Gov. Timothy M. Kaine today projected a $1.2 billion decline in state revenues for the fiscal year ending next June 30.

Virginia Commonwealth University will seek state approval to build a $44 million, 102,000-square-foot classroom building on Floyd Avenue across from the Student Commons. The board of visitors approved the project yesterday as part of its six-year capital plan, moving ahead with funding requests even as it awaits word on how hard the state will cut the university’s budget this year.

The prospect of an additional $1.5 billion in Virginia spending cuts is making for rare unanimity among legislators, with members of both parties warning that long-protected services such as public education and health care may have to be scaled back. “We have put off some of the hard decision-making,“ said Del. John M. O’Bannon III, R-Henrico, a member of the influential House Appropriations Committee.

No matter how you look at it, the forecast is pain. Spending in the current Virginia budget for fiscal 2010 will have to be slashed up to $1.5 billion if the most dire economic forecast for state revenue prevails.

Maine is well-known for its lobsters, but it won’t cost you a claw and a tail to visit Portland and the state’s southern coast. There are plenty of things to do on the cheap in Maine’s largest city and the surrounding area. Tourists can take boat rides off the coast for less than $10 a head, see professional baseball at a fraction of the cost of major-league games, and enjoy miles of white-sand beaches—for free.

The Chesterfield School Board last night unanimously approved delaying several key measures and eliminating others in its six-year strategic plan because of budget constraints. “For the next several years, we’re going to be in a mode of keeping what we have,“ School Board Chairman Marshall Trammell Jr. said in an interview. He was not at last night’s meeting. “Some of those things that we deem necessary, we don’t see the money for in the horizon any time soon.“

Battered by the recession, Virginia’s highway and transit programs have shrunk by one-third in two years. “We’re back to basics,“ state Transportation Commissioner David S. Ekern said yesterday. “It’s about pavements and bridges now. It’s not about congestion. It’s not about expansion.“ Ekern made his comments after the Commonwealth Transportation Board adopted a $7.5 billion statewide transportation-improvement program for 2010-2015, down $4 billion from the $11.5 billion in the 2008-2014 program.

The state’s revenue numbers from May are in, and things are worse than officials thought they would be. Based on the month’s revenues—which fell 15.6 percent compared with the same month last year—Virginia’s forecast budget gap widened another $75 million, for a total of $300 million for fiscal year 2009, which ends June 30. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine tempered the tepid financials by saying that the state will bridge the gap with the cost-cutting measures already in place—and the use of about $109 million in federal stimulus funding and $49 million in unallocated budget surplus from the two-year, $77 billion spending plan for fiscal 2009-2010.

Tough economic times mean less spending on entertainment. Popular festivals in Petersburg have been canceled or cut back because of funding reductions, giving festival-goers fewer options for free entertainment this year. The Petersburg Intercultural Celebration, an annual city-funded festival held in July, is expected to be canceled because the city is not fully financing it. The Life Through Literature Festival, also a weekend event that was to take place last weekend, was canceled because of a lack of money. And the popular Nostalgiafest, held in October since the 1970s, may be cut back to one day.

Couples may vow to save money on their weddings, but many are still willing to splurge on a “wow” factor. Emily Post might be overcome by the vapors at some of the quirky ideas couples are using to personalize their weddings and receptions. John and Sherry Petersik of Richmond, who married July 7, 2007, wanted to inject fun into their casual backyard wedding. They decided on a photo booth, “spurred by our tradition of documenting many relationship milestones with a photo-booth strip,“ Sherry said.

Sure, visitors can drop a bundle whiling away hours in Kansas City’s born-again downtown, with its shiny new Sprint Center and Power & Light dining, drinking fun zone. But budget-minded travelers also have a buffet of penny-pinching options in the city of fountains, including rock-solid offerings from the holy trinity of summer fun: good food, baseball and jazz. After all, is anything else really necessary?

Wedding dresses are chosen based on their suitability for future occasions. Invitations are embossed on cards instead of engraved on fine ecru paper. Friends with high-end cameras are shooting bridal portraits. A wedding with all the trimmings has become a trimmed-down wedding as engaged couples look to save money during challenging economic times.

The Dinwiddie County School Board’s decision to contract custodial services to an outside company at two of its schools is forcing 17 custodians out of their jobs. Last week, the School Board voted 3-2 to use SSC Service Solutions Inc. to clean Dinwiddie Middle School and Dinwiddie Junior High School beginning July 1. The cost of the annual contract is $316,268.

Local resources:
  http://blog.weddingsbywindy.com - Local blog by wedding planner Windy Jennings.
  www.richmondweddings.com - Planning tips, upcoming shows, local vendor directory and more.
  www.pbrichmond.com - Premier Bride of Richmond, a resource for local wedding services.
  http://thebridescafe.typepad.com/my_weblog - Blog established by Richmond floral designer Janie Medley.

Gov. Tim Kaine has asked state agencies to look for more savings as the state struggles to keep expenditures in line with shrinking tax revenue. The need for more cuts—despite a hefty infusion of stimulus money, courtesy of the federal credit card—provides a painful yardstick with which to measure the severity of the current economic contraction.