It's done.
It's been delivered.
And it's a secret.
That's the status of a fiscal monitoring review conducted by the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) into how funding was spent from a $500,000 anchor building grant designated for the Allegheny Center for the Arts project at 225-229 Liberty Street in downtown Warren.
"We have issued Warren's fiscal monitoring report," a statement released on Thursday from DCED Deputy Press Secretary Theresa Elliott said. "While the report is confidential, I can confirm that DCED has sent recommendations to the city and the city is deciding how to respond."
Acting City Manager Mary Ann Nau confirmed that the city has received the audit.
"The city is in receipt of the report," Nau said on Friday. "We have formed an internal committee working to prepare a response due back to DCED by July 30."
Nau declined to elaborate.
DCED and Nau both indicated that the review could not be released publicly.
What comes next isn't clear.
"Any further action by DCED, depends on how the City of Warren responds to our recommendations," the DCED statement said.
Emphasizing that "significant ambiguities exist" in the handling of grants by the city, state officials announced last December that a fiscal monitoring review would be conducted on the grant, two years before the contract was scheduled to undergo a standard audit.
In November 2011, John Onorato, northwest regional director for DCED, sent then-City Manager Jim Nelles a letter, first mentioning the possibility of a review on the grant.
"Although there is much that is unknown about the current status of the project and how funds that were intended to be used on this project were spent, there are three facts which are known," Onorato said in the letter.
Those facts, Onorato wrote, include: All grants given to the city for the Liberty Street project have been spent; the building has not been renovated; and additional funds will be needed to complete the project.
The letter is dated Nov. 21, and mentions a meeting between Onorato, Nelles and city Planner/Development Administrator David Hildebrand which took place three days earlier.
"In addition, based upon our conversation, there is serious doubt in my mind that the funds granted to the city and lent to GRO-Warren will ever become part of any revolving loan program," Onorato said, emphasizing that the funds were to become a city-wide grant for business development once money was returned in the form of rent.
"Since the full amount of the grant has been spent and significant ambiguities exist, it is my recommendation that the audit be performed now," Onorato explained.