More Questions About Moales’ Daycare Facilities

Jonathan Pelto, who’s filed an exploratory committee for an independent candidacy for governor, posted his latest story on Thursday regarding Board of Education member Ken Moales’ controversial day care facilities.

Question: Did the Malloy administration inappropriately aid and abet Moales’ in his successful effort to get a third daycare facility license on his property?

Question: Did Mayor Finch and his top staff help Moales get around zoning and code requirements for his new daycare facility?

Question: Although Moales was caught inappropriately billing taxpayers for more than $75,000, did Moales still collect more than what he was legally allowed to collect?

And the most important QUESTION of all … Are children in a daycare center and church run school that does not have a permanent certificate of occupancy and did not meet the legal requirements to be licensed?

These questions all arise from files of new evidence that has surfaced.

The documents raise the specter of potentially legal and financial wrongdoing by Reverend Kenneth Moales Jr. and his family as it relates to their newly acquired, state financed daycare center. The new center joins two others that are owned and operated by Moales’ family and rent space from Moales.

The fact is that every month, the taxpayers of Connecticut shell out tens of thousands of dollars in payments to a series of daycare centers owned by the Moales family, all of which are housed on church property that is owned and operated by Kenneth Moales.

Reverend Kenneth Moales Jr. is a key political ally of Mayor Bill Finch and Governor Dannel “Dan” Malloy.

Moales served on Malloy’s illegal Bridgeport Public School Oversight Board and then won a seat on the re-constituted board thanks to Mayor Bill Finch. As a Bridgeport Board of Education Member, and eventually as its chairman, Moales who was one of Paul Vallas’ biggest supporters and helped move the public school privatization effort that was designed by Vallas and Stefan Pryor, Malloy’s Commissioner of Education.

The newly acquired documents call out for an independent investigation into whether Moales or others violated civil and criminal laws.

Full story here.

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9 comments

  1. This just gets more outrageous by the minute. Not only did Moales fraudulently bill both the BBOE and the CSDE while he was serving as the chair of the Bridgeport Board of Education, he is also running an illegal K-8 school and daycare at his new church. Everyone involved with this should be fully investigated. This involves possible criminal fraud which has ripped off the taxpayers. We have children as young as three years old in a daycare and school that have no zoning approvals, building inspections and the required Certificate of Occupancy. Yet these are the very same people who always speak about doing what is best for children. Malloy and Finch should immediately distance themselves from Moales. Moales has to go!

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    1. Yeah, let us know when that happens. I will believe it when I see it. According to everyone, everyone in BPT is on the verge of investigation and arrest. Yet since Newton, nothing and Newton was not even on the radar. Four unsubstantiated questions. The answers to those questions are no, no, no and yes. What evidence? What documents? Last time Pelto promised us this kind of info it turned out to be a billing error he was squawking about. Pull the fire inspector’s record on any school in town. Find one with fewer than 10 violations. Exit signs with broken bulbs, broken exit doors signs, broken emergency lights, and fire extinguisher boxes with the red sticker removed. These things are common, minor and acts of vandalism. The CO and zoning thing is old news. Do you think it would be out of the norm to expedite these things for a church daycare? Parents need this service so they can go to work. If the city closes the daycare for this foolish reason those parents lose a day’s pay. The CO and zoning is little more than a rubber stamp. Pelto asks for a full-fledged investigation. I thought the billing error was found due to a full-fledged investigation. It is not up to Finch to ensure state laws are equitably enforced and taxpayer funds properly monitored. The mayor does not really ensure city laws are equitably enforced. The police do. The state needs to equitably enforce its laws and the BOE needs to be sure taxpayer funds are properly monitored. If the BOE were properly monitoring taxpayer funds they would not have paid Kingdom’s Little Ones for kids who were not in the BOE’s program in the first place. Sooner or later we will have an election and the voters will decide if Moales needs to be removed (and he probably will). The voters will make the same choice about the WFP. Time will tell.

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  2. *** There is a long-time children’s Daycare that is in need of a “little help” from the City or State but can’t seem to get any of these “busy” politicians to either stop in or give a phone call to Sister Teresa at the Daughters of Charity on North Ave. in Bpt. This community Daycare has been helping citizens of that area and Bpt. for years with religious counseling, a food pantry, clothing pantry and daycare for children 3 to 5 years of age! I go there from time to time to cut grass, rake and clean the backyard daycare area for the kids and the facility. But they have other minor needs right now that need addressing to help keep the Daycare open for the community. It’s right across the street from the fairly new elementary school, Geraldine Johnson School. I believe Tom McCarthy is the district city council person who represents this area on North Ave. Let’s hope Tom gives this wonderful daycare and lady, a phone call at least, no? *** “SHE WILL BE PRAYING FOR ALL GOD’S CHILDREN” ***

