Filippi stands to take home $52,000 by resigning

According to an email message from the mayor to council members and the press, Dave Filippi, superintendent of the Dover light plant, “resigned/retired” via a letter to the mayor over the weekend. The mayor also said Filippi “returned his car and all city-owned equipment last week” and that Filippi informed him OPERS has sent a notification letter of his retirement to the Dover auditor’s office.

During the Dover Council meeting on Dec. 20, Shane Gunnoe, council president, asked Nicole Stoldt, city auditor, how much sick time Filippi is permitted to cash out by resigning instead of being terminated.

Stoldt said it was $960, which is equal to $42,000. Stoldt said, however, with Filippi’s payout of vacation added, it totals about $52,300.

Filippi has been accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars, paying for personal purchases with his city credit card and far exceeding the light plant budget.

Yet Filippi is still not being called to account for it by Mayor Richard Homrighausen. Several council members and Gunnoe directed pointed questions at Homrighausen.

Gunnoe read the contents of the email to council and the public in attendance. Afterward, he asked the mayor, “Am I to assume by that, that you have taken no further action against him or disciplinary action?”

Homrighausen said, “Not at this time.”

Because Filippi is on the payroll until Jan. 3, councilman Kevin Korns asked the mayor, "Did you ask him to show up tonight so he can answer our questions?"

Homrighausen said, “I asked when he would be available to come before council, and he never responded.”

Korns said, “I guess we’re not going to get any answers from him, so the citizens of Dover can call the mayor and ask him if they have questions they’d like to have answered about the power plant over-expenditures.”

Sandy Moss questioned Homrighausen next. “Since you’re still thinking about firing him and you’ve only got about a week left, what kind of precedent does this set for other superintendents and city employees — that they can just go over their budget by $800,000, they can charge stuff to the city credit cards and not pay it back?” she said.

Gunnoe said, “Just so we’re clear what has occurred. We have an employee who possibly has overspent and misappropriated hundreds of thousands over what was authorized. We requested he should be terminated or disciplined. No discipline was given. He was allowed to retire and get $42,000 of the taxpayers’ money that he wouldn’t have otherwise gotten. Does that seem to be right to everybody else in this room?”

Councilman John Correll said, “It doesn’t seem fair.”

Gunnoe said council would continue to engage in a discussion addressing what to do about the overages and bills racked up by Filippi. He said whether or not Filippi decided to address council questions, council would meet Jan. 10 for further discussions.

“In the meantime,” Gunnoe said, “if Mr. Filippi suddenly feels like engaging in a conversation on these topics, we’ll be happy to schedule a meeting at his leisure.”

Stoldt wanted to clarify the bills for unauthorized expenditures have not been paid. She said some Dover citizens were under the misunderstanding they had been paid by the city.

When asked after the meeting why it seemed to be taking so long for him to determine a course of action regarding Filippi, the mayor said, “I don’t make snap decisions. I take my time and weigh all factors that are involved, and when I’m ready to make my final decision, everybody will know.”

Gunnoe said after the meeting that, to him, the facts are clear and warrant Filippi’s termination. “In my mind there really is no excuse for this,” he said. “Mr. Filippi has refused to submit to questions from city council. His supervisor, the mayor, should have ordered him to appear before city council when this information first came to light. The people of Dover deserve answers to the possible misappropriation of hundreds of thousands of utility customers' dollars.”