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One board member, who asked not to be named so he could speak freely, said dissatisfaction with Petri has been growing for about six months. Reached by phone, Grossman declined to comment. Board members were “committed to a smooth transition,” she wrote in the letter obtained by The Inquirer, and asked employees for their “continued cooperation and patience.” She added that the board would conduct a national search for a new director. “A major goal of the PPA as we move forward will be to create meaningful community partnerships as well as stopping the privatization of essential family-sustaining jobs at Philadelphia International Airport,” Grossman said. In a letter sent to staff Thursday morning, PPA board chairwoman Beth Grossman did not give a reason for Petri’s sudden removal but did mention the airport. One PPA staffer said: “The place is in shock.” Still, Petri’s firing was unexpected, even among some senior officials. The loss of the contract could gut a $63 million annual operation within the PPA that employs as many as 150 people. More scrutiny followed in January, when the Philadelphia International Airport announced it was wresting control of its parking operation from the PPA, which had run the lucrative airport garages for nearly half a century. City Council has since called for a probe into the agency’s finances. Petri blamed an accounting error, but critics called it a take back that amounted to stealing money from schoolkids. In December, The Inquirer reported on the PPA’s unusual request for the school district to refund $11.3 million that the authority called an overpayment from years prior. One of the PPA’s primary financial obligations is to share its on-street parking revenue with the city and the school district. But as the city’s economy began to bounce back, the PPA found its own accounting back in the spotlight. Petri, who was hired at $210,000 a year, oversaw soaring parking revenues until the operation ground to a halt in 2020 due to the pandemic.
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At the time of Petri’s appointment, a state audit also slammed the PPA for financial malfeasance and an “absentee” board that turned a blind eye on leadership.Ī 2020 audit by City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart criticized the authority over bloated executive salaries, suspect hiring practices, and other problems. Fenerty Jr., who resigned amid sexual harassment allegations. Petri, a Republican attorney from Bucks County, had served for 15 years as a state representative in Pennsylvania’s 178th District before the board tapped him in 2017 to replace former PPA director Vincent J. One board member and another parking authority source familiar with the situation said PPA leadership had soured over the authority potentially losing control of the airport parking operation, as well as a controversial request by the PPA that the city’s school district pay back $11.3 million it said it distributed in error.
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But Petri’s tenure has also faced scrutiny.
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The firing comes a little more than four years after the parking authority appointed Petri, 61, to steer the agency out of a series of high-profile scandals. The board announced plans to launch a national search for a permanent replacement. O’Rourke said PPA general counsel Dennis Weldon will “assume the responsibilities” of executive director. Petri could not immediately be reached for comment. PPA spokesperson Martin O’Rourke confirmed that Friday will be Petri’s last day, but he declined to comment on the reasons behind the firing, calling it “a personnel issue.” The Philadelphia Parking Authority board abruptly ousted executive director Scott Petri on Thursday, sending shock waves through the state-controlled agency amid signs of recent financial turbulence.