PHA board never got key document

The draft resolution, nine paragraphs on a single page, describes how the Philadelphia Housing Authority would pay a former female employee $200,000 to settle a gender-discrimination case against Executive Director Carl R. Greene.

Drawn up by outside lawyers in February 2007, the document summarizes the woman's complaint for the five-member board governing the PHA. It also notes that the payment would have to be approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

But the resolution never made it to the board.

A copy of the draft obtained by The Inquirer was shown Thursday to the authority's chairman, former Mayor John F. Street, who said he had never seen it. Street subsequently checked the board minutes in 2007 for Jan. 31, March 6, and March 29 and confirmed there was no mention of the complaint or the settlement.

"This resolution is not there," Street said.

PHA settled the complaint even though it did not have the required board approval. The former employee who filed the complaint, Melissa Shingles, signed the settlement Feb. 26, 2007. That document, also obtained by The Inquirer, was also signed by Sibyl Bryant, then-general manager of human resources at PHA. She could not be reached Thursday for comment.

The draft resolution sheds some light on how the agency orchestrated payments to three women who filed complaints against Greene beginning in 2004, culminating in secret settlements that amounted to $648,000. For the first time, the document shows that lawyers and perhaps others inside and outside the agency were aware of the complaints against Greene and created the paperwork to inform the board.

Why the board was not alerted as the number of complaints grew over the years remains a mystery. Street on Wednesday accused Greene of orchestrating "a full-blown cover-up" to keep the settlements secret. Aside from the three women who received cash payments, negotiations over another complaint are ongoing. Four other women have approached Street and alleged that Greene sexually harassed them.

Greene, who has been suspended by the board pending an inquiry, is being treated for stress-related issues at an undisclosed facility in Maryland. His attorney, Clifford E. Haines, did not respond to requests for comment.