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Dear Cultural Advocates,

King County Executive Dow Constantine and Council are deliberating on a plan to implement the state’s Cultural Access Program through councilmanic action, which is a majority vote of the council. They aspire to increase county funding by $90+ million for science, heritage, and arts programs through the Doors Open program. Doors Open is about cultural equity. The program aims to provide every King County resident–especially those in under-resourced communities and outside of Seattle–with equitable, transformative access to science, heritage, and arts programming. It will be game changing if we can get the majority of council member to vote in support. To achieve this, we need your help!

We are now less than two weeks from the first potential vote of the Doors Open program! We are so grateful for all of you and your incredible advocacy that has gotten us to this point. We are approaching the finish line and need your voice now more than ever! This email includes three very important ACTION ITEMS for you to complete before Thanksgiving and the calendar of the final 30 days of the Doors Open process.

ACTION ITEMS

1.    Send an email to your King County Councilmember by clicking here. The template letter is completely editable, and we urge you to add a few sentences about why Doors Open is important to you and/or your community to personalize your message. If you have already written to your Councilmember, we need you to write again to demonstrate your ongoing support.

2.    If you live in Auburn, Bothell, Redmond, or Bellevue, please send a separate email from your inbox expressing your support to your local representative who serves on the Regional Policy Committee. You can use these template letters to draft your own.

·      Vice Chair, Auburn Mayor Nancy Backus: nbackus@auburnwa.gov

·      Redmond Mayor Angela Birney: mayor@redmond.gov

·      Bothell City Councilmember James McNeal: james.mcneal@bothellwa.gov

·      Bellevue City Councilmember John Stokes: jstokes@bellevuewa.gov

3.    Forward this Action Alert email to your networks of cultural supporters and encourage them to complete these two action items.

Below is the calendar of the final 30 days of the Doors Open process. We share this in hopes that you will be fully engaged at every possible opportunity. Every meeting is public, and we encourage you to tune in virtually and watch the proceedings. Councilmembers take note of how many viewers are watching and use that as a gauge for public interest and support.

Monday, Nov 27^th at 11am: Regional Policy Committee

At this meeting, the RPC is expected to vote on Doors Open. No public testimony. Watch the meeting by clicking here.

Wednesday, Nov 29^th at 9:30am: Committee of the Whole

Doors Open is on the agenda and will be up for discussion and possible amendments. Possible public testimony, sign up to speak here. Although COW cannot pass legislation, they may vote at this meeting to refer Doors Open to the full council for passage. Watch the meeting by clicking here.

Tuesday, Dec 5^th at 1:30pm: Metropolitan King County Council

The Council will discuss and possibly vote on Doors Open. Possible public testimony, sign up to speak here. Watch the meeting by clicking here.

Tuesday, Dec 12^th at 1:30pm: Metropolitan King County Council

The last opportunity for the Council to discuss and vote on Doors Open. Possible public testimony, sign up to speak here. Watch the meeting by clicking here.

QUESTIONS?

We imagine you may have lots of questions and we want to bring you up to speed. Join us for a briefing of the Doors Open program and our plan to secure King County approval. To ensure good communications, we will be hosting an Open Office Hour, every Tuesday, 12:30-1:30 pm. Click here to register! And feel free to share this invitation with members of your team and community that need more information.

Warmly,

The Inspire WA Team

About Inspire Washington

Inspire Washington nurtures the human spirit and strengthens communities by increasing access to science, heritage, and arts programming through advocacy, resource development, education, and coalition building.

Inspire Washington

info@inspirewashington.org

P.O. Box 806, Seattle, WA 98111

InspireWashington.org

Manuel R. Cawaling, Executive Director: manny@inspirewashington.org

Jessi Wasson, Programs and Operations Manager: jessi@inspirewashington.org

Anna Tatelman, Annual Fund Manager: anna@inspirewashington.org

Madeline Dalton, Outreach Coordinator: advocacy@inspirewashington.org

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