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  3. BOE SPY, you make up every excuse in the book to repeatedly justify Finch and Moales ignoring the law. If receiving both a permanent CO and the proper zoning approvals is simply a “rubber stamp” issue, why isn’t it done and taken care of? The Department of Public Health’s own policy requires a PERMANENT certificate of occupancy to receive a daycare license. City Ordinances requires the owner of a proposed daycare to file an application with Zoning so the daycare can be inspected for code violations before it is approved. The K-8 school requires the owner to file an application for a Special Permit with the Zoning Board of Appeals, and that was never done. Then we have the issue of Moales’ sister filing an application with Zoning to build classrooms for the daycare, but she never submits the application to the Building Department. You have to have a Building Permit to build new classrooms, they have to be inspected and then the Building Department has to issue a CO. It is clear 3-5-year-old children are in classrooms that have never been inspected by Zoning or Building inspectors, therefore these children’s safety is at risk. Just because others ignore the law doesn’t mean it is okay for the Mayor or board member Moales.

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  4. BOE SPY, Pelto repeatedly referenced specific dates, high-level Finch appointees by name, emails, fire inspector reports, specific quotes, etc. … yet you make it sound as if the story is completely made up. The CSDE did not conduct an extensive audit, they only examined March-July 2013. This matter should have been referred to the CT State Attorney’s Office for a complete, thorough and independent investigation.

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    1. David Moore,
      BOE SPY is the king/queen of false equivalence!

      And yes, this “SPY’s” arguments always favor the side of Finch and Moales. Great company, SPY!

      By BOE SPY’s logic, Ganim should still be mayor, right? Hey, break the law, but as long as the voters don’t mind (in a city where about 11-15% of those who are registered to vote do vote) … you’re A-OK. I think Putin and Ali Khamenei would love BOE SPY’s logic.

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  5. Okay, read page 3.
    www .bridgeportct.gov/filestorage/89019/89540/97356/155339/155342/195115/155348/ZBA_MINUTES_-_September_9,_2013.pdf

    In 2006 they were granted approval for a development plan for the construction of a house of worship. He said the plan was to build it in three phases. Phase 1 has been completed and includes a full sanctuary, Classrooms for K-8 and a daycare facility.
    It has recently come to their attention the proper final paperwork, including construction documents, was never filed with the City to complete the project, and consequently no final Certificate of Occupancy was ever issued. He stated all paperwork has now been provided to the City and reviewed. Additional landscaping and changes to the parking lot will be required and they have every intention of completing that to the City’s satisfaction. He further stated it is their intention to move forward with Phase 2 and assured the Commission they will be filing all necessary paperwork from this time forward.

    It looks like the zoning was approved in 2006. The CO was an error and that was resolved. Do you read this differently?

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  6. BOE SPY, the Zoning Board of Appeals application filed in 2006 was to build a “Church or House of Worship,” not a K-8 school or a daycare. Maybe you should read the Zoning Board of Appeals minutes from 2006. There were four specific conditions that were requirements for the approval for a Special Permit in 2006. Were the four conditions met? No they were not. In addition, on September 9, 2009, a variance was granted with the condition all landscaping had to be completed by November 1, 2013. Has that requirement been met? Doubt it. The Cathedral of the Holy Spirit does not have a CO as of today, it only has a temporary CO, which is not allowed for either a daycare or school.

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    1. Go to page 19. Same link:
      RE: #8 729 Union Avenue – Petition of Prayer Tabernacle Church of Love, Inc. – Seeking a modification of the approved plan of development on a petition granted with conditions by the Zoning Board of Appeals on 04/18/2006 pertaining to the construction of a house of worship in an R-C zone.
      **COMMISSIONER EAGEN MOVED TO APPROVE ITEM #8 729 UNION AVENUE – SEEKING A MODIFICATION OF THE APPROVED PLAN OF DEVELOPMENT ON A PETITION GRANTED WITH CONDITIONS BY THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS ON 04/18/2006 PERTAINING TO THE CONSTRUCTION OF A HOUSE OF WORSHIP IN AN R-C ZONE WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS:
      1. ALL PLANTINGS, AS PICTURED ON THE REVISED SITE PLAN, SHALL BE INSTALLED PRIOR TO 11/01/13.
      2. ANY FUTURE ADDITIONS TO THIS PROJECT WILL NECESSITATE ADDITIONAL APPROVALS BY THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS. FOR THE FOLLOWING REASON: THE ADDITION OF A POOL AND BOWLING ALLEY WAS NOT FEASIBLE AT THE TIME OF CONSTRUCTION.
      **COMMISSIONER GRACE SECONDED
      **THE MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY

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