Gov. Steve Beshear is keeping up the pressure on lawmakers in Frankfort to fund the Rupp Arena redesign.
Legislators have two days left in the session to make changes to the budget.
As it stands, the $20.3 billion spending plan passed this week by the General Assembly allots only $1.5 million for planning on the Rupp project, a small fraction of the $65 million included in the House version.
But the governor is continuing to campaign for full funding, telling the Lexington Herald-Leader that “Lexington and the Kentucky Wildcats deserve no less.” It's a project Beshear has consistently supported.
"To redo the convention center and Rupp Arena downtown, I think that it will make a huge difference long-term for Central Kentucky. All you've got to do is go look at what the Yum Center did for downtown Louisville," Beshear told Commerce Lexington last month.
The General Assembly spent $75 million in state money on the Yum Center and approved another $56 million for Louisville convention center renovations on Monday.
Lawmakers have been briefed on the financing plan for Rupp, but the numbers have not been made public yet.
