Help us maintain ownership of our cherished home in Langley!

The Commons Needs YOU!

SOUTH WHIDBEY COMMMONS:

A Vision, a Home, and

a Call to Action

The heartwarming story of how South Whidbey Commons Cafe & Books came to be the Langley staple we all know and love started back in 1998 when our community came together, dreaming of a more connected South Whidbey Island. By 2002, that dream had blossomed into the South Whidbey Commons, a nonprofit dedicated to bringing people together.

In 2008, things got really exciting when we were approached with an opportunity at Golden Otter Books, which was entering a transitional period itself, and where local schools had obtained a barista training grant. The owners of the building were looking to sell, the timeline of the grant was nearing a close, and we were excited to explore new possibilities of residence in South Whidbey. Imagine a cozy bookstore with the aroma of fresh coffee and a training ground for our youth, teaching them valuable job skills. That's what became Island Coffeehouse and Books when The Commons bought the building, assuming ownership of the books and the training program along with. 

It wasn’t just about books and lattes, though. We expanded to include restaurant kitchen food preparation in the youth training program. We founded Playscape, an early childhood enriched play space for children five and younger and their adult caregivers, adopted and now run by Mother Mentors. We produced the popular weekly performance event, Friday Night Live, where community members could gather to share and support one another’s original artistic endeavors. Many groups used the space for meetings and events.

Over the years, The Commons has faced its share of challenges, but it’s always bounced back stronger. It has trained over 800 students, weathered economic storms, and even adapted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Talk about resilience!

Renamed in recent years, what is now known as South Whidbey Commons Cafe & Books continues to provide a number of meaningful and impactful opportunities for community members to gather and connect. Students meet weekly to study math together. Saturday night’s “After Dark” (now “After Hours”) provides an evening event of music and fun for all ages. The Commons also works in tandem with rePurpose and Kicking Gas to develop zero waste and climate-friendly procedures for the cafe and the community, striving to minimize the impact of fossil fuels and waste.

Today, The Commons is the heart of our community—it’s where people of all ages come to gather, learn, and grow. Whether you’re looking for a good book, a tasty meal, or just a friendly face, The Commons is the place to be. It’s more than just a cafe and bookstore; it’s a testament to what a community can achieve when we work together!

A VISION

Post-COVID, a new South Whidbey is emerging along with a new dynamic for the planet’s ecosystem and a need for updated systems and institutions – including our beloved Commons.

Our vision for what this looks like involves several interwoven elements to evolve in a few distinct stages. We aim to return to our roots as a space dedicated to the cultivation of local and all age creators, resuming regularly hosted events such as our historic “Friday Night Live” to once again provide an inclusive hub for artistic and musical expression and education on South Whidbey. We strive to expand as an integral local gathering space, re-incorporating regular community events, educational workshops, social outreach facilitation, and club meetings of all sorts. From knitting clubs to book clubs, girl scouts to mathletes, numerology classes to conversation cafes, we have hosted a variety of events presented by community members and volunteers to foster connection and growth, and we look forward to exploring new avenues to continue bringing our neighbors together.

Volunteerism has always been a foundational aspect of The Commons, coloring the way we integrate into and receive support from the community.

The bookstore depends on book donations, which we would love to see expanded into regular book drive events. Our familiar youth training programs have provided volunteer opportunities within the cafe and kitchen to students seeking work training as well as valuable college application volunteer experience. As we move forward, we plan to continue and expand these programs, connecting with South Whidbey School District and local businesses to gauge the ways in which we may provide a much-needed platform for student vocational training and supplemental education. Additionally, we hope to facilitate a Multigenerational Mentorship program to bring together the wisdom of experience and expertise with the energy and capability of youth.

