ROCKY MOUNT -- In this town of about 4,500 residents, at least seven groups are working on, to some degree, similar development and conservation issues.

The groups include the county historical society, chamber of commerce and retail merchants association, the Warren Street Society, a Rotary Club and a beautification commission.

But the nonprofit Community Partnership for Revitalization has been the focus of debate over downtown issues in recent months.

In July the Rocky Mount Town Council cut $17,000 in funding to the community partnership, money the group had been using to manage the hospitality center in the restored depot building downtown. After the cut, the partnership decided to move out of the depot.

Town council members Gregg Walker and Posey Dillon have accused the partnership of being "too political."

Some of those feelings date to the town elections in May, when the partnership's interim director, Barbara Chauncey, endorsed and campaigned for Mark Newbill, who ran against Walker but lost.

Chauncey said that members of the partnership are allowed to participate in the election process. Chauncey also said that volunteers campaigned as individuals, not as representatives of the organization.

The community partnership, which is currently searching for a new permanent director, had a trump card of sorts to remain viable. The group is charged with overseeing Rocky Mount's share of the Virginia Main Street program -- an initiative to help revitalize downtowns.

So after leaving the depot, the community partnership moved into an office on Franklin Street.

And not long after that, Jeff Sadler, Virginia Main Street program manager, sent a letter to town officials warning that the town's Main Street designation is in jeopardy.

Guidelines require that the organization handling the Main Street program has local government support and a full-time director.

Chauncey let the state administrators know the timeline for hiring a director.

During a recent meeting, town council members discussed two options: dropping out of the Main Street program and reapplying later with a different community group or working with the community partnership and providing funds for an executive director.

The council decided to provide some of the money needed to hire an executive director to handle the Main Street program, with Franklin County providing the rest.

How much will come from the town's coffers won't be determined until an applicant is chosen, Town Manager James Ervin said.

Ervin estimates the starting salary to be about $30,000. The county will end up contributing $14,000 and the town would cover the rest and benefits for the position.

Applications will be accepted until Jan. 23. Already, there have been a few inquiries from possible candidates, she said.

In the meantime, the partnership has turned to a former director, Susheela Shende, for help. She will act as an interim director through February. Shende resigned as the director of the partnership in 1996 to take a job in Roanoke.

Whoever is hired to permanently hold the spot will answer to the 13-member community partnership board daily and report to town and county officials on a quarterly basis, Rocky Mount Mayor Steve Angle said.

Chauncey said she will not seek the full-time position but will remain a volunteer with the organization.

The town's participation in the Main Street program is in limbo after the last three-year agreement between the partnership, the town and the state expired in June. Town Attorney John Boitnott said he expects another three-year agreement to be signed after everything with the partnership is resolved.

If the town is taken out of the Main Street program, it could lose financial support from the state for different projects.

For instance, grants from the state have been put on hold while the town and the partnership hash out their differences.

The town's Facade Improvement Program, which offers grants of up to $7,000 to Rocky Mount businesses to renovate the outside of their buildings, is pending state review. The state Department of Housing and Community Development will not approve the program -- totaling $140,000 -- until it knows the community partnership would be funded and administer the program, said Matt Hankins, the assistant town manager who oversees community development projects.

To date, the partnership credits itself with helping downtown businesses through revitalization of the central business district as well as creating the Pigg River Ramble, a canoe event on the Blackwater River, and "Come Home to a Franklin County Christmas."

The group has also worked with the town to plant trees and has assisted the development of the farmers market, Chauncey said.

Some council members have wanted to explore other options in managing the Main Street program.

Walker, the town councilman, made clear that he voted to fund the director's position only because he didn't want to lose the Main Street designation.

"There needs to be guidelines," Walker said. "If we fund it, we should have input on what they do."

Sadler maintains that the organization handling the Main Street program has to remain independent of town government.

Hankins said he believes there's plenty of room for all the groups.

"Each organization in town has a different mission," Hankins said. "There may be some overlap in desired outcomes, such as more businesses, more tourists and economic growth, but from my perspective, the more help we have in pursuing economic growth, the better our community becomes."