Help Your Local Businesses Handle The Vandal

White Center is our home.  And when one of us is hurting, we are all hurting.  This past year, nineteen of our locally owned businesses were vandalized through window smashing, or a combination of property damage and burglary.  For many of our small businesses, experiencing an unpredictable financial loss this large at the peak of the pandemic could be the difference between staying in business or having to close up shop.  We don’t want these senseless acts of property destruction to threaten our beloved stores, restaurants, and salons.  We are showing up for our locally owned businesses by fundraising to offset the cost of the damage that was done to them.

You can help!  We are asking for your support to help us meet our goal of $5,000 in order to financially support our local businesses as they repair their broken windows and recover from other forms of vandalism.  All of the money we collect will go directly into the hands of our local business owners who have been the most impacted.  Many of these business owners have been serving our community for decades, and the majority of them are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and/or first- and second-generation immigrants already negatively impacted by the rising costs of operating a business in our neighborhood.  Offering financial support to our local business owners will protect them against displacement as we work collaboratively with other community stakeholders (including the WCCDA, King County, and the LEAD program) to develop and implement long lasting solutions to the problem of vandalism in our community.

This photo shows a smashed door and window at Bizzarro Italian Cafe last year.  Five other businesses were targeted on this same night.

The list of businesses vandalized in 2020 includes

· Salvadorean Bakery & Restaurant
· Bizzarro Italian Cafe
· Full Tilt
· Macadons
· Mynt Salon
· Decoraciones Ely
· Za-Za Boutique
· Crawfish House
· Beer and Wine Source
· La Tipica Oaxaqueña
· Pho Thu Thuy

And many others!  Please consider making a donation or a supportive comment for our local community businesses!

*The White Center Business Alliance is a diverse group of our business owners with a commitment to helping our community thrive. We strive to be a place of connection for our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and allied businesses, where each member can engage in business-to-business networking, community advocacy, and resource sharing. In partnership with King County Local Services and the White Center Community Development Association, we are committed to working for our businesses and for our community to create a more just economy in White Center.