City Council Approves Additional Sesquicentennial Funding

In their last meeting for the month of February, The Manassas City Council  voted 5-1 to spend nearly $410,00 to help commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

Council Member Marc Aveni, who submitted the lone ‘no’ vote, said, “Arguably, we are spending $100,000 per day for a four-day event. That’s a lot of money."

 But other council members and Historic Manassas, Inc. staff took a more positive approach on spending the money.

Director of Community Development for the City of Manassas Elizabeth Via-Gossman said investing in the Sesquicentennial celebration and surrounding events will ultimately “benefit the community and create an economic development opportunity.”

 Via-Gossman pointed to the amount of vacant retail space in Manassas to highlight the need to participate in events like the Sesquicentennial, which could ultimately make the city more appealing for business.

Council member Sheryl Bass agreed. “This is an investment in our community,” she said.  “This is part of our rich and historic interest."

Still, some council members who voted yes, shared Aveni’s concern.

“If this doesn’t go the way we hope, we may be the last casualties of the Battle of First Manassas,” Council Member Steven Randolph said.

 Council Member Jonathan Way also expressed concern in spending the large sum of money during difficult economic times. “It’s a national event and it’s too late to not do anything,” Way said.

 Resolution 2011-73-R includes amending the current year’s FY11 budget to provide the additional funding for the events that have been planned and promoted by the city for the commemorative celebration in July and into the 2012 fiscal year, according to a city finance committee meeting agenda statement.

 Council members herd from Via-Gossman and President of Historic Manassas, Inc. Mark Olsen on programs the city has developed to provide entertainment and services in preparation for the 150th  anniversary of the Battle of First Manassas for residents and tourists.

Over 90 activities and events have been planned between Prince William County and the city of Manassas for the commemoration events from February to December 2011. The money will only fund events planned by the city.

Prince William County has invested $1 million into the event.

Last year, the city voted to appropriate $274,400 for events leading up to the commemoration in July and for the commemorative celebration itself.

The original budget estimate for the July 21st -24th events and another year's worth of programs was $440,160, according to the agenda statement.

As a result, the finance committee was originally asked to appropriate $450,000 in funding; however, they city ended up only allocating $409,000.