General Asphalt Paving Co., on Krewstown Road in Philadelphia, was accused in 2021 of setting up a shell subcontractor to circumvent the city's anti-discrimination contracting requirements.on Aug 15, 2023, 5:00 a.m. ET
Instead, the city increased one of General Asphalt’s contracts by $2 million, the acting controller noted.“When abuse of the system meant to boost minority-owned businesses is thoroughly documented and exposed, but the city is slow to act in sanctioning this misconduct,” Edacheril wrote, “the lack of urgency seems to reflect a lack of sincere commitment to equity.
General Asphalt provides a range of services beyond paving, including plumbing and heating repair, testing services for the Philadelphia Water Department, and boiler repair and maintenance. It has received tens of millions of dollars in city contracts going back decades, including about $10 million in the last six years.
Alexander DeSantis, the city’s inspector general, said on Monday he believed the investigation showed “significant abuses” by General Asphalt, but declined to discuss specifics because the debarment hearing had not taken place.Claims of special treatment The past two mayoral administrations have made significant progress in awarding contracts to a more diverse group of companies. Between 1998 and 2003, only 2.3% of city-contract dollars had gone to minority-owned firms and 2.2% to those owned by women, according to then-Councilmember W. Wilson Goode Jr.