THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 2, 1996 TAG: 9610020630
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY CATHERINE KOZAK, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NEW BERN LENGTH: 69 lines
Spurned by the General Assembly in this year's state budget, state aquarium officials are cultivating early to have a $30 million appropriation restored for expansion and renovation of North Carolina's three aquariums.
Elected officials, along with tourism and aquarium representatives from around the state, met at the Sheraton in New Bern Tuesday to attempt to harness the political muscle needed to loosen the purse strings by next fiscal year.
``These aquariums will bring us into the 21st century,'' said state Sen. Beverly M. Perdue, D-New Bern, ``but they've built with mid-20th century architecture, and we need your help. The only folks who can make it happen are y'all.''
But apparently, those who hesitate pay more.
Rhett White, director of North Carolina Aquariums, said inflation has already had a hand in the expected construction costs. The renovation and expansion is now expected to cost up to $39 million, rather than last year's proposed $30 million.
The state had previously appropriated $2.5 million for preliminary design work, which White said is nearly completed.
Scale models of each of the facilities - complete with miniature people on walkways and tiny cars parked in lots under little trees - were on display so people could see what the revamped aquariums would look like - if the state provides the money.
The models cost about $10,000 to make, and came out of state funds for design work. The luncheon and most of the promotional material on the facilities were funded by the North Carolina Aquarium Society, a 20,000-member group that raises money for aquarium efforts.
The aquariums - Pine Knoll Shores near Atlantic Beach, Fort Fisher near Wilmington and Roanoke Island on the Outer Banks - celebrated their 20th anniversaries this year. The proposed facelift and expansion will double the size of each facility and allow new and better exhibits, such as a Roanoke Island's proposed 180,000-gallon shark tank.
White said that the aquariums, which attracted more than 800,000 visitors last year, are a good deal for the state.
``There's not an aquarium in the country that's more cost-effective than the North Carolina Aquariums,'' he said.
Alex G. Macfadyen, Chairman of the North Carolina Aquarium Society, said aquarium operations cost taxpayers $2.80 per visitor, compared with $15.80 per visitor at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California and $10.55 at the Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans.
``It's also important to emphasize that the aquariums are helping themselves,'' said Jonathan B. Howes, the Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources, the agency that oversees the facilities. ``It's also important to emphasize that the aquariums recognize that we can't expect the General Assembly to carry the full weight.''
With other states building bigger and better aquariums, North Carolina has to stay competitive, White said. As it is, he said, visitors comment that they expect more from the exhibits.
``Our staffs realize if we are truly to be effective, we need to expand our facilities,'' he said.
White said last month that he is optimistic that the funds will be restored in the state budget next year.
R.V. ``Bobby'' Owens Jr., Gov. Jim Hunt's eastern representative, told the roomful of people to ``go forth'' and pressure their state representatives and colleagues to get the money for the project.
``It is going to be a selling job,'' he said, ``but I don't think it'll be too major if we go in one direction: These aquariums belong to the people of North Carolina.'' by CNB