The Petersburg City Public Schools operations and facilities team gave the school board a day‑1 readiness update on Aug. 6, saying custodial, maintenance and capital projects focused this summer on deep cleaning, security vestibules, interior painting and select repairs.
Why it matters: Facilities work affects whether classrooms and common spaces are ready for students on opening day and can influence comfort, safety and energy performance.
Coordinator Daryl Gaudette reported completion percentages by site: Petersburg High and Pittman were largely complete, and Vernon Johns, Blandford, Pleasant Lane, Westview and Cool Spring reported high completion rates after crews prioritized buildings hosting summer programs. The presentation showed new accent-wall painting in classrooms at Cool Spring (gold) and Lakemont (blue) and flagged a future window-replacement project for those two schools; Gaudette said specs are being developed so the board can approve the work.
Other items: restroom renovations at the high school were near completion; exterior painting and flag‑pole repairs were done division-wide; custodial staffing transitions from a temporary agency to district hires are in process; auditorium-seat repair options will be presented to the superintendent for decision. Gaudette said some items — for example, a Blandford vestibule — may require larger redesigns because of building layout.
Board members asked for clearer work-order processes and insisted bus-driver and front-door incident processes be enforced operationally. Mr. Martinez said the central office (SBO) move-back will be phased and the board office should be usable in time for the Aug. 20 meeting.
Next steps: Facilities will bring options and cost estimates (auditorium seating, window replacement) to the superintendent and the board and will present a refined work-order process to the operations advisory committee.