Norwich — A key figure in the major renovation of the Ponemah Mill in Taftville was convicted several years ago on felony state and federal charges in New York City in connection with what the New York police commissioner called “one of the largest cases in the city's history” involving organized crime in both public and privately financed construction projects.
Finbar O'Neill, director of operations for Onekey LLC, pleaded guilty to separate state and federal charges stemming from the three-year investigation into wage-fixing, bribery and allegations of falsified business records in association with the Lucchese crime family from 1997 to 1999.
O'Neill pleaded guilty in 2004 to the state charge of falsifying business records and was sentenced to three years of conditional discharge, five years' probation, five years of government monitoring and a $50,000 fine. He was one of 38 individuals charged in connection with 11 companies in the state investigation.
In 2009, the FBI handed down 10 indictments, including one against O'Neill, in its investigation into the Carpenters union and the wage-fixing scheme. O'Neill pleaded guilty May 20, 2010, to one count each of conspiracy to make unlawful payments to union representatives and making unlawful payments to union representatives.
He was sentenced Sept. 9, 2011, to serve six months in a residential re-entry facility, five years' probation, a $10,000 fine and was ordered to make restitution payments to the District Council of Carpenters Benefit Funds totaling $112,704.
O'Neill said Thursday he considers his past criminal record to be “in the rear view mirror.” He has made full restitution and is moving on to create a positive legacy going forward, including a pledge to deliver a high-quality development at the Ponemah Mill. O'Neill said he still gets some questions about his past at construction projects, but “not as much anymore.”
“I'm absolutely sure it's over, and I learned a lot not to make any mistakes like that again,” O'Neill said Thursday. “... It's in the rear, and I'm doing what's right for society and for my family. It's one of those things I wish didn't happen, but it did, and we're getting past it.”
According to the federal and state records, the scheme involved eight construction projects, both public and private, including O'Neill's firm, Terra Firma Construction Management and General Contracting LLC. The state indictment said the Lucchese Construction Group, dubbed “a criminal organization” by the New York district attorney, was involved in bid-rigging and wage-fixing schemes that defrauded union workers of wages.
The investigation revealed that contractors billed public entities and private developers as if they had paid the union prevailing wages, but instead bribed top union officials to allow the use of non-union labor at the eight construction sites. Payments also were made to organized crime officials, called the “mob tax” in the indictment, to facilitate the scheme.
The state indictment said O'Neill used associates in the Lucchese crime family to coerce a contractor to remove a lien from a project, paid the so-called “mob tax” and falsified business records to conceal it.
The Ponemah Mill project in Taftville has received two rounds of state funding for the first two phases of construction, including $8.25 million from the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority for the $30 million first phase set to be completed by October, and a $6.1 million grant through the Competitive Housing Assistance for Multifamily Properties (CHAMP) for the $32 million second phase of construction.
O'Neill's conviction and involvement in the New York wage-fixing scheme were known to Connecticut officials who approved state housing grants, according to state Department of Housing spokesman Daniel A. Arsenault.
Arsenault provided email answers to questions posed to state officials by The Day this week on O'Neill's criminal past.
O'Neill is not listed as an owner either in Onekey LLC or the mill ownership company, Ponemah Riverbank LLC, Arsenault said. O'Neill's wife Paula O'Neill, was listed as the owner and president of Onekey and owner of Ponemah Riverbank. The O'Neills were interviewed together, including “a frank discussion” of the husband's criminal convictions, as part of the state's review of the application, he said. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Hamden settles lawsuit for $1 million over renovation of town hall, police station
HAMDEN >> The town has settled a lawsuit brought two years ago against the contractor in charge of the problem-plagued Memorial Town Hall/Police Department renovation project.
The Legislative Council recently approved the settlement that calls for the town to receive more than $1 million from the construction manager, as well as several subcontractors. Two council members were on the building committee overseeing the project: John DeRosa, who served as chairman, and Kath Schomaker, who called the experience “a nightmare” because of all of the problems that cropped up.
The litigation against the construction manager came from a desire to protect the interests of taxpayers, Mayor Curt Balzano Leng said.“The town has been steadfast in its commitment to protecting the fiscal interests of its taxpayers following numerous challenges that arose during this project,” Leng said. “The town commenced litigation in 2014 against the construction manager and the litigation expanded to include the project architect and two of the trade contractors. Following a lot of work and multiple mediation sessions, the town has successfully resolved the litigation and has recovered over $1 million.”The town in 2008 signed a contract with Ashforth Properties Construction LLC, choosing the company to act as the construction manager for the project, which was known as the “Adaptive Reuse of Memorial Town Hall and Addition of a New Police Headquarters.”
According to the suit, the company, “despite being paid in excess of $2 million by the town for the project, repeatedly and persistently failed to perform the work in accordance with the contract documents, failed to timely perform required services and failed to fulfill its obligations under the contract.”Representatives from Ashforth, located in Stamford, were not available for comment.Because of the construction manager’s failure to oversee work done in the building, there was a long list of problems, the suit claims, including to the floors in the Police Department and the Council Chambers; uneven floor levels that led to the need for ramps; extra costs due to delays caused by the construction manager failing to coordinate the work being done by subcontractors; work that had to be done over because it didn’t meet building codes; and a failure to procure temporary heat for the building during construction.The work began in 2009 and was finished in 2013, but Ashforth was dismissed from the project in 2012, according to the suit. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE