Manassas Councilman with Ballet Ties has Funding Vote Questioned

MANASSAS, Va. — Manassas Councilman Mark Wolfe is under fire after city leaders approved $23,000 for the Manassas Ballet Theatre, where he and his wife serve as executive directors.

While the public funds have already been allocated, once again Monday the Manassas City Council discussed their vote to support the ballet.

Wolfe, whose wife Amy Grant Wolfe is the ballet’s director, took part in the decision to fund the theatre to the tune of $5,000 more than the previous year. A total of $142,500 was approved in a cultural enrichment package as part of the city’s $382 million budget for 2014.

Councilman Marc Aveni argued that Wolfe should have abstained from voting as he has done in the past, due to his continued involvement with the ballet. Prior to this year, the city’s funding package for the fine arts has been voted on in a line item format. But this year the organizations that were to be funded were lumped into one group vote.

In addition to the Manassas Ballet Theatre, organizations like Center for the Arts, Hylton Performing Arts Center, as well as humanitarian organizations like Project Mend-A-House and Habitat for Humanity also received city funds.

“Mr. Aveni had the right to question the vote,” said Mayor Hal Parrish II. “I felt the issue needed another look see.”

Wolfe, who is also an unpaid executive at the ballet company, said he had made a mistake not mentioning his role during the vote. Under Virginia’s Conflict of Interest Act, elected officials are required to report a statement of economic interests.

“Honestly, it never crossed my mind to point it out again,” Wolfe said. “When I ran for office people knew that my wife and I were involved in the ballet and nothing has changed since then.”

Wolfe went on to point out that a committee reviews grant applications for all of the fine arts programs that apply for support from Manassas. He said he has no involvement in the application or review phase for grant awards.

“The fine arts issue has been a piñata in this community for a long time,” Wolfe said. “People are entitled to have opinions, but the selection process is very competitive.”

While the council discussed the vote, the original 4-2 decision to support the fine arts package stands.