Alan F. Wohlstetter
Partner
215.299.2834
Alan focuses his practice on infrastructure, public finance, and public-private partnerships, with an emphasis in transportation, education and information technology.
Alan represented the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission in the creation of an historic public-public partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), projected to provide $83 billion over the next fifty years for roads, bridges, and public transit in Pennsylvania. One element of the plan is the potential tolling of Interstate 80 in Pennsylvania under a Federal Highway Administration Tolling Pilot Program. Alan assisted in drafting legislation which authorized the leasing from PennDOT of Interstate 80 and its tolling, which was ultimately signed into law as Act 44 by Governor Rendell on July 18, 2007. He was one of the lead participants in the drafting and negotiation of the lease agreement between the Commission and PennDOT, which put into effect the requirements of Act 44.
In the area of information technology, Alan was involved with the organization of Wireless Philadelphia, the first municipal wireless network planned for a major U.S. city. Alan also helped draft the finance plan and request for proposals for Wirefree Wilkes-Barre (PA), a municipal wireless system operating in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He drafted and negotiated the network agreement for this project, which was built entirely with private funds and is to include a regional video surveillance camera network to enhance community safety and serve as a force multiplier for local police.
Alan was hired by the School District of Philadelphia and then Mayor John Street to review the Charter School Law in an effort to make funding of charter schools more equitable. He also structured and closed the first publicly sold charter school financing in Pennsylvania, and has closed seven other charter school financings including bond financings for Independence Charter School and Boys Latin Charter School. Alan played a key role in designing, financing (on a tax-exempt basis), and implementing a Workers Compensation Savings Program which reduced the School District's workers compensation expenditures by over 10 percent. The School District also approached Alan to design a bond-financed Early Retirement Program, enabling the District to provide tax-deferred incentive payments to senior administrators and teachers, triggering a substantial reduction in operating expenses.
Beyond Fox Rothschild
Alan served as Fair Share Chair for the Hyde School in Bath, Maine, from 2009-2010, during which he achieved 94 percent parent participation and 100 percent faculty participation, exceeding revenue goals by 33 percent. He has also served as co-President of Operation Understanding, a leadership program for high school students in the African American and Jewish communities.
Client Resources
Succession Planning for Sustainable Charter Schools: Key Plan Elements That Allowed One Philadelphia Charter To Thrive After Its Founder’s Departure
View Recent Success Story
Building Charter Schools in Pennsylvania: How One Philadelphia Charter School Did It in Under a Year
View Recent Success Story
Practical Advice - Building Charter Schools in Pennsylvania
View Practical Advice Piece
Presentation at the Annual Conference of the Intelligent Transportation Society of Pennsylvania called P3s in Transportation: How They Can Work in our Region"
View Presentation PowerPoint
Presentation to the Schuylkill Valley Transportation Coalition: "Public-Private Partnerships in Transportation: Can They Work in Our Region?"
View Presentation PowerPoint
Case study webinar: "How One City Used a Public-Private Partnership To Create Its Municipal Video Surveillance Network"
View Webinar PowerPoint
Presentation at Secured Cities 2011 Conference: "Legal Issues in Video Surveillance: What to Watch Out For"
View Presentation PowerPoint