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The Progress-Index PETESRBURG – The City of Petersburg is mourning the loss of a high-ranking official after he passed away from a unexpected illness earlier in this month. Frank Poulin was the city’s Director of Neighborhood Services. He was rushed to the hospital after he suddenly started having heart problems and later passed away from heart failure on April 9. Poulin was 39. His colleagues gathered with family members on arbor day to plant a tree in his honor. A crowd of about 60 people formed a semi-circle around the Arbor Day sapling. Poulin was remembered by all as a lively character and a strong mentor who could always add a quip or a smile to conversations. ....
The Progress-Index PETERSBURG Hundreds of residents that live in Petersburg East might finally see a complete overhaul of the appliances, surfaces and fixtures in their units now that a new developer has recently purchased the properties. Previous owners of the low-income, multifamily complex have been known for allowing structural conditions to deteriorate. Residents have gotten used to the overgrown grass, broken windows and interior spaces that have gone years without care or replacement. Seattle-based developer Vitus is planning to invest $28 million in Petersburg East I and II, with around $60,000 in upgrades per unit. Rehab plans submitted to the Petersburg Redevelopment and Housing Authority appear to cover every last inch of the 168-unit complex with new components and surfaces - kitchen surfaces, bathroom components, water heaters, split systems, flooring and paint. The exterior brick, siding and roofing will be cleaned or repaired. ....
The Progress-Index PETERSBURG – The nearly five-year tenure of City Manager Aretha Ferrell-Benavides comes to a close this week, after which she will return to her home state of Texas to fill the same role in the City of Duncanville, a suburb of Dallas. She arrived in 2017 to a Petersburg in disarray. The city had recently discovered that its cash reserves had plunged into the red, sitting at negative $7.7 million months before her arrival, which prompted the hiring of the Robert Bobb Group, a Washington D.C.-based consulting firm to steady the city’s operations. In Tuesday’s discussion of the city’s most recent yearly financial audit, Mayor Samuel Parham described the city’s culture at the time of Ferrell-Benavides arrival. He called it an atmosphere of “anything goes,” where “everybody (can) have a car, anybody can just spend at their will and we ll figure out how to pay it later.” He said she was successful in turning around ....