PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — In a scathing ruling that accuses Chester city government of “dysfunction” and “widespread nepotism,” a Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court judge is limiting the powers of elected officials in the troubled city.
Judge Ellen Ceisler’s order allows the receiver to remove City Council members from positions as department heads. It also allows the appointment of a chief of staff to oversee day-to-day operations.
Her order stops short of granting a state-appointed receiver oversight over all city government functions.
Ceisler’s ruling said “major changes” are needed in Chester city government that she calls “internally dysfunctional.” She said evidence shows city officials not only ignored advice from the receiver, but those officials directed employees in their departments to ignore him.
Related
The city in Delaware County has been designated a financially-distressed municipality since 1995 and has operated under several state-mandated recovery plans. The city applied for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection in November 2022.
Michael Doweary was appointed as receiver of the City of Chester in June 2020 when then-Gov. Tom Wolf issued a declaration of fiscal emergency for the city.
Doweary asked the court for the additional oversight, arguing Chester is “on the brink of bankruptcy,” “unable to provide basic … services to residents,” and efforts “to right the ship up to this point haven’t worked.”
Related
Ceisler’s order pointed out several red flags, including payroll payments to a city employee while he was incarcerated, verbal threats and racial slurs from the mayor directed at the receiver, and a city councilman waiting three months to notify the receiver of a phishing scam which resulted in the city losing $400,000. She said the court sees no path forward unless major changes are made to administrative operations.
Chester City Solicitor Kenneth Schuster did not initially reply to a request for comment. The receiver’s chief of staff says they’re grateful for the decision, as it allows professional management to benefit all city residents and it “brings desperately needed clarity to city operations."