Negative coverage divides Radnor
March 15, 2009 RTK request stories | Open records | Open meetings | Sunshine Act | Government transparency | Radnor Twp
By Joelle Farrell
[Philadelphia] Inquirer Staff Writer
For some Radnor residents, the controversy surrounding the township manager and his salary bonuses wasn't as troubling as the widespread news coverage.
Unaccustomed in many ways to the glare of publicity, they are questioning how open township business should really be.
Some applauded the township commissioners' efforts to discuss the matter in public; others said they were disgusted that Radnor's "dirty laundry" had been exposed.
"They have this Stepford philosophy," said Christina Perrone, a resident pushing for greater transparency. "If it all looks pretty, then everyone will love us. And if we air our laundry out in the public, then we won't be this affluent, Main Line community."
She added: "It's definitely messier, and it's uncomfortable. But in the end, we'll end up with a better decision."
This month, Radnor commissioners moved to oust longtime Township Manager David A. Bashore amid allegations that he had paid himself more than $100,000 in bonuses without board approval. Bashore, denying impropriety, is fighting the move.
The flap came to light after inquiries by the township treasurer, John Osborne. Other questions involving Bashore's pay were pushed by a handful of residents, including Perrone, who used the state open-records law to seek township spending records.
The bonuses came up at a contentious commissioners meeting Feb. 23. Three days later, Bashore was suspended. At a special meeting March 5, commissioners voted to initiate steps to fire him.
Some of the 100 people at the March meeting said commissioners should have investigated Bashore behind closed doors first.
"It's not helping the situation to have this played out in public," longtime resident Albert B. Murphy told commissioners. "I deeply resent seeing this played out in the press with the news in my township."
Peter Cosenza, who has lived in Radnor since 1991, said the episode was unfair to Bashore and made the commissioners look silly.
"It's embarrassing," he said. "Our commissioners sort of started this, and they, at times, looked like Keystone Kops. They're not together on this."
Kent R. Addis Jr., a friend of Bashore's, said, "I have not talked to one person in this community who does not feel that the board was clearly inappropriate in putting this matter out there in the manner in which they did."
At their regular monthly meeting Monday, the commissioners debated another aspect of Bashore's tenure - his employment contract, which some members said they had never seen and would not have approved if they had. The contract, signed by two commissioners in executive session, included a $175,000 no-interest loan for Bashore that was to be forgiven over 12 years.
In annual reviews dating to 2003, outside auditors suggested that the commissioners publicly disclose the contract. But each year, they dismissed the suggestion, citing the privacy of personnel matters.
The commission's vice president, John Fisher, elected in 2007, lashed out Monday at Commissioner Harry Mahoney, who signed the audit reports and is the only incumbent who signed Bashore's contract.
"It's bad enough that we made the mistake in 2001 to not vote on it publicly," Fisher said. "But to methodically and repeatedly, year after year after year, hide it from the public, I was offended. I think everyone in this room should be offended."
Mahoney, a lawyer, said he realized now that the contract should have been approved by the entire board and in public session.
And although Mahoney and other commissioners have treated Perrone as something of a nuisance at board meetings, he acknowledged her efforts Monday with her in attendance.
"The mere fact that I'm an attorney doesn't necessarily impart any special knowledge with regard to the Sunshine Act," he said. "I've become much more conversant in the last few years thanks to your prodding."
[Philadelphia] Inquirer Staff Writer
For some Radnor residents, the controversy surrounding the township manager and his salary bonuses wasn't as troubling as the widespread news coverage.
Unaccustomed in many ways to the glare of publicity, they are questioning how open township business should really be.
Some applauded the township commissioners' efforts to discuss the matter in public; others said they were disgusted that Radnor's "dirty laundry" had been exposed.
"They have this Stepford philosophy," said Christina Perrone, a resident pushing for greater transparency. "If it all looks pretty, then everyone will love us. And if we air our laundry out in the public, then we won't be this affluent, Main Line community."
She added: "It's definitely messier, and it's uncomfortable. But in the end, we'll end up with a better decision."
This month, Radnor commissioners moved to oust longtime Township Manager David A. Bashore amid allegations that he had paid himself more than $100,000 in bonuses without board approval. Bashore, denying impropriety, is fighting the move.
The flap came to light after inquiries by the township treasurer, John Osborne. Other questions involving Bashore's pay were pushed by a handful of residents, including Perrone, who used the state open-records law to seek township spending records.
The bonuses came up at a contentious commissioners meeting Feb. 23. Three days later, Bashore was suspended. At a special meeting March 5, commissioners voted to initiate steps to fire him.
Some of the 100 people at the March meeting said commissioners should have investigated Bashore behind closed doors first.
"It's not helping the situation to have this played out in public," longtime resident Albert B. Murphy told commissioners. "I deeply resent seeing this played out in the press with the news in my township."
Peter Cosenza, who has lived in Radnor since 1991, said the episode was unfair to Bashore and made the commissioners look silly.
"It's embarrassing," he said. "Our commissioners sort of started this, and they, at times, looked like Keystone Kops. They're not together on this."
Kent R. Addis Jr., a friend of Bashore's, said, "I have not talked to one person in this community who does not feel that the board was clearly inappropriate in putting this matter out there in the manner in which they did."
At their regular monthly meeting Monday, the commissioners debated another aspect of Bashore's tenure - his employment contract, which some members said they had never seen and would not have approved if they had. The contract, signed by two commissioners in executive session, included a $175,000 no-interest loan for Bashore that was to be forgiven over 12 years.
In annual reviews dating to 2003, outside auditors suggested that the commissioners publicly disclose the contract. But each year, they dismissed the suggestion, citing the privacy of personnel matters.
The commission's vice president, John Fisher, elected in 2007, lashed out Monday at Commissioner Harry Mahoney, who signed the audit reports and is the only incumbent who signed Bashore's contract.
"It's bad enough that we made the mistake in 2001 to not vote on it publicly," Fisher said. "But to methodically and repeatedly, year after year after year, hide it from the public, I was offended. I think everyone in this room should be offended."
Mahoney, a lawyer, said he realized now that the contract should have been approved by the entire board and in public session.
And although Mahoney and other commissioners have treated Perrone as something of a nuisance at board meetings, he acknowledged her efforts Monday with her in attendance.
"The mere fact that I'm an attorney doesn't necessarily impart any special knowledge with regard to the Sunshine Act," he said. "I've become much more conversant in the last few years thanks to your prodding."
