Business Owner Still Receiving City Contracts Despite Defrauding City

By Chuck Sudo in News on Dec 6, 2010 2:30PM

Call it a classic case of "the Chicago Way:" a lumber company owner who admitted in court to helping defraud the city has still received more city contracts. According to a Tribune report, Arrow Lumber Company owner Donald Beal has continued to win city contracts three years after he testified to aiding former city trades supervisor Kevin O'Gorman in a billing scheme where taxpayer-purchased building materials were diverted for O'Gorman's personal use.

O'Gorman was acquitted of the charges earlier in January. In acquitting O'Gorman, however, Cook County Judge Steven Goebel offered this rebuke of Beal:

"Mr. Beal did get on the stand, admitted to defrauding the city, but obviously blamed (O'Gorman). I find parts of Mr. Beal's testimony absolutely dishonest and unbelievable."

City officials told the tribune that they began the process of blacklisting Arrow Lumber of doing city business in September. That would cancel out a five-year contract Arrow was awarded by the city, a half-million dollar contract with the Park District for roofing tools and materials and a kitchenwares contract with the public schools system in which Arrow Lumber is a minority-owned subcontractor.

Beals's attorney James Marcus questioned the timing of the action by the city, saying that they knew for three years about Beals's involvement with O'Gorman and that the actions reek as little more than CYA. Law Department spokeswoman Jennifer Hoyle told the Tribune the city couldn't move forward with disbarring Arrow Lumber from doing more city business while O'Gorman's trial was still in progress.