Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, January 10, 1992 TAG: 9201100442
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
BUDGET CUTS
AMONG the less-publicized proposals in Gov. Wilder's budget plan is the elimination of the Virginia Commission for the Arts. This is the agency that, since 1968, has fostered a climate for development and appreciation of the arts in every area of Virginia.In few areas have the advances been as noticeable as in the Roanoke Valley and Western Virginia. And nowhere is the budget-cutter's threat to the arts community greater.
Through grants of state funds and success in winning grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and other sources, the commission has helped change the image of Virginia as a cultural backwater to that of a state where a rich variety of artistic talents can thrive in small towns and rural counties, as well as in metropolitan centers.
This nurturing of the arts has played an underestimated role in the growth and economic development of Virginia. The availability of museums and theater and such has helped draw visitors and commerce - even helped lure businesses - to smaller cities, for instance. Killing the state commission could affect not only the quality of life in some places, such as Roanoke, but also their economies, which depend on quality of life.
And make no mistake: It would constitute yet another blow to education in Virginia. The Virginia arts groups receiving funding through the commission don't exist for an elitist few. They have put major emphasis on outreach efforts, programs in public schools, and formal training for talented, young members of working-class and minority communities.
While the full impact of the cuts is not yet known, it appears that the governor's proposal would mean a loss of more than $1 million a year in state funds for some 200 cultural organizations in Virginia localities. These include the Mill Mountain Theater, the Roanoke Symphony, the Roanoke Museum of Fine Arts and several other arts organizations in this region. Additionally, it could mean the loss of federal funds for these groups.
Under Wilder's budget plan, the commission's designated role as the flow-through agency for funds from the NEA and other federal sources would be transferred to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond. Where the commission now has a staff of six looking after the interests of far-flung local arts organizations, the state museum would have one staff member assigned to do that.
As local arts groups know all too well, the business of applying and qualifying for NEA grants is a tricky hurdle-jumping game that has taken the experienced commission's staff years to master. There are questions as to how fast and how well the state museum could pick up on this game to serve arts organizations across Virginia.
Groups in this region were hit harder than some others by the Wilder administration's slashing of cultural funds last year. The first round of cuts caught arts in this area on a growth curve, when they were counting on state support to meet demands for expansion. The cuts also came at a time when local patrons were reducing their contributions.
Now - after a year of layoffs, retrenchment and curtailment of activities, after already seeing the flow of state funds for their budgets slow to a dribble - the arts groups face the possibility that both state and federal money will dry up completely. Lawmakers would be making a big mistake to approve Wilder's recommendation.
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