Feds Looking at NIZ Companies, Campaign Contributions

Though I usually avoid posting on weekends, I heard from someone on Friday who has seen the subpoenas and warrants served on Allentown.City Hall. As everyone knows, Reading City Hall was served with subpoenas and warrants. They were all authorized by Judge Legrome D. Davis, a federal district court judge. State Rep. Michael Schlossberg has seized on this as a reason to suggest that the investigation is limited to just Michael Fleck, who was campaign consultant to both city mayors.

That's a mistake, as review of the Allentown subpoenas and warrants make clear.

In the Allentown subpoenas and warrants, the FBI sought information concerning campaign contributions to any Allentown elected officials. In addition, they wanted the Mayor's interactions with about a half dozen high-powered law firms as well as about 20-25 companies doing projects on Allentown's Neighborhood Improvement Zone (NIZ).

The paperwork specifically lists J.B. Reilly's companies. So far as I know, this is the first indication that this investigation actually involves the NIZ.

Reading has nothing to do with the BIZ. But Schlossberg's own finance reports reveal that he does. I'll tell you about that on Monday.

Updated 10:00 pm. Ionically, The Morning Call was working on this story as well,  and its story published shortly after mine. It includes more detail, including an Abe Atiyeh connection. Atiyeh had been suing Pawlowski over billboards, but after hiring Fleck as a "consultant," things suddenly changed in his favor.