A trio of legal opinions on Monday boosted Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's argument that leasing parking authority garages to a private entity is the best plan for infusing cash into the troubled city pension fund.

The opinions said an alternative proposal -- advanced March 2 by city Councilman Patrick Dowd and Controller Michael Lamb -- is illegal and unworkable. But heading into today's council vote on a parking authority study, Mr. Dowd and Mr. Lamb refused to abandon their plan.

Rather than a long-term lease of the garages and possibly parking meters as well -- a plan Mr. Ravenstahl hopes would net at least $200 million for the fund -- Mr. Dowd and Mr. Lamb proposed transferring ownership of some garages to the pension fund.

The pair said their plan would keep the garages in public hands, boost the value of the pension fund's investment portfolio and give the fund a steady revenue stream. Mr. Dowd and Mr. Lamb proposed that the parking authority operate the garages for the pension fund, with city officials continuing to set parking rates.

The pension fund is about one-third funded and at risk of a state takeover. Mr. Ravenstahl has said that $200 million would boost the funding level to about 50 percent and put the fund on a path to recovery.

Scott Kunka, city finance director, pension fund executive director and parking authority chairman, sought legal reviews of the Dowd/Lamb plan from pension fund solicitor Frederick N. Frank, parking authority solicitors Buchanan Ingersoll and Rooney and parking authority special counsel K&L Gates. All three opinions described the plan as essentially dead in the water because of restrictions on pension fund investments and parking authority debt.

"It was innovative thinking -- I can't stress that enough -- but it just does not accomplish the purpose," Mr. Kunka said of the Dowd/Lamb proposal. The mayor's plan, he said, is the "only viable option that we have right now."

The mayor's office released the opinions a day before City Council was to take a final vote authorizing an outside study of parking authority assets, the mayor's lease proposal and related issues.

Council President Darlene Harris has proposed floating a bond to raise money for the pension fund. Mr. Kunka said the administration's analysis of that proposal is under way.

Mr. Dowd said being "triple-gunned [by attorneys] seems a bit overkill," and noted that each of the attorneys submitting opinions has ties to the pension fund or parking authority.

"I don't see any reason why we can't investigate any and all options that might keep these public assets public," he said. "Is there one way, or is there a combination of ways, that we can add value and assets and revenue to the pension fund?"

Mr. Frank said ownership of the garages is not a permitted investment for the pension fund.

"It is my opinion that a court would review the Dowd/Lamb plan as the operation of a private business. It is more than the ownership of real estate. Operation of a private business is not an investment security and would be a clear violation of the restrictions of the Municipal Pension Recovery Act," Mr. Frank said.

Even if ownership of the garages were permissible, he said, other problems would arise.

The pension fund has a value of about $300 million, Mr. Frank said. If the garages valued at $200 million were added to the investment portfolio, he said, they'd constitute 40 percent of the investments.

"The trustees have a duty to consider diversification (and) holding 40 percent of the fund portfolio in one asset group is inconsistent with that duty," he said.

He said the fund would have to sell the garages for the highest possible amount, regardless of what parking rates the buyer might impose. Mr. Frank said the pension fund is obligated only to retirees, not the parking public.

Other objections were raised by Buchanan Ingersoll and K&L Gates, which said the parking authority couldn't give up garages until debts had been satisfied or their payment guaranteed.

The outstanding balance of the parking authority's bonds is about $103 million.

Because of the high cost of satisfying the debt, "the net benefit to the pension trust resulting from a conveyance of the authority's parking assets would be substantially reduced," Buchanan Ingersoll said.

Mr. Kunka said some garages will require significant capital investment in coming years and asked where the pension fund would find the money to make such improvements.

Mr. Lamb said most of the lawyers' objections raised could be overcome with a trip to court and some carefully worded covenants.

He said attorneys with the firm Campbell & Levine, with which Mr. Lamb is also affiliated -- have reviewed their plan and found that there's "work to be done, but it's clearly not undoable."

A judge in the Orphans Court division of the Allegheny County Common Pleas Court could allow the fund to own real estate. Payoff of the parking authority's debts, operation of the garages, and future rates could be dealt with in a covenant between the authority and the pension fund, Mr. Lamb said.

"Pension funds around the country and around the world have owned real estate and have owned infrastructure," he said.

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