Ex-Miller aide survives a public challenge

Activists called for Steven Vaughn's ouster from a Germantown community development corporation. The group's board tabled the action.

by MICHAEL J. MISHAK

A group of activists sought the dismissal of Steven Vaughn last week from his post as president of the Central Germantown Council, an area community development corporation set to receive $186,000 in city monies this year.

The protest, staged at the council’s monthly board meeting last Friday, came three weeks after Vaughn, the former chief of staff to Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, plead guilty to mail fraud and conspiracy charges stemming from his role in a racketeering enterprise allegedly headed by Imam Shamsud-din Ali, who is currently standing trial in federal court.

The group, comprised of about eight residents and business owners, delivered a 325-signature petition, asking the board to vote on Vaughn's removal from both the board and any affiliated organizations.

As a result of his guilty plea, the group said, "Vaughn can no longer represent the best interests of the Central Germantown Council or the public interests of the community in general."

Tina LeCoff, a board member, introduced the motion to oust Vaughn, saying the board had a right to raise the issue because their president was "no longer in good standing in their communities … and not a good role model for the Central Germantown Council."

Board member David Plante seconded the motion, but another board member, Nancy Muth, quickly moved to table the issue, saying the topic should be discussed in an executive session.

Betty Turner, the group's treasurer, agreed. "This requires some discussion and investigation," Turner said. "A decision today is inappropriate."

Ultimately, the board voted 11-2 to table the motion to remove Vaughn.

Vaughn, who later said he had been involved with the group "for years," instructed concerned board members to "submit something in writing to challenge or question my fitness as president."

The board is set to revisit the issue at a special session in the coming weeks, Turner said.

LeCoff pushed for the board to accept public comment, but Vaughn adjourned the meeting, contending that the activists had already delivered their petition and read a statement.

In an interview, LeCoff said the meeting had been stacked with Vaughn and Miller allies. Some were board members but had missed the group's last few meetings, calling into question their status as voting members, she said.

As members filtered from the meeting room at historic Vernon House, the atmosphere, which had been contentious from the outset, turned hostile. Activists and board members swapped words in heated conversations, some nearly face-to-face.

"It's sad when they don't come out for the community besides this," said Ruth Salters, a board member who voted to table the motion to oust Vaughn, of the activists. "They live in the mansion district."

Asked if he thought he should resign, Vaughn said: "I serve at the pleasure of the board and as a volunteer." Later, he added: "I think my service has been valuable. I've been fair and honest. If the board takes issue with this stumble or hiccup in my career, I'll honor their wishes."

After the meeting, Vaughn said no board members had questioned his position on the council until last Friday, a situation that caused him to believe some of his critics were politically motivated.

"I understand what this is about … They're here to jumpstart Greg Paulmier's campaign efforts," Vaughn said, referring to the Germantown man that has challenged his former boss, Councilwoman Miller, in the last two Democratic primaries.

Butch Cottman, director of the Germantown Special Services District, defended Vaughn, and further questioned the motives of the activists. "They're committed to gentrification," he said of Vaughn's opponents. "Our budget is not available to them to tip the balance of real estate development."

Echoing an earlier comment, Cottman said the critics had never been involved with the social services offered by the Central Germantown Council.

Connie Winters, one of the leading activists and former president of the Germantown Business Association, dismissed those charges, calling gentrification a "bogus issue."

LeCoff, also chair of Penn-Knox Neighborhood Association, said the activists had a legitimate concern. "It's important to evaluate what values are carried out by community organizations, especially ones that receive city and state monies," she said.

According to its bylaws, the Central Germantown Council, a nonprofit, functions "to preserve the social, economic and physical well-being of Central Germantown" through educational programs, charitable activities, business revitalization and community development.

The group will receive $186,000 from the city this year for "targeted neighborhood support services," according to Philadelphia's Consolidated Plan, an annual list of projects and their budgets produced by the city's Office of Housing and Community Development.

The Central Germantown Council received $225,176 in government grants in 2003, according to the group's tax return for that year.

Under the bylaws of the Central Germantown Council, the president is charged with the power to "see that all books, reports and certificates as required by law are properly kept or filed, be one of the officers who may sign the checks or drafts of the Corporation … and shall execute bonds, mortgages and other contracts."

Vaughn's critics take issue with the nature of his criminal case. Last month, the former Council aide admitted he withheld 22 checks totaling $657,914 from Bowman Properties, a Chestnut Hill real estate firm that had sought to settle its back taxes, while a mayoral aide worked to get a collection contract for a defunct Mt. Airy debt collection agency. He has denied receiving a kickback from the deal.

Under the group's bylaws, "a director may be removed with cause by two-thirds of the board when a quorum is present at any meeting of the board." Though the document does not explicitly define the term "cause," it does note that the board may terminate membership for "failure to pay annual dues, failure to attend membership meeting, or failure to support the mission and purpose of the Council."

After the meeting, Jim Foster, a business owner and one of the leading activists, called his group's efforts "an important first step."

From the start, it had been unclear whether the group would be admitted to the meeting.

Before their arrival, members of the press were met with resistance when they attempted to enter the board meeting. The Rev. LeRoi Simmons, executive director of the Central Germantown Council, told reporters the meeting was "open to the public, not to the press." After being pressed on the issue, he said he had hoped to "avoid contention in the press." Then, Simmons blessed the reporters with a prayer and asked them to leave. "In the name of Jesus, bind this contentious spirit and move from here," he said.