While I have criticized John Street on YPP, I have tried to resist as many knee-jerk posts as possible. Why? Because I think he certainly gets enough of that anyway, some of which I think is baseless. That said, I am really looking forward to the post-John Street Philadelphia. I don't think he is a bad guy. Heck, I don't think he was a terrible Mayor (at least not compared to some others). I do think he was a weird character, and I will simply be glad to move on.
For example...
A week or so ago, Street gave a strange, rambling address to City Council, where he talked about how financially secure he was, because of the DROP program. For those who don't know, DROP was a program that gave lump pension payments to City Employees who picked their retirement dates four years in advance. The whole point was to keep skilled, retirement eligible people in City government a little longer, by giving them a chunk of their pension upfront. The trouble was that if anything, the program appeared to be encouraging people to retire early, and it was costing the City money.
Seeing this in 2003, a guy by the name of John Street said the City should eliminate DROP. (Councilman Mike Nutter said it should at least be ended for elected officals.) However, the City Pension Board kept DROP, and Mayor Street promptly opted into it, and four years later, bragged to City Council about the $451,00 bucks he was getting from the City. Nice!
Back in 2004, Street justified his going into DROP, despite saying it should be eliminated, by mentioning that he refused to accept a salary increase for himself that City Council voted him: (Daily News, March 11, 2004)
"Those salary increases were too high," Street said. "But I'm not in a position to tell union members that I'm getting into DROP, and they can't. It's available to them, but I plan to be aggressive in holding down union contract costs and to put pretty severe restrictions on pay increases."
Ah that salary hike he turned down, saying it was too high: (Daily News, Oct 31, 2003)
"...the magnitude of the raises are inappropriate . . . This is a very difficult time economically for our country, [and] our city workers are obviously concerned about raises and benefits. I think it does set a bad tone for Council to be voting a raise for itself."
Of course, this week we learned that despite the doom and gloom we hear about the future budgets of the City, and the looming contract fights with City workers, clearly circumstances must have magically changed, and the City is no longer economically hurting. Because despite turning it down all those years, John Street has retroactively taken that pay raise, as if he never denied it in the first place, pocketing himself another $111,000. In other words, he got credit for turning it down, even though he now is reaching back in time, and taking it all.
Nice!
I don't begrudge the Mayor a good salary. But, when you criticize programs as inappropriate, and then grab $550,000 on your way out the door...
Mayor Street, my friend, as they say on SportsCenter, Aloha means goodbye.
Such a strange story....
This is a really weird story. I can't understand why Mayor Street thought it was a good idea to say this stuff to City Council. If he hadn't, someone might have found this story and written about it. However, Street put it all on the table and just invited a ton of negative media coverage right when he was leaving office.
I think that a lot of the media criticism of John Street were unfair. Still, it's hard to have a lot of sympathy for man who is so tone deaf that he thought it would be a good idea to publicly announce his plan to take a bunch of money from city coffers.
Former Mayor's, even unpopular ones, can pretty much write their own ticket after they are done being in office. Street was never going to have a hard time making money in his post-public life. Taking the DROP funds is just unnecessary and even weird.
---
Check out my website!
Good Old Johnny!
If Philly Magazine is correct, the City has a looming financial disaster. So, how Street can claim financial security is really beyond me.
Somehow, I'm not suprised. I wish my Alma Matter would reconsider its hiring of Mayor Street as a Professor.
I am working to elect Larry Farnese to the General Assembly. Unless otherwise expressly stated, this and every comment or blog I post on YPP and any action I take hereon is solely attributable to me and not Farnese or Friends of Farnese
Abraham in DROP
Here is a random question- Lynne Abraham is in DROP. What happens if she leaves early to run for AG/Screw Seth Williams?
OK, sort of answering my own
OK, sort of answering my own question, you can retire sooner than four years. But, you have to pick your retirement date, so, she probably gets a little less money.
Street's DROP benefit
Mayor Street’s last-minute decision to take $111,000 in pay increases he had previously refused is a cynical, hypocritical disgrace. No argument there. But Street’s receipt of $452,700 in “DROP” benefits is no windfall, as it is being portrayed. By entering the DROP in 2004, Street became entitled to a $9,642 monthly pension beginning in May 2004 (that monthly amount, plus 4.5% interest, accumulated over the nearly four years he was in the DROP, adds up to the reported $452,700 lump sum DROP payment). If he had not entered the DROP program, Street would have become entitled to a monthly pension of about $13,804 beginning in January 2008. There are a lot of ways to look at whether it is better to have a lifetime monthly pension of $9,642 starting in May 2004, or a lifetime monthly pension of $13,804 starting in January 2008, but my financial calculator says that the DROP option (the lower benefit beginning in 2004) was worth about a quarter of a million dollars less than waiting to take the higher benefit in 2008. Hardly a windfall, and hardly a decision for Street to crow about.
DROP for elected officials
DROP for elected officials is just reidiculous and should be ended immediately.
That said, its the decision to take the pay raise retroactively that really sticks in the gullet of voters and seems downright bizzare for someone who is concerned about his "legacy".
-Sean
MrLuigi, my cat, actually only types half as badly as I do.