SCHUMER ANNOUNCES KEY SENATE PANEL BACKS $150,000 FOR BARTON HOUSE (06/06) Senator Aggressively Lobbied Senate Appropriations Committee To Include Funding In Spending Bill Schumer: The Barton House Restoration Project Is Vitally Important In Preserving Local History And Architectural Gems In Buffalo US Senator Charles E. Schumer today announced that the Senate Appropriations Committee approved $150,000 under the FY07 Interior Appropriations Act for the Barton House Restoration. The bill must now be approved by the full Senate before being sent to a House and Senate Conference Committee and eventually being signed into law. Schumer had aggressively lobbied members of the Appropriations Committee to include funding for the project in this year's spending bill. "This will be a big boost for Buffalo and the future of this architecture icon. Keeping our architectural treasures beautiful and up to date takes money and effort," Schumer said. "These federal funds will enable the Barton House to do just that, and allow it to remain an important part of the national and local landscape." The Barton House was designed in 1903 by renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright for the sister of Buffalo's Larkin Company executive Darwin D. Martin, Delta and her husband George Barton. The 4,500 square foot house is part of the Martin House Complex and reflects the great architect's belief in a total design that integrates the building's architecture, interior spaces, furnishings and relationship to other structures on the site. Barton House is seen as one of Wright's early attempts to "break the box" and is arguably evidence of his developing genius. It has become a significant piece of local history and architecture. Federal funding for renovations will support interior and exterior repairs, the installation of updated materials, and restoration of the main rooms that the many visitors experience on their site tours. Today, the Interior Appropriations Bill was passed by the Appropriations Committee and now heads to the floor for a full vote before the Senate. The bill will then proceed to the Conference Committee and finally will be sent to the President before becoming law. # # #