 
|
|||||||||
              
|
Roddey seeks $375,000 in RAD funds for First Night, regatta, marathon, film office
Tuesday, October 03, 2000 By Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
Allegheny County Chief Executive Jim Roddey is asking the Allegheny Regional Asset District to chip in for four prominent organizations -- the Pittsburgh Film Office, the Three Rivers Regatta, the Pittsburgh Marathon and a New Year's Eve event called First Night Pittsburgh.
For 2001, Roddey wants to substitute $375,000 in county sales-tax revenue, which is controlled by the RAD board, for hotel/motel tax funds that the four civic events have received in the past. Roddey asked for additional funds for 2002.
Roddey's request, made in a Sept. 19 letter that was released yesterday, complicates the RAD board's budgeting process for 2001.
The board yesterday released its preliminary 2001 budget of $74.9 million, which is slightly more than the $74.6 million spent this year for county libraries, parks, sports venues and arts and cultural organizations.
If Roddey's request is granted, the 2001 budget would have to be increased by $375,000.
Roddey asked RAD to provide $200,000 for the film office next year, plus $100,000 for the regatta, $50,000 for the First Night event and $25,000 for the marathon.
Roddey asked for the infusion of sales-tax revenues because of severe pressure on the hotel/motel tax revenues, which are being used to fund bonds sold to finance the expansion of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.
The $15 million annual pot of hotel/motel tax revenues also helps pay for expenses of the Greater Pittsburgh Convention & Visitors Bureau and for operating deficits of $3 million or so at the convention center. Those deficits are expected to increase when the center gets larger.
Roddey said the hotel/motel tax is projected to have a deficit of more than $2 million by 2002 if something isn't done to ease pressure on it.
"With the opening of the new convention center [in spring 2003], it is imperative that sufficient dollars are available to sustain its operations," Roddey said.
"Any assistance the RAD can offer to ensure that adequate funding is available for the new convention center would be greatly appreciated."
Roddey has clear influence with the RAD board, since he appoints four of the seven members. However, six of the seven board members must approve any expenditure.
Gerald Voros, RAD board chairman, said Roddey's request poses a problem. Voros said RAD has never, in its six-year history, funded events that last just one day or a few days, which is the case with the marathon, First Night and the regatta. The board also hasn't funded civic festivals like the regatta, Voros said. He is concerned about setting a precedent where dozens of neighborhood festivals could seek RAD funds.
Voros said the board will hold a hearing Nov. 13 for people to comment on the proposed expenditures for 2001.
The bulk of the 2001 spending plan consists of $68.7 million in operating grants to be doled out to 94 different groups. That's $3 million higher than the $65.7 million in operating grants given out this year.
The largest single grants for 2001 are $15.1 million for the Carnegie Library system in Pittsburgh; $13.4 million for the Sports & Exhibition Authority (to fund the ongoing construction of two new stadiums and the larger convention center); $13.1 million for nine large county-owned parks; $6.9 million to be divided among 44 suburban libraries in the Allegheny County Library Association; $4.1 million for four large regional parks within the city; $3.2 million for improvements to the Mellon Arena; and $2.8 million for the Pittsburgh Zoo and Aquarium.
To hold overall spending down, the RAD board is reducing the amount spent on bricks-and-mortar, or capital, projects next year to $5.7 million vs. $8.3 million spent this year. The board also plans to spend $443,000 on administrative and staff costs.
The largest capital grant for 2001 is $1 million for repairing the roof and upgrading the heating and air conditioning systems at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall in Oakland.
The county parks, besides their operating grants, will get an additional $715,000 in capital funds for replacing playgrounds, dredging lakes, paving roads and replacing roofs on picnic shelters.
The Pittsburgh Symphony Society is to get $300,000 to renovate the air conditioning system at Heinz Hall.
The RAD will get the vast majority of its 2001 income, or $71.5 million, from the county's 1 percent sales tax. The rest of the RAD funds will come from a portion of its $20 million reserve fund and interest earned on investments of that fund.
By state law, RAD gets 50 percent of what is raised by the county sales tax.
The other half of the revenues are divided up among county government, the city of Pittsburgh and the other 129 municipalities in the county to use in reducing other taxes and for governmental operations
The hearing on the proposed 2001 budget will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 13 at RAD offices, One Smithfield St., Downtown. Anyone who wants to speak must register with the RAD office at 227-1900 by Nov. 10.
A final vote on the budget will be taken Nov. 30. The spending plan will then take effect on Jan. 1.
|
||||||||
