Parking Lot Owners Suing PPL Park, Charging Official Misconduct
By David Madden
CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) -- The owners of four parking lots near PPL Park in Chester are suing the city, the police, and the stadium's home team, the Philadelphia Union.
The issue is public access to the lots.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Philadelphia by TICB Depot Partners contends that several police officers are on the payroll of a private security firm that serves PPL Park.
That's not illegal, but attorney Kathryn Labrum says what they allegedly did was. She claims traffic was diverted away from her client's lots, even in the face of a county court order aimed at stopping it.
At one game in March, she says, drivers were allowed in but weren't allowed out in a timely fashion.
"(Police officers) taped all of the customers into the lots and made them wait until all other parking patrons had left the area," she tells KYW Newsradio. "And they did it with police tape, which was very intimidating."
City officials have not commented on the suit. The Union, in a statement, called the legal action "frivolous" and insists they are operating the parking they control in accordance with the law.
