Lack of funds stops Hispanic center

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -- A lack of funding has forced the National Hispanic Cultural Center of New Mexico to postpone the planned September opening of a $22 million performing arts center.
Executive Director Tom Chavez said the center will ask the state Board of Finance for an interim loan of $550,000 to open the Roy E. Disney Center for Performing Arts early next year.
The center, which is more than half completed, is funded by a combination of federal, state and private money. Chavez said it can't be opened without additional operating funds.
The center contains a 700-seat theater, a 150-seat experimental theater and a 300-seat film and video theater. It's about $1.1 million short of private donations needed to complete construction, Chavez said last week.
XOn the Net: National Hispanic Cultural Center of New Mexico Web site: http://www.nhccnm.org