Manassas Journal Messenger 02-27-01
Tuesday, February 27, 2001 |
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From Battle Street to Bourbon Street By Bennie Scarton Jr. Staff Writer
Amy Drewry/Staff Photographer People gather outside to listen to a band playing jazz at last year’s Old Town Manassas Mardi Gras Festival and Sidewalk Parade.
OLD TOWN – The spirit of Mardi Gras will come to historic Old Town Manassas this afternoon and evening with the third annual Old Town Manassas Mardi Gras Festival and Sidewalk Parade. A closed-off section of Battle St. between Church and Center will open its gates at 4 p.m. to a throng of festival goers who will participate in all the standard Mardi Gras revelry. Included in the celebration will be a sidewalk parade of floats, complete with a marching band, flying beads, outrageous costumes, Cajun and Creole food and the sounds of three hot area bands. Hosted by Okra’s Louisiana Bistro restaurant, the festival has been expanded this year to better handle the more than 5,000 people expected to show up for the event.[more] |
Budget will not change tax rate By Chris Newman Staff Writer MANASSAS – Uncertainty about state funding and the economy prompted City Manager Larry Hughes to propose a $69.6 million fiscal 2002 budget Monday that holds tax rates steady and shows a 5.1 percent increase over fiscal 2001 expenditures. The main question for the city budget is over state funding, Hughes said, so his proposal has a $400,000 contingency in the event state funding is cut this year. “Stay tuned for the outcome of the state budget to see what that contingency will be,” Hughes said.[more] |
Statistics show crime in city up 9 percent By Nancy Carroll Staff Writer Manassas bucked national crime trends in 2000, showing an increase while the rate for the nation as a whole declined for the ninth straight year. However, during a presentation of crime statistics to Manassas City Council on Monday, Manassas Police Chief John Skinner said that “considering this was the busiest year on record,” he was “pleased by the department figures.” Overall crime for 2000, including murder, rape, robbery, burglary and aggravated assault, increased by 9 percent from 1999. This was a change from previous years when police reported that crime was on the decrease. Skinner did not believe the increase to be significant.[more] |
Ambulance fee plan denounced By Kate Bissell Staff Writer Discussion of a possible ambulance service fee brought objections Monday evening from several members of a Prince William Fire and Rescue Association task force, which said the county should not charge citizens for a service volunteers provide for free. The Prince William Board of County Supervisors ordered the association to revisit the issue of ambulance fees and present a recommendation next month, in time for 2002 budgeting. A proposed fee structure, modeled on programs used in various Virginia localities, would charge up to $350 for an ambulance ride to the hospital – bringing nearly $2.5 million to the fire department each year.[more] |
A second lease on life — Girl turns fight against cancer into celebration of survival By Emily Kuhl Staff Writer Amy Drewry/Staff Photographer Anna Bruno, 10, a cancer survivor and spokesperson for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, waits for her radio-thon interview to be aired on JAMN 99.5 FM in her Gainesville home Friday.
GAINESVILLE – If someone tied Anna Bruno’s hands behind her back, she probably wouldn’t be able to talk. The 10-year-old Gainesville girl has an enthusiastic smile and likes to liven her speech with laughter, facial expressions and hand gestures. It’s hard to look at her and see someone who has been stricken with cancer. But Anna has turned what could have been a tragedy into a platform for promoting life, generosity and awareness. As a spokesperson for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, she was featured on a radio-thon sponsored by JAMN 99.5 FM on Friday and Saturday. Between playing music, the station featured taped and live interviews with Wish children, to encourage listeners to make donations and learn about the importance of the foundation.[more] |
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