Thank you Nick Castele for your recent coverage of the on-going crimes committed by the Cuyahoga County Land Bank. I am sure that the timing of the upcoming trail had nothing to do with the sudden realization to provide some coverage at Ideastream. I am writing this on Sunday - my day off from work. The HR record at my place of employment will show I have been harassed by Tony Brancatelli and Jim Rokakis for writing about the land bank and demolitions at the website Realneo.us
I hope you will take some time to read the extensive coverage by Eric J Brewer. I am excerpting from the article, "Illegal Noble Rd Dump Operator Headed to Trail in 2019," to help the local media understand the tentacles of this corruption:
The trial is scheduled for June 24, 2019 in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas and has been assigned to Judge Sean Gallagher. DeWine wants Riley and Beynon to pay $10,000 a day in fines for every day they were in violation of state laws that prohibitted illegal dumping. EJBNEWS obtained a copy of the letter DeWine’s office is sending to potential witnesses.
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Illegal Noble Road dump operator headed for trial in 2019
EAST CLEVELAND, OH - Witnesses are starting to receive notices from Ohio Attorney General Richard Michael DeWin...
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Recalled ex-Mayor Gary Norton, Council President Thomas Wheeler and current Mayor Brandon King rigged the ordinance enactment process laws found in Title 7, East Cleveland’s charter, ordinances, and councils rules to deliver the GE site to Riley in 2014.
Norton, Wheeler and King pushed council to pass Resolution No. 11-14 delivering the property to Ohio Rock, LLC for $125,000 as an emergency.
(Note the property was in the East Cleveland Land Bank)
the “city” transferred the title of the property to 1705 Noble Road Properties, LLC on May 1, 2014; the $10 title transfer was made by Norton in violation of the landbank ordinance without a resolution or council approval. Landbank properties must remain in the city’s name for two years until the intent of the resolution is fulfilled or else it reverts back to the city. Council controls a city’s property.
Transfer Date: 5/1/2014 2:35:00 PM
AF Number:
Receipt:
Parcel
Deed Type
Vol / Page
Sales Amt
Convey Fee
Convey No
Multiple Sale / No of Parcels
673-01-011 |
Quit Claim Deed |
/ |
$125,000.00 |
$500.00 |
302898 |
0 / 1 |
Grantee(s) Grantor(s) 1705 NOBLE ROAD PROPERTIES, LLC CITY OF EAST CLEVELAND LAND REUTILIZATION PROGRAM
1705 Noble Rd Properties was incorporated by attorney Michael George.
You will note that Michael George also incorporated the company affiliated w/ Christine Beynon - which you mentioned at the end of your Ideastream interview w/Michael McIntyre at 26:54 minutes. "I was not able to really see hard evidence of this business arrangement that they had with the land bank until I was able to go through Christine Beynon's bankruptcy filing.."
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History Of East Cleveland Dump Site; "What We Keep" Co-author
What one personal treasure will you keep forever?
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AMERICAN METAL AND WOOD SALVAGE, INC.
Company Number
2283085
Status
Held
Incorporation Date
1 April 2014 (about 5 years ago)
Company Type
CORPORATION FOR PROFIT
Jurisdiction
Ohio (US)
Registered Address
AKRON
United States
Inactive Directors / Officers
MICHAEL E. GEORGE, incorporator
I asking that your coverage should note this arrangement and seek to interview Michael George, who I am sure has been contacted by the Ohio Attorney General. Your coverage seems to exculpate the Cuyahoga County Land Bank by implying that this is all on the Ohio EPA for not checking the permits for "It was EPA's job..."
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Million-dollar Dump in East Cleveland
Nick Castele
The cleanup of Arco Recycling cost Ohio taxpayers $9.1 million. But that’s not the only way the public was caugh...
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From your recent coverage:
After RCI Services, Riley was involved with a second land bank contractor called American Metal and Wood Salvage, according to land bank contracts. Bankruptcy records list Christina Beynon as the owner of both AMW Salvage and Arco Recycling. She is also a defendant in the attorney general’s lawsuit.
In total, RCI Services and AMW Salvage received about $3 million to knock down more than 360 structures, taking rubble from most properties to Arco, according to land bank records .
I would also ask your coverage to credit Eric J Brewer for the lion share of effort needed to get the Noble Rd dump cleaned up. There are many fingers pointing to a failure of local government, but you need to credit Eric J Brewer for getting the Ohio EPA - one, to shut down the dump and two, to get it cleaned up. He is not saying anything now - because he is going to be part of the trail.
I am cc.ing local government representatives because Dan Brady - you continue to fund this outfit. It is a criminal enterprise. My own personal skin in this game started when I noticed demolitions happening in Old Brooklyn-Brooklyn Centre neighborhoods, WHILE "Land Bank" guru Jim Rokakis controlled the council person he installed -Merle R. Gordon. Overnight demolitions that obviously put quick money into someone's pocket. The media will never attempt to unravel these arrangements, because it is so hard to identify one person to blame at the local government level for this failure to prevent fraud and corruption.
As Brewer points out- original illegal transfer of the Noble Rd site to the 1705 Noble Rd Properties - will probably hold the City of East Cleveland liable for all of these crimes committed by the Land Bank incorporated operation:
Norton and Riley’s criminal acts of deception voided the resolution and automatically reversed ownership iof the Noble Road property back to the city. But King, who became mayor after Norton’s recall in December 2015, took no steps to close the dump, enforce the resolution that instructed Riley and Beynon to redevelop the property or to have the ex-mayor’s illegal acts investigated and prosecuted.
Noble Road resident Harry Drummond, whose wife, children and grandchildren breathed in the deadly toxins the dump spewed into the air for nearly 4 years, told EJBNEWS he saw King enter and leave the trailer where Riley operated his office after residents complained. King publicly-announced after his quick meeting with Riley that the dump was legal and safe.
The intentionally vague structure and oversight of the Cuyahoga County Land Bank, allows it to constantly shape-shift to avoid investigation by the Cuyahoga County IG Mark Griffin and in this incidence w/the Noble Rd dump, shift blame entirely to the City of East Cleveland. I am also cc.ing Cuyahoga County's Mary Louise Madigan, because in 2017, Jerry Strothers uncovered that George Michael Riley enjoyed special accommodations while he lived in Cleveland
Cuyahoga County Land Bank - Land Banking at a profit for those well connected - | REALNEO for all .
Local media - should mine the content that is unfortunately now only accessible via the Wayback machine:
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Phones really ringing off the hook about this video – 44112News
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It should also be noted that the Cuyahoga County Land Bank currently holds 416 properties in EAST CLEVELAND. And they are trying to unload them as fast as possible...with whole streets like Brightwood being transferred.
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Cuyahoga County Land Bank - Land Banking at a profit for those well con...
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I will archive all of this at REALNEO and I hope that justice prevails in the trail. There are several names that should also be TAGGED on every story about the Land Bank, as the late Jerry Strothers understood in his coverage - Tony Brancatelli, Jim Rokakis, Gus Frangos, Cheryl Stephens, Brandon King, George Michael Riley, Christine Beynon, Michael George.