Grant allows Commons to get started
Published 4:00 pm Wednesday, December 13, 2006
It was a small step for the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, but a huge leap for the South Whidbey Commons.
The foundation has awarded the South Whidbey Commons a $100,000 grant to support the Commons Capital Campaign.
The funding boost brings the amount raised from grants and community donations to close to $2 million and allows the Commons to break ground on their 4.5-acre site at Bayview this spring.
The best part about it: The money is already in the bank.
“We’ve already received the money, which is nice,†said Mindy Gardner, the Commons’ grant specialist.
“It puts us really close to our goal, and it’s enough to get us started,†Gardner said.
The group will go to bid on the Commons project next month.
The Commons board’s efforts to address skyrocketing construction costs have been successful, organizers of the new South End meeting place said.
With the help of professionals, the Commons board redesigned the facility using cost-saving construction methods.
The Commons will be built in sections and assembled on our site this summer. The flexible design will allow the Commons to add on to the structure as needs warrant and resources grow.
Gardner said she estimates that with the changed design and the new grant, the Commons are about $100,000 to $200,000 short of what is needed to finish the project.
The board said construction costs have increased dramatically over the past four years and that has forced the group to rethink its plans for the community center.
Constructing the Commons building as originally designed and allowing for two years of operating costs would require raising an additional $1.2 million, said Sue Haworth, Commons chairwoman.
Further delays would result in the loss of many of the already secured grants.
The Commons has raised nearly $1.5 million in grants alone, including money from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Murdoch Foundation.
Instead of dealing with a problematic delay, the Commons board came up with a downscaled plan for the project.
The new fundraising goal still includes a facility operations budget that has been developed to make sure that the Commons and its programs will be self-sustaining, Haworth said.
Getting the Allen grant is good news for the Commons in more ways than one.
“Now we have the ‘Big Three’ – Murdoch, Bill and Melinda Gates and Allen. It will help us with credibility in the community to have these foundations believe in us,†Gardner said.
The construction and planning for the project is now in trusted local hands.
Mark Stine, who once worked on the island for Mike Boyd, is the building designer. Quin Clements of Davido Consulting Group in Freeland has engineered the site plans. Gary Hess of Davido will be the project manager.
Cynthia Tilkin, a local interior designer, has been helping to plan for welcoming interiors. And the building committee has worked hard to guarantee that both program needs and building aesthetics were included.
As the construction date comes closer, more details about the life under the Commons roof are being settled.
Island Coffee House & Books has officially joined the Commons as a program under the non-profit umbrella.
“It was a natural evolution, as we have worked together with Susie Richards and her co-workers for three years, including sponsorship of Friday Night Live and SummerFun,†Haworth said.
With the addition of the book store, Island Coffee House & Books has become a community-building showcase for youth service learning, poetry, and art, Haworth added.
The new 8,000-square-foot South Whidbey Commons will be open to the entire community and will offer space and partnership with organizations that provide a wide range of programs and services for children, youth, families and seniors.
The collaborative approach will build community, embrace diversity, and foster relationships among the people of South Whidbey, organizers say.
Michaela Marx Wheatley can be reached at 221-5300 or mmarxwheatley@southwhidbeyrecord.com.
