Published: November 03, 2009 10:38 pm      

Council hears park light appeal

Massey requests event be returned to volunteers

Ann Massey asked the Corsicana City Council Tuesday to return the management of the Christmas parade to volunteers. She spoke during the public forum portion of the regular city council meeting.

Massey, who was on the Festival of Lights committee, said the committee had done some work on the parade and wanted to continue it this year.

Last week, the head of the Festival of Lights committee, Dennis Thornberg, told the city he didn’t have enough money to decorate Community Park for the holiday because of city budget cuts. On Monday, the city offered to take on the task of organizing the parade, which was also one of Thornberg’s projects. The city’s plan was to move the parade to a mid-morning event, and make it into a downtown festival to promote local merchants.

The city has traditionally given money to the Festival of Lights group to pay for putting up the park decorations and the parade. However, because of a shortage of funds, the city cut $1,500 from that budget this year, leaving the group with only $5,000 from the city. The group also traditionally receives a grant from Bank of America for $5,000. However, the group didn’t apply for the money this year, according to Bruce Ruggles, who oversees the funding for the bank.

The deadline to apply for the bank grant was March, but Thornberg said he felt confident he could still receive the money if he had applied in September. He chose not to apply because the city funding was cut.

He said the city puts more money into the downtown lighting and celebration than into the Festival of Lights project, and described himself as “bitter” about the disparity.

“After 23 years (on the committee) I’m just tired,” Thornberg said Tuesday afternoon. “I had to give it up.”

However, on Tuesday evening, Massey asked the city for a meeting between Festival of Lights volunteers and city officials to work out responsibilities for the parade, and possibly for lighting the park with donated funds.

“If somebody offers to take over the Festival of Lights, we’d consider that,” said City Manager Connie Standridge.

That the community has volunteers and could raise money for the effort isn’t an issue, she said.

“But we’d have to have somebody to coordinate them,” Standridge said.

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