Facing funding cut, Main St. goes on

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By AARON MAY
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Fallon Burns, Main St. Mgr. Kilgore Main Street Manager Fallon Burns said the city's downtown revitalization programs should not be heavily impacted if the state legislature chooses to cut funding for two commissions designed to preserve the arts and history of Texas.

During Tuesday's State of the State address, Texas Governor Rick Perry announced his support of a plan to shutter four state programs, including the Texas Commission on the Arts and the Texas Historical Commission.

The Texas Historical Commission is the state agency that oversees the local Main Street programs which, in turn, receives its training from the National Trust for Historical Preservation.

"The good thing is that all the main street programs are completely funded and supported from the local level," Burns said. "The Texas Historical Commission doesn't give us any money. What they give us is free training and architectural design assistance. If the state chooses to end the programs, these services would no longer be available."

http://www.kilgorenewsherald.com/news/2011-02-19/Front_Page/Facing_funding_cut_Main_St_goes_on.html