Detroit’s Taxpayers Are Bankrolling the Emergency Manager’s Lavish Lifestyle

There's an emergency that needs to be managed. But it's not of Detroit's residents.

By Jamilah King Jul 30, 2013

While Detroit’s residents struggle with the prospect of the city’s impending bankruptcy, many are wondering why the man charged with managing it is living in the lap of luxury.

Emergency manager Kevyn Orr, whose legal residence is in Washington, DC, has taken criticism for racking up expensive food and lodging bills in the Motor City. Orr is reportedly living in a hotel penthouse that’s paid for by taxpayers despite also taking in a salary of over $275,000 a year. With that much money, critics say, Orr should have been able to find his own, far less expensive, lodging in the city.

Orr has reportedly also rung up a $3,000 room service bill for items ranging that include crab cakes, steak bites, calamari, and shrimp Caesar.

All of this despite the fact that many of Detroit’s residents are living in a city that’s had to cut back drastically on basic municipal services like garbadge collection and street cleaning. What’s more, Orr is arguing that Detroit’s must file for bankruptcy because the city simply can’t afford to pay the pensions it promised to thousands of former city workers.

(H/T Click On Detroit)