LSU and the Baton Rouge Area Foundation have agreed to assume a greater share of the operating expenses at The Shaw Center for the Arts under the terms of a deal reached with the state, which, until July 1, had been paying all of the facility’s maintenance and operating expenses.
Under the terms of an agreement, dated Sept. 28, between LSU, BRAF and the Division of Administration, LSU and BRAF will now split all maintenance and operating costs at the facility, except those related to the heating and air conditioning system, which the state will continue to pay.
Additionally, BRAF and LSU will pay the state $500,000 to offset some of the building’s insurance and utilities costs, which the state also will continue to cover.
The deal is effective only through the current fiscal year, ending June 30. Still, it settles a question that was raised earlier this year, when lawmakers passed a fiscal 2019 state budget that stripped The Shaw Center of $800,000 in operating funds.
At the time, Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne told Daily Report the state was willing to work with The Shaw Center, which has been jointly operated by LSU and BRAF since its inception in 2005, but that it could no longer continue to shoulder the cost of all the facility’s operating expenses.
Because the budget cut took many by surprise, Dardenne gave LSU and BRAF until Oct. 1 to reach an agreement.
Still unresolved, however, is the future of Preserve Louisiana, a preservation organization based in the Old Governor’s Mansion, which also saw its state funding cut in the 2019 budget—by some $100,000.
As with The Shaw Center, the state had been covering all the operating expenses for the 88-year-old year old facility, which Preserve Louisiana operates as a historical museum and also uses for office space.
Preserve Louisiana Executive Director Fairleigh Jackson says her organization is unable to incur the additional costs of $100,000 and is continuing to explore options.
