A proposed cut in Allegheny Regional Asset District funding has officials looking for other ways to cover an operating deficit at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

City-Allegheny County Sports & Exhibition Authority Executive Director Mary Conturo said today officials are looking at loans, a possible debt restructuring and ways to save on maintenance as a means of making up the difference.

The SEA had requested $2 million for the regional asset district to help cover the convention center shortfall but received only half of that in the 2009 preliminary budget released earlier this week. The district expects sales tax revenues, its main source of income, to drop by as much as 2 percent next year, prompting it to freeze most spending and to eliminate most capital grants.

The SEA estimates that convention center expenses will outstrip revenues by $3.8 million next year, in part because of charging below market rents to attract conventions and out-of-town tourists. The SEA is getting $1.7 million a year from state slots revenue to help cover the deficit, but Ms. Conturo has said that won't be enough to eliminate it.