• A variety of expenses: operating costs related to historic preservation programs and activities accessible to King County residents and visitors; staff salaries; utilities; supplies; fees; and services.

• Capital construction, consider applying for Doors Open Facilities.
• Rehabilitating a historic building, consider applying for Landmarks Capital.
• Equipment, consider applying for Cultural Equipment.

For non-profit organizations and development authorities:

• Resilience: your organization has clearly stated plans to remain in operation through 2025. You have demonstrated organizational adaptability to changes in your community and in the field of historic preservation. You have demonstrated responsiveness to your community’s needs.
• Public benefit: your organization offers substantial public benefit through your programs, activities, and services. Public benefit may include – but is not limited to – any free or reduced cost admission, events, programs or services that increase access to culture in King County. Preservation Sustained Support is especially focused on increasing access to and awareness of our historic built environment.
• Economic impact: your organization stimulates the local economy through spending on wages, goods, services; promoting tourism and visitor-related spending at local businesses; and contributions to community well-being and quality of life, which have indirect economic benefits.
• Advancing equity: your organization has a focus on serving communities historically and currently underrepresented in historic preservation, especially communities that are disproportionately impacted by structural racism. This is not required for funding.
• Preservation priorities: your organization makes exceptional contributions to the preservation of King County’s historic built environment. Your organization includes a focus on resources that represent neglected aspects of the built environment.

For municipalities:

• Resilience: your preservation program has demonstrated adaptability to changes in your community and in the field of historic preservation. You have demonstrated responsiveness to your community’s needs and have maintained historic preservation activity, services, and/or program offerings.
• Public Benefit: your municipality offers programs to increase public access to and participation in preservation. This may include – but is not limited to – technical assistance (such as support for community-led landmark nominations or other preservation projects), design guidance, grant-making programs, and tours or events related to preservation.
• Economic impact: your municipality supports and facilitates the positive economic benefits of historic preservation, which may include, but are not limited to, reinvestment in the historic building stock, heritage tourism and visitor-related spending at local businesses; and contributions to community well-being and quality of life, which have indirect economic benefits.
• Advancing equity: your preservation program has a focus on marginalized communities, especially communities that are disproportionately impacted by structural racism. This is not a requirement for funding.
• Preservation priorities: your preservation program makes exceptional contributions to the preservation of King County’s built environment, through a track record of completing surveys and inventories of historic resources, landmark designations, and design review for historic properties.

• Providing the public with access to your creative work, project, historic place, or program for free or at a reduced rate.
• Providing educational programs and experiences at cultural organizations, schools, or other venues accessible to the public.
• Exploring ways to expand and broaden your creative work and activities for the education and entertainment of the public.
• Participating in collaborative relationships with other cultural organizations, individuals, and groups to extend the reach and impact of a project or program for the benefit of the public.
• Organizational capacity-building projects or activities that provide meaningful public benefits not otherwise achievable.
• For cultural organizations: providing, through technological and other means, services or programs in locations other than an organization’s own facilities.

• Nonprofit organizations and public development authorities with a two-year minimum operating history of providing advocacy or assistance to preserve historic places; conducting programs that interpret the built environment of King County; or preserving one or more historic properties that serve as a venue for community and cultural activities, where stewarding that space is a primary purpose for the organization.
• Municipalities with a historic preservation program established by city ordinance or historic preservation services contracted through an interlocal agreement with the King County Historic Preservation Program (KCHPP). Municipalities should have city staff dedicated part or full time to historic preservation tasks, including overseeing historic surveys, landmark designations, design review, and public education.

Narrative

Narrative questions will be slightly different depending on whether you are a nonprofit or a municipal preservation progam. Please be sure to select the correct application. There are seven questions you will answer for the 2025 application cycle.

• Community: describe whom you serve and your circle of influence. Who experiences the public benefit your organization offers? How do they access your programs and services? Consider your organization’s members, property owners, or community members you assist, visitors or audiences you reach (in person or online), collaborators, and volunteers.
• Programming: tell us what programs and accomplishments from the past two years (2023-2024) are you most proud of and why? How did these programs help advance your organization’s mission and strategic goals? How have your programs or services evolved over the past two years in response to community needs and/or to changes in your field?
• Management: tell us how your organization plans and makes decisions. Describe your staff, volunteer, and board expertise and experience, especially in regards to historic preservation. Then describe your processes for establishing goals and priorities, including any staff, board, or community involvement.
• Future: describe the mission-based work your organization plans to undertake in the next two to three years.
• Economic impact: what economic impacts does your organization have in King County? This can include wages, contractors and employment; tourism impact; provision of affordable cultural space or reduced cost-services and offerings; community well-being and quality of life; direct spending on goods and services; and visitor spending at other local businesses.
• Advancing equity: describe whether and how your organization centers or serves historically marginalized communities, especially those disproportionately impacted by systemic racism (e.g. serving Black, Indigenous, or People of Color [BIPOC] communities, engaging BIPOC leadership, etc.). Describe existing partnerships, collaborations, projects, or programs your organization is involved with that engage historically marginalized communities.
• Public benefit: list three to five upcoming mission-related activities or events that offer public benefit. These activities or events may be ongoing, or specific to 2025, and should include a focus on historic places.

