As much as transportation is talked about in Northern Virginia, it would be reasonable to think the Virginia Transportation Museum would be located somewhere in the region.
But actually, the museum is in Roanoke, where it honors Virginia’s transportation history and displays rail cars, antique automobiles and carriages.
The facility stands to receive $87,500 under an amendment proposed to the state budget by Del. Bill Fralin, R-Roanoke, one of many funding requests legislators have submitted for pet projects in their districts.
The Senate Finance and House Appropriations committees will decide on the amendments Sunday when they release their fiscal 2008 spending proposals. Submitted amendments cover a wide range of causes, including the beekeeping industry, restoring an historic farm in Petersburg, forest land, local museums and historic sites (including $1 million to the White House of the Confederacy).
“We don’t know if there will be money available or not this year,” said Sen. Edward Houch, D-Spotsylvania, who is asking for $2 million to be allocated for the Civil War Historic Site Preservation Fund to keep battlefields free from development. “There is a lot of uncertainty because we don’t know what we’re doing with transportation and how much money will use for that.”
The funding requests include projects from every corner of the state. Sen. William Wampler, R-Bristol, has asked that $1.6 million be earmarked for the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance. The group operates a museum in Bristol, a town in the Appalachian Mountains on the southwest tip of Virginia, just across the Tennessee border (about eight hours from the District).