We are presently examining every aspect of our business for ways to improve revenue, fundraising, and donation opportunities as we update our business plan to better inform our path forward. A substantial kitchen remodel is in progress to meet updated health code requirements, and a newly cultivated relationship with the Organic Farm School has us looking forward to building similar connections with other local growers. With these changes, we expect a decrease in our food costs and an expansion of our culinary capabilities to do our part in addressing the needs of patrons pining for more accessible quality dining options. Adding to these elements the development of zero waste procedures and diligent work toward minimizing our carbon footprint, we are eager to see how our cafe continues to evolve to support and inspire our community with the confidence that we will attain sustainability in 2025. 

The Commons’ growth within and alongside our beloved community is a passion shared by staff, board, volunteers, and patrons alike, a passion we collectively seek to encourage and elevate. But this passion requires a home in which to be nourished. This is where our active fundraising campaign comes into play. Though day to day operations are sustained through a combination of beverage and food sales, book sales, donations, and grants that fund our programs, at this time we are facing the additional expense, not only of the aforementioned kitchen remodel, but also of securing full ownership of our building, a goal we are so close to achieving!

We have a lot of future plans and a lot of people invested in their outcome. We now need to raise the funds to, once and for all, own our cherished home in Langley, allowing these plentiful plans to come to fruition.

A HOME

To provide a bit of context and backstory, our building was purchased in December 2008 for $480,000 at 6% interest. The seller carried a 10-year note with a 10-year balloon payment due December 2018, after which they offered an additional year on the agreement. 

Due to restrictive bank qualifications, we were unable to obtain a traditional mortgage by December 2019.  An “angel” investor covered the payment at the time, and the COVID-19 pandemic hit just as we were exploring options for moving forward. The investor carried the note, interest only, for two years. The Commons was approached by another investor, but after nine months, it was determined that the offer would not suit our needs. 

After speaking with Whidbey Community Foundation, The Commons was offered a one-year bridge loan. It was discovered during this process, however, that the original note reconveyance was never signed off, a fact that needed resolution before any further action could take place. The loan servicing company had been sold, and the reconveyance finalization had been overlooked. After eight months and a lawsuit to address the issue, the deed was silenced and progress could be resumed!

In early 2024, The Commons received the gracious WCF bridge loan, and now the repayment due date of February 1, 2025 is fast approaching. Our current fundraising efforts center around making this payment by the due date to maintain ownership of the building we have called home since 2008.

A CALL TO ACTION

We are so close to owning our building outright!

With a fundraising campaign in full swing and with so much community support for, we are diligently working to raise a total of $375,000, $350,000 of which goes to make the payment to Whidbey Community Foundation, with the remaining $25,000 required to finish the current kitchen remodel to enhance the cafe’s ability to serve delicious menu items and decrease overhead on food costs. 

The simple fact is that The Commons’ ability to maintain ownership of this building means that the cafe & bookstore can ensure its presence in Langley for years to come. We want nothing more than to continue to offer engaging programming and to provide an inclusive gathering space that is safe and welcoming for all.

With so many hopes to bring back past successful programming such as live performances and work training, to invest in current programs and those in development, and to enact a number of dreams for what the future may hold, The Commons looks to its community now for fundraising support, via outreach and donations alike. So many have already given, and there is still so far to go.

Donate now. Spread the word.

Save The Commons!

Your gifts and support are met with immense gratitude and make all the difference to Preserve the Heart of Langley. 

Let’s make sure this valuable communal asset remains a foundational cornerstone of South Whidbey, a gathering place for all, and a reflection of our community’s collective efforts to collaborate and connect for generations to come!

HOW TO

DONATE

Share Our Story.

Download our outreach information packet (right) for materials you can use to share our cause on social media, via email, and in person. Your fundraising support helps us to continue providing South Whidbey Island with a cherished communal space to Gather, Learn, and Grow.

Make a Donation.

Discover how you can facilitate The Commons’ instructional, sustainable, and collaborative programming for South Whidbey’s youth and community with your tax deductible gifts.

THANK YOU TO OUR CHARETTE PARTICIPANTS

for your fundraising, outreach, and vision development suggestions that helped inform the direction of our campaign!