Florida Orchestra Pleads For More Civic Funding

The Florida Orchestra is asking its home city of St. Petersburg to triple its contribution to the orchestra, to $221,000. The request comes as the orchestra prepares to move to a local church for a year as its hall is being renovated. “But the request could be a difficult one for the City Council’s three-member budget committee… The committee also has to weigh requests from at least 10 other agencies, who want a piece of the $797,000 available for fiscal year 2006, which starts Oct. 1. The orchestra is competing with the Festival of States, which wants $100,000; the Pier Aquarium, which wants $92,000; and the Tennis Foundation of St. Petersburg, which wants $60,000.”