Honest Abe Atiyeh: Protector of Homeless, Politicians, Prisoners (and His Pocket)

Abraham Atiyeh, referred to by Bill White as Allentown's Rajah of Rezoning, is one busy dude. Aside from his gig at Brookside Construction and Easton Ventures, he's worked hard on nursing homes, developments, Easton's Cinema Paradiso and a failed scheme to redevelop Nazareth's racetrack. He even persuaded Bethlehem planners to let him subdivide a cemetery for yet another assisted living facility! Residents there can select a burial plot from their window.

But there's a soft and tender side to Abe. For one thing, he just loves politicians, especially incumbents. I think he even keeps a few of them as pets.

Amount of money that developer Abe Atiyeh has given to candidates seeking state office since 2000: $260,000.

Amount of money to federal candidates, according to FEC records: $20,000.

Amount of money for local candidates: God only knows. Those records are unavailable online.

His nice list: Lisa Boscola ($8,250), Jenn Mann ($7,200) and Doug Reichley ($6,500).

His very nice list: John Morganelli, recipient of a whopping $51,000. Morganelli protege, Paula Roscioli, received another $16,300.

The other day, he dropped $5,000 on a homeless shelter, making a big production out of it. With big cardboard checks and wearing a wooden hat, too! To put things in perspective, Abe's 5 large is like a nickel from me. It's breadcrumbs to him.

Both The Morning Call and Express Times were all over his philanthropy like ham on rye. According to what he must have told The Express Times, he had no development projects pending in Bethlehem Township.

That must been have been one of those little white lies. According to today's Express Times, Honest Abe is preparing sketch plans for a 300 inmate prison rehab in Bethlehem Township along Fritch Drive. He loves the idea of treating nonviolent offenders instead of punishing them. And he'll really love those monthly checks from the county.

Am I attacking Atiyeh for giving money to the homeless? That's right bippy. He could easily afford to foot Bethlehem Township's entire bill. Then he'd be setting an example to other developers. This was just a PR stunt by a developer who thinks nothing of trying to litter MLK Boulevard with billboards, right next to a creek and parkway. Do you honestly think he really gives a damn about nonviolent offenders?

No, what he's doing is making Bethlehem Township supervisors feel guilty about their own refusal to fund the homeless so that he can get what he wants.

Following the Money: The Atiyeh Connection

Abraham Atiyeh, referred to by Bill White as Allentown's Rajah of Rezoning, is a busy dude. Aside from his gig at Brookside Construction and Easton Ventures, he's worked hard on nursing homes, developments, Easton's Cinema Paradiso and a failed scheme to redevelop Nazareth's racetrack. He even persuaded Bethlehem planners recently to let him subdivide a cemetery for yet another assisted living facility! Residents there can just look out the window and pick a spot.

As busy as he must be, Atiyeh still finds time for his favorite charity - politicians.

State campaign finance records reveal he's given candidates seeking state office over $260,000 since 2000. FEC records show another $20,000. And he gives generously to candidates seeking local office, although those records are unavailable online.

If they're good, elected officials can always look forward to an envelope in their Christmas stocking. His nice list includes Lisa Boscola ($8,250), Jenn Mann ($7,200) and Doug Reichley ($6,500). But not everyone is good. Craig Dally ($100), Rich Grucela ($0) and John Stoffa ($0) must be on the naughty list.

Naughty or nice, Abe's favorite local pol by far has to be John Morganelli, recipient of a whopping $51,000. A Morganelli protege, Paula Roscioli, received another $16,300 in Atiyeh money when John decided it was time for her to run for judge. Morganelli allies like Lamont McClure and Tony Branco have received $6,000 from Atiyeh and business partner Ramzi Haddad in their county council races. And guess what? They all use Morganelli's consultant, Tom Severson, although Branco denies that very unconvincingly.

So Atiyeh gives Morganelli money. Big deal. After all, how the hell can a DA help a developer?

That questioned was answered in 2003. At that time, Atiyeh was lobbying both Northampton County and Easton to get a KOZ tax break for Easton's Cinema Paradiso, which he had just picked up for $700,000. Morganelli quickly penned a letter to each member of city council, disingenuously telling them this area, located next to the police station, was crime-ridden. Atiyeh blew kisses and promised to bring in white collar businesses from Jersey. But after the KOZ was granted, he leased the Cinema Paradiso to another movie operator, who managed to go broke even with the tax break. Atiyeh recently unloaded a portion of this tract for $1.2 million, nearly doubling his money.

Now Atiyeh has a new scheme. He wants the county to team up with him and Lou Pektor to build a combination assisted living and prison center for nonviolent types in West Easton. Guess who's pushing that project? You got it. Although Morganelli has always claimed his job is done once someone is sentenced and refuses to participate in a periodic review of the prison population, he now is lobbying the county to team up with Atiyeh. That's why John did those robocalls claiming Branco is a crime dog. Tony lost anyway. But Morganelli can still count on Lamont McClure. After all, Lamont's wife works for Morganelli.

Northampton County desperately needs a recidivism center. But teaming up with Atiyeh for anything just rewards the "pay to play" mentality of most developers. And Morganelli needs to remember he's the DA - not the county executive.

I wonder if Abe Atiyeh is an illegal immigrant.