City human relations commission fails to pick director

Pittsburgh’s Commission on Human Relations has been without a permanent director since the spring of 2014 — and after a divided meeting Thursday, that won’t change before September.

Members of the commission voted to table a plan to offer the job to Patricia Rogers, a legislative assistant for state Rep. Jake Wheatley, D-Hill District. That vote came after an hour-and-a-half-long executive session, during which raised voices could be heard from outside the City-County Building conference room where the meeting was held.

“This is a debate, but it’s a good debate,” said commission chairman Winford Craig. “We’re eager to resolve it, but when that executive director steps in, it’s a total unified front.”

The commission delayed the vote until its Sept. 14 meeting, he added, “to make sure the director has the full confidence of the commission.”

The commission, which investigates claims of discrimination in areas including housing and unemployment, has a 15-member board; 10 members were present Thursday. The decision to table, said commissioner Leah Williams-Duncan, came after “we took a straw vote and it came out in a tie.”

Commissioner Helen Gerhardt said the commissioners hadn’t been provided with enough information about the candidates.

“It’s of grave concern that information is kept back from commissioners about a position that could affect Pittsburghers for many years in the most basic aspects of life: housing, employment and public accommodation,” she said.

“We went about this as a process that was voted on by the commission, and that we should adhere to from beginning to end,” countered Mr. Craig.

Ms. Rogers declined comment Thursday evening.

The tabled vote is just the latest delay in the search for a new director, who would lead a five-person staff currently managed by interim director Sarah DeCesaris Kinter.

The commission’s previous director, Charles Morrison, had held the director’s post for four decades. While he stepped down in early 2014, the commission didn’t post the job until December. Ms. Williams-Duncan, who chaired the commission at the time, attributed that delay to the fact that several board members weren’t appointed until November. Commissioners failed to agree on a candidate from the first job search, and relisted the post this spring.

The second search produced four finalists out of a 44-candidate field. On July 6, the commission voted to offer the post to another candidate, who declined the job. If Ms. Rogers is offered the post but rejects it, Mr. Craig said, “We’d have to look at what our next steps would be.”