Public Benefit: General, Equity Inclusion, and Geographic Inclusion

If you are awarded funding, these public benefits will appear in your contract; only select the public benefits on which you would like to report. The panel will only review your public benefit statement above; these questions are only for 4Culture’s internal use. Please select up to three General Public Benefits and up to three Equity Inclusion and Geographic Inclusion Public Benefits your organization provides throughout the year. You can find the full list of General, Equity Inclusion, and Geographic Inclusion Public Benefits in the application worksheet linked above in the Helping You Succeed section.

Required Support Materials

• Organizational board list: you must submit a list of your organization’s board members, their term limits, and their employment or community affiliation.
• Staff list: please list your primary or decision-making staff members. Include their names, titles, how long they’ve held this position
• Program/event list: you must submit a list of your organization’s events, programs, and/or primary activities from the last 24 months. Include date or date range, location, and estimated attendance.

Required Uploads

• Articles of Incorporation: you must submit your Articles of Incorporation for your application to be complete. Need support accessing your Article of Incorporation? Read this flowchart
• IRS Letter of Determination: you must submit your IRS Determination Letter for your application to be complete. Need support accessing your Letter of Determination? Read this flowchart

Completed Account Profile

Nonprofit organizations will need to enter IRS 990 (or equivalent) information for the previous three years. Organizations should also confirm the accuracy of their address. 

Not sure how to find your organization’s 990? Watch this tutorial video. Substitulos en Español | 中文字幕（繁體)

Demographic Information

Your organization profile in our portal must provide demographic information for your board and staff for the current year. We use this information to help us understand how well we are doing in our efforts to reach all communities in King County.

Watch a tutorial video on how to complete your organization’s demographic survey.
Substitulos en Español | 中文字幕（繁體)

Narrative

Narrative questions will be slightly different depending on whether you are a nonprofit or a municipal preservation program. Please be sure to select the correct application. There are seven questions you will answer for the 2025 application cycle.

• Community: describe whom you serve and your circle of influence. Consider historic property owners and the general public, as well as other city departments or programs, partnering organizations, advocacy groups, etc. How does each of these groups access your programs and services?
• Programming: tell us what programs and accomplishments from the past two years (2023-2024) are you most proud of and why? How have your programs or services evolved over the past two years in response to community needs and/or to changes in the field of historic preservation?
• Management: tell us about your goals for your program’s internal operations in 2025. Then explain how these goals were determined, including any staff, board/commission, and/or community involvement.
• Future: describe the public-facing work your organization plans to undertake in the next two to three years.
• Economic impact: how does your municipality support and facilitate the positive economic benefits of historic preservation? Economic impacts may include, but are not limited to, reinvestment in the historic building stock, heritage tourism and visitor-related spending at local businesses; and contributions to community well-being and quality of life, which have indirect economic benefits.
• Advancing equity: describe whether and how your program centers or serves historically marginalized communities, especially those disproportionately impacted by systemic racism (e.g. serving BIPOC communities, engaging BIPOC leadership, etc). Describe existing partnerships, collaborations, or projects your program is involved with that engage historically marginalized communities.
• Public benefit: list three to five upcoming activities or programs offered by your municipality to increase public access to and participation in historic preservation. These activities may be ongoing, or specific to 2025.

Operational Information

• City preservation budget: you must submit a one-page budget showing historic preservation program-related revenue and expenditures for the last two fiscal years. (Do not include your city’s full budget.)

Completed Account Profile

Nonprofit organizations will need to enter IRS 990 (or equivalent) information for the previous two years. Organizations should also confirm the accuracy of their address, as well as the address of the primary historic site that they provide stewardship for, if applicable. Municipalities are required to submit a one-page budget detailing revenue and expenses for preservation activities for the previous two years. Expenses may include staff salaries, consultant costs, supplies, and fees.

Not sure how to find your organization’s 990? Watch this tutorial video. Substitulos en Español | 中文字幕（繁體)

Demographic Information

For Municipalities, your Account Organization Profile in our portal must provide demographic information for your Landmarks Board or Commission and department staff for the current year. We use this information to help us understand how well we are doing in our efforts to reach all communities in King County.