Straighten out cinema funding

The funding package for the six-screen Beacon Cinemas project on North Street in Pittsfield is a complex one, with the various parts dependent upon one another to a degree, which makes the uncertainty about the Legislature’s $1 million portion particularly worrisome. The funds may or may not have been included in the thoughtless $425 million in cuts Governor Romney decided to make last month, and we expect our legislators to determine the status of the money as soon as possible. If the money was cut, we assume the Berkshires’legislative delegation will make its restoration a high priority as soon it moves back into session in January. With the swearing-in of a new governor, Deval Patrick, who is attuned to the Berkshires and realizes the need for communities to rebuild their downtowns by attracting people to them, it should be easy for the legislators to make the case for the project.