He Said, He Said at State Hearing on Troubled Philadelphia Housing Agency

 
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- Mayor Nutter and Philadelphia Housing Authority chairman John Street painted very different pictures of the situation at the PHA as they appeared before lawmakers today to discuss possible changes to the agency's structure.
Mayor Nutter (above) argued before the Pennsylvania House Urban Affairs Committee that PHA board members should be appointed directly by the mayor:

"The embarrassing lack of accountability that is now so evident in the behavior of the PHA board is directly connected to that board's independence from the office of the mayor."

But PHA board chairman John Street (below) told the panel that the agency under Carl Greene made many improvements, and that the mess at PHA is mostly the result of personal problems that Greene concealed from the board:

"My sense here is that notwithstanding some of the hype and the concern, the Philadelphia Housing Authority isn't as broke as you might think."

While the chairman of the committee says he believes the current state law governing housing authorities needs to be updated, any changes will have to wait, as the legislature is at the end of its current session.

Reported by KYW Harrisburg Bureau Chief Tony Romeo.
Photos by Tony Romeo