Greene's bonus is twice the income of many Section 8 housing residents.
Please remember that you, generous readers, pay Greene through your federal taxes.
His spokesman sent me a long list of Greene's PHA accomplishments - the higher the salary, generally the longer the defense - beginning with the fact that after the agency's chief operating officer retired, Greene "eliminated that position and assumed many of the duties himself."
Oh, because that's the model the private sector uses: Pay me more because I save money eliminating positions.
Yes, it's absolutely true that the city's public housing improved under Greene's watch, but that's precisely what he was hired to do.
The real question is why anyone, during a recession, should be compensated $350,000 to manage housing for the poor? By comparison, the chair of New York City's housing authority makes less than $200,000 while serving eight times as many residents.
Greene has a five-year contract that looks as if a sports agent negotiated the deal: annual bonuses, a car, six weeks of annual paid vacation, plus 11 more paid holidays.
For those doing the math, that's $54,000 for almost two months of time off.
Greene's contract was blessed by PHA's board, including John F. Street, Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell, Debra Brady (wife of Democratic boss Bob), and Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO president Patrick J. Eiding.
It may be lonely at the top, but Greene has company. Philadelphia School District chief Arlene Ackerman may be the best-compensated school superintendent in the nation, earning $338,000 in salary, plus a bonus of $65,000. She's eligible for another bonus next year. She's also due a 3 percent raise next month.
