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Fort Dupont Redevelopment Preservation Corporation faces allegations of retaliation in new lawsuit

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The Fort Dupont Redevelopment Preservation Corporation will face another round of scrutiny after a former maintenance manager filed a lawsuit last week raising allegations of retaliation against the Corporation.

The Fort Dupont project in Delaware City has been embroiled in controversy since lawmakers created the Redevelopment Preservation Corporation in 2014, including outcry after the 2020 sale of 128 acres of public land at the site to a private entity for $5 million — with the goal of building a private RV campground — without public input.

Plaintiff Christopher Robinson says the Corporation’s former Acting Executive Director Jeff Randol ordered the Old Quartermaster’s Building demolished in February 2020 — possibly in violation of federal historical protection rules. Robinson claims he brought up the potential illegality of that move to a board member in October of that year and was terminated a month later. Along with his termination, Robinson received a $500 rent increase for his on-site housing; he later received eviction papers and left Fort Dupont altogether.

While Randol was forced to resign in February, Robinson’s attorney Martin Haverly argues the Corporation remains liable for the alleged retaliation.

“Just because an official or employee leaves, that doesn’t mean that an employer – in this case, the Corporation – suddenly gets a pass for actions that took place against an employee – in this case, my client – while he was an employee," he said.

The Corporation's Board Chair and former state lawmaker Bryon Short also resigned a month after Randol.

Haverly notes that while his client didn’t bring the alleged workplace safety problems to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, his client was shielded from retaliation by Delaware’s Whistleblower Protection Act.

In total, the public-private partnership has received more than $18 million in state dollars since its formation, and it received another $2.5 million in Delaware’s 2023 Bond Bill.

Delaware Public Media has reached out to the Corporation for comment.

Paul Kiefer comes to Delaware from Seattle, where he covered policing, prisons and public safety for the local news site PubliCola.