Late Wednesday (1/12) on the website for KRQE News Channel 13 (Albuquerque, New Mexico), Crystal Gutierrez reports, “The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s unpaid rent for the University of New Mexico’s Popejoy Hall is being questioned as budget concerns grow for the university. The overdue bill can be found in a stack of other budget and cost-cutting proposals for the university for the upcoming years. The proposal questions if UNM should give the group the boot because it owes nearly $250,000. New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s spokesperson Joannie Griffin said the symphony knows it’s behind but is working on catching up. … The concert hall’s director said they’ve been patiently carrying it over, and for now he has no plans of severing ties with the group despite what the budget recommendation says. … The symphony said in addition to the Popejoy Hall bill, it’s still more than $250,000 behind in payroll. However, NMSO said when compared to two years ago, things are actually looking up. In 2008, the symphony’s deficit was more than $1 million, and today it has made up more than half of that with help from the community.”
Posted January 13, 2011
