Armstrong School District Solicitor Gary Matta announced the moot lawsuit regarding the Elderton K-12 school complex asbestos abatement at the August 22 meeting of the school board directors. The lawsuit is separate from the overall lawsuit against school directors abating the schools.
by Jonathan Weaver
A lawsuit against Armstrong School Board directors has been denied by a judge.
School District Solicitor Gary Matta announced to school directors at their August monthly board meeting that one litigation suit filed against asbestos abatement at Elderton K-12 was denied.
“We received an Order of the Court Friday dismissing certain motions because of being moot,” Matta said. “That litigation was all regarding the asbestos.”
The Emergency Motion for Special Relief was filed on June 28, 2011 on behalf of School Board Directors Chris Choncek, James Rearic and Joseph Close and nominated directors Paul Lobby, Larry Robb, Amy Lhote and Stanley Berdell after directors voted to rescind the abatement contract to ABMECH, Inc. and award it to Environmental Assurance Co., Inc. instead.
Environmental Assurance bid $203,000 for the contract and was the second-lowest bidder behind ABMECH initially. The company also abated asbestos from Kittanning Sr. High this past summer.
The Plantiff’s attorney, Chuck Pascal, explained why the charges were thrown out by Clarion County Principal Judge James G. Arner.
“He never ruled on it. In the meantime, it became moot because the work was done,” Pascal said. “So by agreement, we allowed for that to be denied with our consent. That had to do with the new contract at Elderton.”
“It was the replacement contract when the one contractor pulled out,” Pascal continued.
Erie County Senior Judge John A. Bozza was appointed to hear arguments for the case, but after work had been completed on-site.
“My argument was there would be no bond required for that because they hadn’t put out any money yet, and they just hired the contractor the day before, “(Judge) Arner heard argument on that, never ruled, withdrew from the case and Judge Bozza was appointed,” Pascal said.
An appeal is pending on the original lawsuit over the asbestos abatement projects. That appeal has not yet been scheduled for court.