would imagine there are people who know too much and must be treated kindly.
Funny thing is I don’t know if it’s fishy. But I wouldn’t sign off on it without a full report from the Mayor. Why didn’t he provide it?
\
M&B: It’s time for you to ask Bandini to get confirmation of repairs to Connecticut. They wrecked your road, and they need to do what was promised and fix it by returning it to original specifications. They cannot redraw your property boundaries lines and additional 10 feet towards your house. You own that (as far as you actually own anything.)
Bandini contacted me, she wanted to review the interests and issues of Ward 2. We set up a time, but she no-showed. I assume she rounded up with Kevin Morandi which is just as good.
“No state of emergency was declared ”
Why did pittsfield hire a tree service from Springfield?
4 separate occasions, requiring 4 round trips, of approximately 4 hours ?
Probably could of farmed out to local contractors, for less than half – at 2500$ each –
Were there attempts made to employ local contractors?
Does northern tree have a contract with the city?
10,000 dollars is pretty steep to dispose of debris.
Most likely billed city for services provided to good old boys. mayor ann racketeering 101.
It seems they would want and should keep business local for our economy if possible here. They are always promoting shop and buy local..Don’t know the details of why they didn’t.
They hire a great deal of work, maybe most, out of Pittsfield. Even line painting is done by a East Mass company.
Boston’s got to be happy. Beginning to sound like a arcane Petrolati scheme.
No one cares get over it your candidate lost
That’s just it. You THINK no one cares because no one speaks out. But you see, NO, there’s a difference between fear and apathy. There. You are schooled for the day. Now get on your bike and ride … but make sure the seat’s not missing!
Dan you are pathetic
you claim Mayor Marchetti is your friend well newsflash friends don’t treat friends the way you do
I don’t always agree with the Mayor but we remain friends and don’t speak ill of each other
SARCASM: How dare blogger Dan Valenti criticize Mayor Peter Marchetti during his 90-day grace period!
JON
Yes. We’ve got SOME nerve!
Criticizing and being mean and down right making up lies is 2 very different things again your candidate lost and no one cares
Jon at least you don’t claim to be the Mayor’s friend and then talk smack you say he’s your relative and we can’t pick our relatives how true it’s known you don’t care for him
Your boy won. Get over it.
You can pick your friends, you can pick your nose but you can’t pick your friends nose.
What’s a ‘friend’? The end of my fri.
A friend is the end of my friend.
We now give all business coming to Pittsfield a free ride and we are distracted by immigrants being helped.Follow this money and find who lost it and see how it happened.If it does not sound right refer to the DA.
Lol now we’ve gone from.announcing incompetent management to a scam payoff people for no show work.
You never fail to amuse Dan.
Library director Alex Reszkowski was on City’s paid vacation 4 months travelling on cruise ship around the World–all paid by city budget!
From September01,2023 to December31,2023–packaged under term “Sabbatical”, while his contract had No sabbatical in it. Mayor Linda Tyer approved it with recommendation to Library Board of Trustees to get it “Pass” .
So, director was paid 4 months salary for being absent on his job here+was also paid by cruise ship for “working” as librarian 4 months travelling around the World, visiting Spain, France, Italy, Germany and UK!
All docs you can see in Public Records#24-60 and #24-63.
I got this info accidentally as I complained seeing 4-5 drug users doing drugs in library’s food zone every day. I naively asked where library director was…
It’s what they always do,they hide evidence of their incompetences and evidence of their own activities related to the incompetences to protect one another.
CORRECTION:
To correct the exchange between Nutmeg and me, should read as follows:
SIR CHAZ:
Without the PO, order confirmation, how could the City verify much less dispute the charge? What prevents a vendor from issuing invoices backdated by as much as a year for services not done?
NUTMEG: A valid question. If no PO or contract against which you could dispute an invoice, then a vendor could easily falsify charges. In some cases, this “lack of control” by financial manager(s) is deliberate action leading to embezzlement/ fraud allegations. An audit would confirm either incompetence or intent to commit fraud.
Thanks for the correction.
Nutmeg nails down the need to challenge and probe that fund request and provides the real meat to this conversation. The employee mentioned in this edition has my sympathy. When directors are not upfront with the public and give the impression of concealing or worse lying, their behavior indirectly translates to the honest and responsible workers who report to them.
Those heads should take a real beating and probably roll just for the damage done to their departments’ reputation. This incident, both invoice and response, is a smoking gun, and calls for a clean sweep of the council. It should not be forgotten in the next election ’25 and you need 11 new councilors to take the dais. Yes, they have been there too long to have done any good.
Sir Chaz is a quack too
A good one though. That makes all the difference.
If you were so good you would have stayed on the council like Pete Arlos did he never backed down when the pressure was on you even left the state another phony like the Planet
Conspiracy theory?
A quack is a quack. Breaks your mothers back.
One would hope for a more sophisticated analysis than this; however, we’ll issue a medal for participating.
I kind of like that actually. Thanks!
