Snohomish County Historic Preservation Commission

The Snohomish County historic preservation Grant Program

THE 2024 HISTORIC PRESERVATION GRANT APPLICATION WILL OPEN On November 17, 2023

View further guidelines for grants here.

Questions? E-mail Gretchen Kaehler at Gretchen.Kaehler@co.snohomish.wa.us

The Snohomish County Historic Preservation Commission Grant Program was started in 2009 with the purpose of funding and promoting historic preservation projects across the county to educate residents on their past. The Historic Preservation Commission continues to work on improving the effectiveness of the Historic Preservation Grant program, intended to assist the collection, preservation and interpretation of Snohomish County’s heritage. 

The program is funded with a portion of document recording fees collected by the Snohomish County Auditor. The allocation of these fees for projects that “promote historical preservation or historical programs, which may include preservation of historic documents”  is  authorized  under  RCW  36.22.170  (referred  to  in  the  application  as HB1386 funds).

By providing granted funds on a competitive basis, the Historic Preservation Commission’s grant program supports  projects  that  preserve  and  enhance  Snohomish County history for residents,  visitors and future generations. To qualify for support, projects must align with one of the four program  funding categories:

• Public Programming

• Capital Improvements & Equipment

• Collections Management

• Professional Development

The 2024 Grant program will provide up to $75,000 in financial aid through individual grants up to $15,000. Grants must be completed in the calendar year in which the grant was awarded. 

 Match:  While no financial match is required, matching a grant with cash, in-kind labor, and/or in-kind material, will enhance any project proposal and improve chances of grant approval. 

 Information-oriented projects (improving the preservation and enhancing the availability of significant historical information and data) are not expected to offer a financial match.  Such projects include the digitization of newspapers and documents, the creation of historical texts, the creation of online accessibility to such documents, the purchase of software and/or hardware to accomplish such information-oriented tasks, the creation and conduct of public programming, etc.  Any match offered will, as with any project, enhance the grant request.

 Reimbursement:  All awards are made on a reimbursement basis.  Only upon completion of specific project elements defined in the proposal, may awardees invoice Snohomish County for reimbursement of approved expenditures.  Reimbursement requests may be made no more than once in any calendar quarter and must be accompanied with documented linkage to approved expenditures, but awardees are encouraged to minimize the number of requests in any year. 

 PROCESS:  Once the application period closes, program staff will review each proposal for eligibility.  For  those  that  meet  program  requirements,  staff  will  prepare  summaries and comments which will be forwarded to the  County’s Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) for evaluation. The HPC will select, prioritize, and recommend the most highly qualified projects for both large and small grants based on funding categories, eligibility criteria, and available funds.  Those  recommendations  will then be  forwarded  to  the  Executive  and  County  Council,  who approve final  funding decisions.

 All  projects  will  be  governed  by  contracts  executed  between Snohomish County and the applicant.  Contracts will detail the total award amount, scope of work that defines the final project products and expenses eligible for reimbursement, and any additional obligations on behalf of the awardee. 

FUNDING CATEGORIES

Professional Development:

This category provides support for activities that enhance the capabilities of the board, staff and  volunteers  of  non-profit  organizations  to  collect  preserve  and  interpret  history  in Snohomish County.  Eligible activities:

• Development or sponsorship of programs for the professional training of nonprofit

staff and volunteers

• Provision of capacity-building training for the boards and staff of non-profit heritage organizations

Public Programming:

This category provides support for activities that incorporate county history into educational programming for the general public.  Eligible activities:

• Research,  design,  production,  installation  and  promotion  of  permanent  and  semi-permanent exhibits, both on-site and off-site

• Research, design, production and management of traveling exhibits for schools.

• Original research that will result in a publication, exhibit, public event or some other product that places the outcome of the research before the public.  (Production and distribution  costs  for  books,  articles,  videos,  oral  history  tapes,  DVDs,  etc.  that address some aspect of county history.) 

Capital Improvements & Equipment:

This  category  provides  support  for  projects  that help  heritage  organizations  improve  their functional capacity  and better serve their communities, by providing funds that assist in the design,  construction,  and/or  restoration  of  heritage  facilities  and  equipment.  Eligible activities:

• Preservation  and  restoration,  and/or  improvements  to  cultural  facilities  that  are primarily  used  for  Heritage  Interpretive  purposes.  (Designated local or National Register landmark projects must comply with the Secretary of Interior Standards. All work  must  comply  with  Section  504  of  the  Federal  Rehabilitation  Act  of  1973,  as amended,  and  the  Americans  with  Disabilities  Act.)  Regular  facility  maintenance expected  of  a  prudent  owner  or  tenant  is  not  eligible  for  funding.)  Routine  and  periodic maintenance is expected of a prudent owner or tenant, if such maintenance is necessary to protect historic or archival exhibits.

• The  purchase  of  equipment  that  the  organization plans  to use to support  heritage activities for 3-5 years. Fixed assets (casework, etc.) intended for use in permanent interpretive exhibits are eligible; items intended as collections items or for display in permanent  exhibits  are  not  eligible  as  purchases  for  this  program.  Repairs  to equipment are not eligible for funding.

• Preference will be given to buildings that are listed on or have applied to be listed on the Snohomish County Register of Historic Places (SCRHP)

Collections Management:

This category provides support for projects that assist nonprofit heritage organizations to effectively  execute their stewardship obligations of their collections. Eligible Activities:

• Acquisition of significant additions to the collections of non-profit organizations.

• Professional services related to conservation of key items in heritage collections.

• Acquisition of software/hardware to assist in collections management.

• Collections  assessments  and  plans  by  a  qualified  professional  or  an  accredited institutional program (e.g. MAP, CAP or StEPS programs).