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Funding For Local Arts-Related Projects Not In Proposed State Budget

The interior of the Stevens Center in Winston-Salem, NC. Photo by Jay Sinclair, courtesy of UNCSA.

Some major renovation projects at local universities are on hold for now.

Proposed improvements for UNCSA's Stevens Center is among those affected by political crossfire over the state budget. 

House Republicans say they needed the local delegation to be united behind the funding for it to be included in their budget version. But instead, they split along partisan lines.

Democrats said they were asked to not just support the funding but also the budget, which is expected to be overridden by Gov. Roy Cooper, also a Democrat, because of Medicaid expansion and other issues.

That was something they were not willing to support. The funding was removed and isn't part of the state budget compromise.

The proposed legislation would have earmarked more than $42 million for upgrades at the Stevens Center. It's a premier performance venue in Winston-Salem, owned by the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Chancellor Lindsay Bierman says he's cautiously optimistic that the money will reappear in the not so distant future.

“The fire panel in the building, I just learned this recently, is the oldest in operation that was ever made by the company that installed it during the 1980s renovation, so it reflects the urgent need for the funding,” Bierman says.

Meanwhile, UNCSA will continue to pursue private support to help with some of the improvements.

Two other arts-related projects are also impacted by changes to the proposed state budget. Renovations for the Hauser building at Winston-Salem State University and Wey Hall at Appalachian State University were both included in the initial funding bill.

*You can follow WFDD's Keri Brown on Twitter @kerib_news

Keri Brown is a multi-award winning reporter and host at 88.5 WFDD. She has been honored with two regional Edward R. Murrow awards for her stories about coal ash, and was named the 2015 radio reporter of the year by the Radio Television Digital News Association of the Carolinas (RTDNAC).Although she covers a variety of topics, her beats are environmental and education reporting.Keri comes to the Triad from West Virginia Public Broadcasting, where she served as the Chief Bureau Reporter for the Northern Panhandle. She produced stories for the state's Public Television and Radio programs and was honored by the West Virginia Associated Press Broadcasters Association for her feature and enterprise reporting.She also served as an adjunct instructor at Wheeling Jesuit University and Bethany College in West Virginia. She worked with the Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, WV, and other NASA centers across the country to develop several stories about the use of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) concepts in the classroom.Keri's journalism career began at WTRF-TV 7 in Wheeling. She worked in several roles at the station, including the head assignment editor. She also was a field producer and assignment manager at WPGH-TV Fox 53 in Pittsburgh.Keri is a graduate of Ohio University. When she's not in the studio or working on a story, she enjoys watching college football with her family, cooking, and traveling.Keri is always looking for another great story idea, so please share them with her. You can follow her on Twitter @kerib_news.

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