One day you blame Tyer the next Marchetti
Who’s to blame ? Come on Dan so better maybe it’s your fault all you do is sit here and complain try doing something to help
Yes, NO. It’s THE PLANET’s fault!
Mayor Linda Tyer’s municipal budgets were record setting. Pittsfield has one of the top commercial tax rates in Massachusetts. She did stabilize the city’s municipal finances, but her administration operated in secrecy. When she received over $41 million in ARPA “Biden Buck$”, she continued her administration’s secrecy. Even the Dirty Bird (Berkshire Eagle) criticized her over her lack of transparency in municipal finances.
Mayor Peter Marchetti will propose a municipal operating budget this upcoming Spring 2024. I predict that he will increase municipal and public school spending by between 5 percent to 10 percent beginning on July 1st, 2024. I hope that I am wrong because many city taxpayers are struggling with their household and/or small business personal finances. The question I have is will he be secretive like former Mayor Linda Tyer was, or will he open up the city’s (cooked) books to the public?
Jon Melle
Is one really any different than the other? Neither one of them wants to see an audit come down the pike.
You can always tell when Dan makes up his sources and is too lazy to do any research.
Northern Tree Service is a bidded vendor. They have a contract that specifies rates per hour.
An event was declared during a prior years storm and it takes time for the invoices to be approved. This is doubly true when the even funding might come from MEMA, MIIA, or FEMA.
when the lies Dan puts out are so blatant and false that a junior purchasing officer for any tiny Town would know it’s a lie, it’s pretty pathetic. Tree companies and large municipal vendors understand this but none of Dan’s imaginary “sources” do.
VIGO
Yeah, as if the “slipped through the cracks” and those willing to speak about it can be dismissed so easily.
For storm events, snow, wind, flooding, tornados a municipality can overspend its budget.
When there are events and if the State or MEMA via the State declare it an emergency they often pay. Under normal conditions the city would pay it, if an even has been declared it would be a question of subrogation. Will FEMA pay for it, MEMA, MIIA? It sometimes takes months just to clear one agency.
All of your “experts” act as if this doesn’t happen all the time, which means your experts are not experts at all or you fabricated this little story.
This is such a common occurrence in municipal finance that legislation was passed to allow for deficit spending in certain municipal accounts such as snow removal.
This is a fabricated controversy and you’ve played your hand in your fabrication of experts.
Still unsure, if you look at any city or town in the Commonwealth, there’s often a line item showing missed past year invoice even for mundane things like office supplies. Storms and snow removal often top the list of missed invoices due to the nature of the subrogation for pay.
I don’t see how this is from Northern Tree Service nor if this is for the March 2023 storm. What trees did they work on, what were their hours of operation. From my memory there wasn’t much of a storm back then with damage in Pittsfield
It’s some document referring to FY2021. Therefore, it’s a municipal doc. Could be anything. Could even be nothing. They already lost the argument when Marchetti said, “Probably should have issued a PO at the time but I think I can explain it.
He admits the administrative mistake and admits it needs to be explained.
Note to sycophants: I’m being much more generous in my language than some others.
It’s the bid sheet for the removal contract for two years it’s not an invoice. This is why people are so easily lead around by the nose here. They don’t even know what they are looking at.
It is nothing: not documented didn’t happen.
So full crew 375$ per hour 48,000÷400=120hours , three weeks to clean up debris?
Nice try, perhaps you should of payed attention in math class.
Thanks for removing all doubt, that it was not blatant fraud.
Vigorous
You must be an attorney or a cop, average 12 year old could of done that math on head.
Peter sticky fingers , hand stuck in cookie jar !
I’m sure timmy ” the fixer” Shagrue, will give the investigation a good leaving alone.
That is a bid sheet for the contract to do hourly work for the city. You lack the sophistication to tell the difference between a bid sheet from a request for contract bid and an invoice.
The purpose for a bid sheet is to predict invoices.
You should be able to generate the line items on the bills (48,000) from bid specs.
Yup that’s a straight forward bid sheet alright. Still missing an invoice.
The invoice was part of the public record. This was refuting Dan’s libelous comments that this was a no bid contract.
THE PLANET never said it was a no-bid contract. Read what I print, not what you fantasize,
Where are the other competing bids? Can you provide fragments of them too?
As part of public record, the Council should have at least asked to see the invoices. Not just one invoice but several. They should exercise ‘professional skepticism.’
Whose bid sheet is it?
2021
“ An order authorizing $48,820 for the Department of Public Services to pay Northern Tree Services for debris clearance and restoration work after a March 2023 storm was approved.”
I don’t see how that request for 48K (it’s a Council Order not an invoice) pertains to a 2021 document with no identifying marks on it. Could you provide a full form?
Why did you truncate the PDF?
This only proves that a bid form existed in 2021. Where is the copy of the PO/contract agreement- you know, that LEGAL document, between City of Pittsfield and Northern Tree Service?
