Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
St Petersburg Today
Not since the paint first dried on Rastrelli's buildings in the late 18th century has
St Petersburg looked so good. Twenty years of massive investment after 70 years
of neglect under the Soviets has certainly paid off, and its facades are bursts of
beautifully painted pastels and primes once again. But glimpse inside the build-
ings and you'll see there's a lot of work yet to be done: overall the city remains
poor, despite a burgeoning middle class, and many challenges - economic and
political - lie ahead.
Change at City Hall
In 2011 city governor and long-serving Vladimir Putin lieutenant, Valentina Matvien-
ko, was unceremoniously moved sideways out of the city by the Kremlin, having be-
come a liability for the ruling United Russia Party gearing up for presidential elections
in 2012. In her place, former KGB officer and dyed-in-the-wool Putin loyalist Georgy
Poltavchenko was appointed acting governor, though most local observers agree that
his permanence in the post is almost certainly assured, as Russian governors are ap-
pointed by the president rather than elected by the populace. Relatively little is known
about Poltavchenko, a former federal-level politician and keen tweeter, but few expect
many surprises from a man whose background is so closely involved with Putin's St
Petersburg network.
