Restoration, preservation and renovation of art, culture and history in King County

November 23, 2015

Summary

Mukai House, Center for the Arts, and other Vashon facilities to receive economic boost from Building for Culture Program

Story

Restoration of the Mukai House and Garden and the Vashon Center for the Arts highlight a list of the projects on Vashon Island and throughout King County that will receive funding to help maintain their buildings and preserve the arts and heritage programs that are held inside.

“Vashon Island maintains a proud cultural and artistic heritage,” said Council Vice Chair Joe McDermott. “By funding projects like Mukai House and the Vashon Center for The Arts we are investing in the preservation and promotion of that important heritage.”
Friends of Mukai of received $100,000 for the restoration of the House and Garden, which was originally built in 1930. While Vashon Allied Arts received $1 million towards the construction of the new $19.3 million Center for the Arts.

The funding for maintenance, repairs, and preservation were allocated from the Building for Culture Program and unanimously approved by the County Council. Building for Culture is a partnership between King County and 4Culture, King County’s cultural services agency, using bonds backed by the hotel-motel tax to build, maintain, expand, preserve, and improve new and existing cultural facilities.

After the Council approved the creation of the Building for Culture Program, 4Culture put out a request for proposals to nonprofit arts, heritage and cultural organizations and eligible public agencies, as well as owners of national-, state-, or local-designated or eligible landmark properties. 4Culture then convened independent peer panels composed of arts, heritage, and preservation professionals, and other community representatives to review applications and make the final selections.

Click here to see the facilities receiving funding on Vashon and Maury Islands.

The bonds supporting these projects are made possible by early retirement of the Kingdome debt. State law requires that hotel-motel tax revenues King County collects this year after repayment of the Kingdome debt be directed to arts and cultural programs.