By Joe Obidzinski, Preserve WV AmeriCorps member, and Kelli Shapiro, PhD, Program Associate
If you are looking for some fun and exciting things to do this summer, check out the West Virginia Historic Theatre Trail! Summer is a great time to enjoy a nostalgic movie-going experience at one of the state’s drive-in theatres – such as our Trail members, the Warner’s Drive-In in Franklin and the Sunset Drive-In in Shinnston. Many of our member sites, like the Ritz Theatre in Hinton, are showing some of the season’s most popular films. The Capitol Theatre in Wheeling, which has primarily been a performance-oriented venue in recent years, is even featuring a weekly, summer film series that offers affordable entertainment for audiences of all ages. With 29 member sites across the Mountain State, there are a plethora of opportunities to enjoy. A number of our Trail members across the state offer great children’s/youth theatre and performing arts programs over the summer, a wonderful way to get young people interested in theatre and the arts. Perhaps you are looking for some live music performances, or even a play or musical. The West Virginia Historic Theatre Trail features many fantastic venues for these types of entertainment as well! There are even summer concert and performance series occurring at Trail sites, including Carnegie Hall in Lewisburg and the Randolph County Community Arts Center in Elkins. ‘Matewan’ Director John Sayles to Attend Launch of Blair Centennial Project
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) announced today that the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum is the recipient of a $30,000 challenge grant for their long-term project to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Blair Mountain in 2021. Though still four years in the future, planning for the Blair Centennial Project has already begun. A celebration of the 30th anniversary of the release of John Sayles’s acclaimed film about the West Virginia Mine Wars, Matewan, will take place this October. Sayles and his producer partner, Maggie Renzi, will both attend screenings of the film in Charleston. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Centennial project. The museum will be releasing more details about the screenings in coming weeks. The five-day Battle of Blair Mountain unfolded on the border of Boone and Logan counties and pitted unionist coal miners against local law enforcement and citizen militias. The Blair Centennial Project will consist of five days of fun, interpretive activities spread out across the coalfield counties where the conflict took place. The NEH grant makes it possible for the Museum to hire a director to coordinate the activities. The grant is also intended to increase the museum’s fundraising capacity, while creating connections among humanities organizations across southern West Virginia. In Governor Justice’s FY 2018 Recommended Budget, all Division of Culture & History funding that comes from the state Lottery Education Fund (fund 3534 in the budget) was to be defunded. However, during the spring special legislative session, the West Virginia Legislature negotiated to pass the FY 2018 budget and continue funding programs made possible through the state Lottery Education Fund. Unfortunately, several historic preservation programs were funded at lower levels than in FY 2017, but there is good news for Fairs and Festivals, which received an increase in funding. Here are how things panned out (this is not a comprehensive list of line items):
Thank your legislators for supporting these important programs! Encourage increased funding levels by inviting them to events or to visit projects that benefit from these grant funds. Now is the time to ask them to consider increasing these funds in FY 2019.
By Anna, Lynn Stasick, Statewide Field Services Representative
Note: Much of the information contained in this document was provided by and courtesy of Dr. Michael F. Potter, Extension Entomologist at the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture. PAWV thanks him greatly for his time and effort. In the past fifteen to twenty years, hoteliers have experienced a growing problem with bedbug infestations in even some of the finest hotels nationwide. In response, new technology and methods to employ them have been developed to combat the problem. First, bedbug sniffing dogs are sent in to identify what rooms are infested. Once the location of the infested rooms is established, dry heat units are brought in to heat the room to a fairly high temperature, and then maintaining that temperature for up to an hour, thus exterminating the insects. Congressman David McKinley (R-WV-1) has introduced House Bill 3142 in the U.S. House of Representatives. Co-sponsors are Representatives Jenkins (R-WV-3) and Delaney (D-MD-6). The Appalachian Forest National Heritage Area Act of 2017 will bring national recognition for the organization.
