Inquirer Editorial: Cosmetic changes at the top won't change the Parking Authority

The Philadelphia Parking Authority board moved quickly to clean up the mess it created by enabling the agency to be run by an admitted sexual harasser.

But, of course, the decision to hire longtime city official Clarena Tolson as the interim chief appears to be more about making the scandal go away than fixing the agency.

By hiring a woman who is a Democrat, the Republican-controlled Parking Authority board hopes to quiet the storm created by its inept handling of the years-long sexual harassment of at least two employees by former executive director Vincent J. Fenerty Jr.

Recall the Parking Authority board - including its chairman, Joseph T. Ashdale; City Commissioner Al Schmidt; City Councilman Al Taubenberger; attorney Andrew K. Stutzman; accountant Russell Wagner; and optometrist Karen W. Wrigley - was content to leave Fenerty in charge for years after it was made aware of his continual sexual harassment.

Even after The Inquirer first reported on Sept. 22 that Fenerty admitted in 2015 to sexually harassing one employee, the Parking Authority board defended him. Taubenberger initially tried to downplay the harassment by likening it to "high school puppy love," before backing away from the boorish comment.

It was only after The Inquirer reported on Sept. 27 that yet another woman had filed a sexual harassment complaint against Fenerty in 2006 that the board moved to fire him. He instead resigned to keep his $154,620-a-year pension.

Now, just two weeks later, the Parking Authority has hired Tolson as Fenerty's $223,677-a-year interim replacement. There was no national search for someone with experience running a parking agency. Tolson was the only person interviewed.

"Today starts a new chapter for the PPA," Ashdale said at the board's meeting Tuesday. That's hogwash. The only thing new is that the agency is no longer run by an admitted sexual predator.

Hiring Tolson is a disingenuous attempt by the Republicans that run the Parking Authority to hang on to the last vestige of patronage that they control in the city. Their hope is that hiring a woman Democrat will quell any calls for real change at the Parking Authority.

The Republicans may need to steer a few more jobs and contracts to the Democrats to keep the peace. But most likely even that would be worth it if it met their goal to make sure it's business as usual at the Parking Authority. What the authority needs is a complete overhaul. The entire board should be replaced and a professional staff hired.

The Parking Authority's primary job has been to provide 1,100 jobs and associated contracts to the friends and family of the politically connected.

It is a $245-million-a-year business. It's time to run it like one. The authority's board should consist of business owners and professionals who know something about parking - not elected officials or others with jobs that have nothing to do with parking.

Thoughtful leaders like Paul Levy of the Center City District could help rethink the role of the authority to make the city friendlier to commuters, tourists, workers, and shoppers. Only with real change can the Parking Authority claim a new chapter.