PORT TOWNSEND — The tall ship Adventuress won an online vote today for a share of a $1 million historical preservation grant that could net the schooner $125,000.
Nate Cole-Daum, spokesman for the American Express Partners In Preservation Seattle-Puget Sound Initiative, said the ship will get the full amount it requested because it won, edging the Seattle Town Hall.
Other sites in the voting will be evaluated by an advisory committee, which will recommend amounts for their grants. That won’t be known until June 15, Cole-Daum said.
One of those sites is the Customs House in Port Townsend, which will receive at least $5,000, the minimum amount for any site in the competition.
Earlier report:
PORT TOWNSEND — In what promises to be a photo finish, voting ended at midnight for the largest share of a $1 million historical preservation grant.
Earlier Wednesday, the schooner Adventuress had an extremely slim lead for the top spot over the Seattle Town Hall in the American Express Partners In Preservation Seattle-Puget Sound Initiative.
Both showed a 19 percent share of the vote as of 6 p.m. Wednesday, but the Adventuress was listed first, indicating that it had more votes than its closest rival.
Only percentages, not actual vote numbers, are noted on the results page at http://tinyurlcom/22valmo on the www.preservation.prg website, where the final tally will be posted.
The U.S. Customs House, which houses the Port Townsend post office at 1322 Washington St., was in 15th place, with 2 percent of the vote, on Wednesday evening.
Adventuress crew members and supporters expected to stay up past midnight in order to see the final results, although the official results aren’t expected to be announced until later today.
American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation in San Francisco are sponsoring the contest, which will give away a total of $1 million to support 25 historic sites in the state.
The voting is to see who gets the largest share of the money. The winner will get a maximum of $125,000, while the “losers” will get a share of the remaining $875,000.
The winner will be determined by the vote totals; with people were allowed to vote once a day.
On Wednesday, the Adventuress was open for tours in “enemy territory” at the Seattle waterfront, with Sound Experience, which owns the tall ship, hoping to persuade more to vote for it.
Supporters of the Adventuress seek $100,000 to renovate the schooner’s stern, while those cheering for the Customs House — an 1893 building originally constructed to house U.S. Customs — are looking for $125,000 toward the development of handicapped access.
The two links for the projects are www.voteporttownsend.com and www.votefortheboat.com, and each cross links to the other.
Both sites link to www.preservationnation.org, where actual voting occurs.
