Questions over charter school payments to contractor

REGINA MEDINA, Daily News Staff Writer medinar@phillynews.com, 215-854-5985 Posted: Friday, December 5, 2014, 3:01 AM

EMPLOYEES AT Olney Charter School are questioning the payment of thousands of dollars to a contractor hired to paint the school because they say they do not recollect that a contractor ever did work at Olney.

According to invoices from the school, ASPIRA Inc. of Pennsylvania, the North Philadelphia charter-school operator that manages Olney, paid $163,365 to Lyon Contracting Inc. to paint the school in 2011. But employees who recently learned of the payments say school janitors and building maintenance workers performed the work.

The Daily News interviewed 10 current and former employees who worked at Olney or ASPIRA around the time Lyon billed for the work. Each recounted what happened inside the school on the condition that their names not be published, citing fear of retaliation from ASPIRA.

Almost "everything in that place got done by us. Every single thing," said one Olney staffer. "I never see anyone rolling no brush but us. It was always me and the crew."

Added another employee who worked at Olney in 2011: "I have never seen a paint company here."

The employees said that among the areas they painted were the cafeteria, hallways, staircases and gym - the same areas Lyon billed for between Aug. 26 and Nov. 21, 2011 for work on unspecified dates.

ASPIRA controller Orlando Rendon Jr. denied any suggestion that Lyon did not do the work.

"That's inaccurate," he said when told of the claims. "I saw them painting."

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Questions over charter school payments to contractor