Designation as a National Heritage Area will bring national recognition of the importance of the Appalachian Forest Heritage story, technical assistance through the National Park Service, and funding for local projects. Appalachian Forest Heritage Area (AFHA) has been seeking National Heritage Area designation since 2006. “This designation, should it go through Congress, would create us as a National Heritage Area. There are 49 other National Heritage Areas around the country, including two others in West Virginia. It would give national recognition of the national significance of our story,” said AFHA Executive Director Phyllis Baxter. A companion bill, S. 401, was introduced earlier this year by lead sponsor Senator Manchin (D-WV) and co-sponsors Senators Capito (R-WV), Cardin (D-MD), and Van Hollen (D-MD) . It is currently referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Read the full story at 12 News – WBOY – http://www.wvalways.com/story/35818974/mckinley-supports-national-recognition-for-afha Show your support for these bills by thanking your Senators and Representatives for their support, or ask them to co-sponsor the legislation if they have not already done so. Find contact information at the following link: https://www.congress.gov/members?q={%22congress%22:%22115%22} The Herald-Dispatch: Revenue Bill that Includes Historic Tax Credit in High-Stakes Negotiation6/8/2017 By Lacie Pierson / The Herald-Dispatch
CHARLESTON – Members of the West Virginia Legislature picked up Wednesday where they left off on May 24 and sent a tax revenue measure to a conference committee with the goal of reaching a compromise before June 30. House Bill 107, or the West Virginia Tax Reform Act of 2017, was referred to the committee in the first formal legislative action taken by lawmakers in regard to the revenue measure they estimate will close a budget gap for fiscal year 2018, which begins July 1. Read the full story at www.herald-dispatch.com. By Nicole Marrocco / WV Community Development Hub
Little excites me more than a community finding a modern use for a historic building. Nerdy, I know. But just check out this church turned indoor rock gym, gas station turned restaurant, and bank turned grocery store, and I guarantee you’ll be geeking out over the untapped potential of abandoned and underperforming historic buildings alongside me. Historic tax credits make it possible to revitalize historic properties that have a financing gap between what banks will lend and the total cost of rehabilitation. Developers restoring income-producing (i.e. commercial, industrial, agricultural, or rental-residential) buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places or certified by the National Parks Service can apply for personal or corporate net income tax credits from West Virginia worth 10 percent of rehabilitation expenses. Unfortunately, West Virginia’s 10 percent rate just isn’t cutting it — especially considering all of our neighboring states have either a 20 or 25 percent historic tax credit rate. Developers are wary of rehabbing buildings here because the risk is so much higher compared to places just across the state border. Over the last few months, the Revitalize West Virginia’s Downtowns Coalition (including Generation West Virginia) has been advocating to increase the rate to 25 percent to make our state’s historic districts more attractive to developers and spur private investment. Read the full UpThink to find out why — as a young person living in West Virginia — I believe an increased historic tax credit rate is a game-changer. By Joselyn King / The Intelligencer
WHEELING — The West Virginia House of Delegates passed its version of a revenue bill Friday on what was the sixth day of a special legislative session in Charleston called for setting the state’s 2018 budget. Despite a long agenda of proposed amendments, House Bill 107 was approved with few changes from the measure passed Thursday by the House Finance Committee. It would maintain West Virginia’s consumer sales tax at 6 percent, but would eliminate sales tax exemptions on cellphone services. It also would make no changes to the state’s coal and gas severance tax rates, but would gradually eliminate all taxation of Social Security within the next three years. Read the full story, including more about the historic tax credit, at theintelligencer.net. By Ashton Marra / WV Public Broadcasting
Members of the House are standing their ground when it comes to tax reform. At least, that’s what House Speaker Tim Armstead said Friday after a vote in the chamber on its own version of a revenue bill. The bill does not include any of the changes to the personal income tax Senate Republicans and Gov. Jim Justice have agreed to, but Armstead said that doesn’t mean his chamber isn’t still willing to work on a compromise. Members of the House voted 74 to 17 in favor of the tax bill negotiated between House Democrats and Republicans. It brings in an estimated $100 million in additional revenue to close a budget gap in the 2018 fiscal year, which isn’t enough according to members of the chamber, but is a start. Read the full story, including more about the historic tax credit, at wvpublic.org. |
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