Nicholas F. Catania, former Delaware County Council chairman

Nicholas F. Catania, 86, of Ridley Township, a former chairman of the Delaware County Council and a major force in suburban Republican politics for nearly a half-century, died Tuesday, Aug. 21, at Fair Acres Geriatric Center, the county's long-term care facility in Lima.

A family member said the cause was Parkinson's disease and diabetes.

Dominic Pileggi, the Delaware County Republican who is the state Senate majority leader, issued a statement saying Mr. Catania "was one of the three or four most influential individuals in Delaware County" over the last four decades.

"He had a great sense of humor and enjoyed very broad and deep support from people in Delaware County," Pileggi said. "He will be sorely missed."

Charles Sexton, Republican Party chairman in Springfield, Delaware County, from 1976 to 2007, recalled Wednesday that Mr. Catania's influence as a GOP leader extended past the borders of his hometown and his county.

"He was a prime player in Pennsylvania politics," Sexton said. "He was respected statewide."

Mr. Catania, Sexton said, was "a no-B.S. guy. When he said something, he meant it. Nick had a reputation for keeping his word."

For decades, Catania spelled power in Delaware County government and politics. While Mr. Catania headed the County Council, his brother Francis was president judge of the county court. When both were about to step down in 1990, an Inquirer story was headlined "Brothers Catania: The End of an Era."

In an earlier part of that era, Mr. Catania served on the "War Board," the seemingly all-powerful committee that ruled the county Republican Party. Though Democrats' numbers have risen in recent years, the GOP has held majority control of the county's government since the late 19th century.

One of the few Democrats to run and win in Delaware County when the Catanias were in power was Bob Edgar, who served in Congress from 1975 to 1987. On Wednesday, Edgar, a minister who now heads the national civic-reform group Common Cause, said of Mr. Catania, "There were a handful of people in Delaware County who controlled the county with an iron fist. And that's part of his strength and part of his weakness."

Mr. Catania resigned as council chairman because the county charter forbade a third consecutive term. The same year, his brother reached 70, the mandatory retirement age. Francis Catania died in 2010 at 89.

High among the accomplishments of Nicholas Catania, Sexton said Wednesday, was the county's purchase of a Berks County landfill to use for its own trash - "a brilliant move on his part," Sexton said. "That operation has saved the county tens of millions of dollars and a lot of aggravation."

He said Mr. Catania was remarkable in his private life, too.

"He was a devout Catholic, and he took his religion seriously," Sexton said. "And I defy you to find someone that led a better life than him."

Another admirer who pointed to the landfill purchase was Andrew J. Reilly, former chairman of the County Council and current head of the county GOP executive committee. He said Mr. Catania "basically coordinated the collection of trash from all 49 municipalities," which had previously paid third parties to haul trash away.

In Ridley, he said, Mr. Catania never lost his popularity. Named GOP chief there in 1963 but inactive in recent years, Mr. Catania was "listed as cochairman until the day he passed," Reilly said.

Thomas Judge Sr., chairman of the Delaware County GOP from 1975 to 2010, said, "Nick Catania was a fine gentleman."

In his political dealings, Judge said, "he always asked your opinion, and he would tell you his opinion, and the individuals would be able to agree. A very fair individual."

Born in Ridley, Mr. Catania earned a bachelor's degree at what is now La Salle University and served as an infantryman in the World War II battles of Gen. George S. Patton's Third Army, his family said.

Mr. Catania's climb up the political ladder began in 1948 on the bottom rung, as a poll watcher in Ridley Township. In 1963, he replaced his brother as Ridley Township Republican chairman. Francis had been elected a judge, and court rules required that judges forsake political work.

Mr. Catania was Ridley Township controller from 1954 through 1965 and treasurer from 1966 through 1971. In 1971, he was elected to what is now the County Council. In 1975, he chose not to run for a second term.

In 1982, he and four other Delaware County Republicans were charged with election-law violations, but a judge dismissed those charges the following year.

He returned for two more terms on the council, from 1982 to 1990. His last public post was as executive director of the Delaware County Regional Water Quality Authority for seven years in the 1990s, said Robert Willert, a nephew who is the family spokesman.

Willert said Wednesday that Mr. Catania was also a real estate broker at Catania Real Estate in Ridley.

He said that in various years, his uncle had been named "man of the year" by the Christopher Columbus Memorial Association, the Chester Business and Professional Women's group, and the Sons of Italy.

"He was a very simple man, a very down-to-earth kind of guy," Willert said. "He worked very hard to make life better for the people in Ridley Township and in Delaware County."

Mr. Catania is survived by another brother, Charles J. Sr., and nieces and nephews.

A visitation was set from 8:30 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 25, at Our Lady of Peace Church, 501 Belmont Ave., Milmont Park, before an 11 a.m. Funeral Mass there, with burial in SS. Peter and Paul Cemetery, Marple Township.