Allegrone Requests Tax Incentive for North Street ProjectBy Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
12:37PM / Monday, March 11, 2024Print Story | Email Story
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A tax increment exemption has been proposed for Allegrone Construction Co.’s $18 million overhaul of two North Street properties.
Tuesday’s City Council agenda includes a requested 10-year TIE for the $17.8 million project that redevelops the historic Wright Building and the Jim’s House of Shoes property.
The project will combine the two buildings into one development, retaining the commercial storefronts on North Street and providing 35 new rental units, 28 of which will be market-rate units and seven of which will be affordable units.
“Both buildings are underutilized and in need of significant upgrades,” Director of Community Development Justine Dodds wrote in a communique to the council.
“The current economic conditions — locally, regionally, nationally— make it difficult for private investors to secure the commercial financing requires for redevelopment.”
Both buildings were shuttered around the time of the pandemic, with Jim’s House of Shoes closing its doors after about 80 years in business.
The TIE would freeze the current property values and base value, and phases in the increased property taxes that result from the upgrades, beginning at 100 percent forgiveness in the first year and decreasing by 10 percent each subsequent year over the term.
It is a requirement to receive state tax credits through the Housing Development Incentive Program.
The current assessed value of the properties is $497,900 for the Wright Building and $229,900 for the former Jim’s House of Shoes property. The redevelopment of these buildings is projected to increase the assessed value of each property to more than $2.5 million and more than $1.9 million, respectively.
WHY ARE MY TAXES SO HIGH? Because the big guys, who can afford to pay their fair share much more than the little guy, are being taken care of by the corner office. This, in a nutshell, spells out the beleaguered Pittsfield taxpayers hopeless situation. Do not wait for help as there is none coming from this mayor or council president.
This anticipates The Weekend Edition!
And when all the work is done he will have buildings worth over 4 million. Is he not also getting grant money from the state? Is this not what Stanley did?
And those condos will bring him a pretty penny forever after. The taxpayers are the only ones who lose on this deal. As usual.
And the he will request extended tax breaks just like Stanley right? Until he sells and makes a real killing.
A little change of pace for PI Day. It seems in Special Counselor Hur in his investigation of the life of private citizen Joe Biden found he had classified documents sprawled over unlocked in over 6 areas. Yes his basement, office, corvette, UPenn, UDeleware, his ghost writer and that private citizen and his ghost writer seemed to have destroyed over 100 pages. I’m not sure if anyone has worked with classified information but this is a major breach that the person committing them should be punished by jail time. Look at what has happened to the MA Air Force reservist that just leaked classified information. But for some reason the current DOJ is refusing to charge Joe Biden because he is cognitively incompetent?????
Another off topic comment for PI Day. The other day Natterjack defined communism as “from each according to his abilities. to each according to his needs”. Even with his definition he doesn’t see how America has transferred into a communistic system. The top 1% in income pay 50% of the taxes and the top 20% pay 80% of the taxes. The bottom 50% receive the benefits through free phones, free healthcare, free food, subsidized housing, free schooling, the list goes on. So now I would ask Natterjack which communistic country provides the environment he would choose to live in besides the USA
The top 1% have a tax rate of 46%. That’s government thievery. 3.14159 …
A communist is either a young person who sees inequity or an old crook.
I’m pretty happy living right here, thanks. If you and Dan want to consider the US a communist country given your definitions, I have no objection, but I think not many people will agree with you.
“I’m pretty happy living right here, thanks”
A frog’s last words.
Ricky Rumpus is now blaming the state for the collapse of the Dan Casey causeway after the city was warned some time ago by a former councilor at large candidate.
Oh Ricky, a lad with a heart ever so big,
In a job that just didn’t fit his gig.
His intentions were pure, his spirit was glad,
But his actions, alas, made the others quite sad.
He fumbled and stumbled, a spectacle of woes,
A square peg in a round hole, as the old saying goes.
Each task was a mountain, each report a deep sea,
And the morale of the office began to flee.
Yet, let’s not be harsh, for Ricky tried his best,
To conquer the trials, the ultimate test.
But sometimes in life, we must face the truth,
That some shoes are too large, some roles too uncouth.
So here’s to Ricky, and his unworn crown,
A reminder to all, to not let one another down.
For each has a place where they truly shine,
It’s just that Ricky’s, was
not in this line.
Sheer POETRY!
Pure Wadsworth.
You’re to poetry what Neil Armstrong was to cheeseburgers.
https://nadiaforcongress.com/
John Krol is a campaign representative for Nadia Milleron, who is opposing PAC Man Richie Neal for U.S. Congress.
https://theberkshireedge.com/sheffield-resident-milleron-running-against-congressman-richard-neal/
That’s amusing. Wonder how they connected.
January 6,2021 is a dry run for Vladimir Putins Trojan Horse DopeyDonTrump and his drugged up White House
There is a growing distrust in our government leaders and an appetite to audit them. Our State Auditor, Diana DiZioglio collected enough signatures on a ballot petition to audit our state legislature.
https://www.dianaforma.com/ballot