Westercon 72, the 2019 Westercon in Layton, Utah, announced an additional guest of honor during Westercon 71 in Denver. According to the announcement on the Westercon 72 website, The GM Tim Mottishaw joins the convention as Gaming Guest of Honor. Westercon 72 will be July 4-7, 2019 in Layton, Utah. For more information about the convention, visit the Westercon 72 website.
Seattle Wins 2020 Westercon
The bid for Seattle in 2020 won the right to host Westercon 73 in voting held at Westercon 71 in Denver. Westercon 73 will be July 2-5, 2020 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Seattle Airport in SeaTac, Washington.
Westercon 73 initially announced as their guests of honor the following people:
- Author Guest of Honor: David Brin
- Science Guest of Honor: Ethan Siegel
- Fan Guests of Honor: Kevin Roche & Andy Trembley
Seattle’s bid received bid received 55 of the 64 ballots cast in voting held in Denver. The other votes were cast as follows: Elayne Pelz’s backyard 1, McCloud CA 1, Minneapolis in 73 1, Tonapah NV 1, No Preference 5. 30 votes (a majority of the 59 votes with a preference) were necessary to elect.
2018 Westercon Business Meeting Video
The 2018 Westercon Business Meeting considered four items of substantive business this year. You can watch the video of the meeting on this YouTube playlist:
The results of the proposals (see the 2018 Agenda for full text of proposals) were:
- C.1. Membership Numbers (to clarify usage of members’ membership numbers by convention committees): Failed
- C.2. First Full Day (to clarify the meaning of the phrase “first full day” in the Bylaws): Failed
- C.3. Bidders at Site Selection Table (requires bidders to provide at least one poll-watcher during at-convention site selection voting): Passed
- C.4. Westercon for All North America (would redefine scope of convention so that it could be held anywhere in North America): Postponed Indefinitely (killed without a direct vote; can be re-introduced at a future Westercon)
The proposal that passed this year must be ratified at Westercon 72 in Layton, Utah before it becomes part of the Westercon Bylaws.
Four Proposals Submitted to 2018 Westercon Business Meeting
After several years of little or no substantive business other than receiving site selection results, the Westercon Business Meeting for 2018 has a relatively crowded agenda this year. Four proposals have been submitted that will come before this year’s meeting, the most significant of which would expand Westercon’s scope so that it could be held anywhere in North America (or Hawaii), not just on the western portion of the continent.
The proposals on the agenda are:
- Membership Numbers: Clarifies how Westercons should use membership numbers in conjunction with site selection
- First Full Day: Clarifies the definition of “First Full Day” of Westercon for the purpose of scheduling certain events/programming
- Bidders at Site Selection: Clarifies that bidders whose election is being conducted at Westercon are expected to provide at least one observer to work at the Site Selection table
- Westercon for All North America: Revises scope of where Westercon can be held to substantially mirror that of the North American Science Fiction Convention (NASFiC) and adopts the same 500 mi/800 km “exclusion zone” that NASFiC currently uses
The full agenda including the text of the proposals is posted on the Westercon web site. Additional proposals can be introduced at the meeting without notice.
The Westercon Business meeting at Westercon 71 in Denver is scheduled for 11 AM on Saturday, July 7. Should the initial one-hour meeting be insufficient, a continuation is scheduled at 2 PM the same day. Details are on the Westercon 71 web site.
2019 Westercon Announces Special Guest, Added Event
Westercon 72 in Layton, Utah has announced that Eric Flint will be a Special Guest of the 2019 Westercon, and that Westercon 72 will also host the 2019 “1632 Minicon” for fans of Flint’s 1632 series of alternative history novels. For more details, see the announcement on the Westercon 72 web site.
Seattle Bid Files for 2020 Westercon
The Seattle in 2020 Westercon bid sponsored by SWOC (a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization) has filed the required papers with Westercon 71 in Denver to appear on the ballot for the 2020 Westercon site selection. Members of Westercon 71 in Denver will vote on where to hold Westercon 73 in 2020. The Seattle-area non-profit group, which organized the 1997, 2003, and 2012 Westercons and the 2015 Worldcon, is bidding to host Westercon 73 at the Doubletree Hotel Sea-Tac Airport in SeaTac, Washington during the proposed dates of July 2-5, 2020.
For further details including copies of the bid’s official filing, see the announcement on the Westercon 71 web site.
All bids that meet the requirements of the Westercon bylaws and that file the required documents with Westercon 71 before April 15, 2018 will appear on the 2020 Westercon site selection ballot. Westercon 71 will conduct the 2020 Westercon site selection. Members of Westercon 71 can vote by mail or in person at Westercon 71 in Denver.
Seattle to Bid for 2020 Westercon
Sally Woehrle, President of SWOC, a Seattle-area 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that has run several SF/F genre conventions in the Northwest, announced on January 22, 2018 that SWOC is bidding to host Westercon 73 in 2020 for a site in the greater Seattle area. The bid committee is currently assessing hotels in the area, preparing its bid filing, and setting up a web site.
As of the end of 2017, no Westercon bids were filed with Westercon 71 in Denver, the convention that will administer the election. Therefore all sites in Westercon North America as defined in the Westercon Bylaws (plus Hawaii) are eligible to bid for Westercon 73 in 2020. Members of Westercon 71 in Denver, July 4-8, 2018, will be eligible to vote on the site of the 2020 Westercon. The deadline for filing a bid to host the 2020 Westercon is April 15, 2018.
The Seattle groups parent non-profit organization, SWOC, was the parent of Worldcon 73 (Sasquan) in Spokane, Washington in 2015, and ran the 1997, 2003, and 2012 Westercons at sites in the greater Seattle area.
First 2020 Westercon Bid Deadline is December 31, 2017
If you are with a group that wants to bid for the right to host the 2020 West Coast Science Fantasy Conference (Westercon 73), note that the first of several bid filing deadlines is December 31, 2017. Currently, only sites in the Northern and Southern portions of western North America (as defined in the Westercon Bylaws) are eligible to bid. If no bids file by December 31, 2017, then sites in the Central Zone also become eligible. So if you’re bidding and you’re from the North or South, you should file before the end of 2017 to “lock out” the Central zone.
If your group wants to bid to host Westercon 73 (2020), you need to file the required documents with Westercon 71 (2018, Denver). The documents are:
- A cover letter declaring your intent to bid and listing at least two officers (Chair and Treasurer) and the specific dates you plan to hold your Westercon should you win.
- An organizing document (such as bylaws).
- A letter of intent or similar document from your proposed facility.
- If in the USA, proof that your organization is a non-profit association or corporation.
Send these documents to siteselection@westercon71.org to file your bid.
Regardless of whether or not any bids file by December 31, 2017, only bids filed on or before April 15, 2018 will appear on the Westercon site selection ballot. For the detailed rules for Westercon, including the exact specification of the bidding zones and filing requirements, see Article 3 of the Westercon Bylaws in the Current Papers section of the Westercon web site.
Westercon Business Updated With 2017 Documents
The Westercon Business Page has been updated with the minutes of the Westercon 70 Business Meeting in Tempe, the video of the meeting, and the Westercon Bylaws as of the end of Westercon 70. There were no changes ratified by the Westercon 70 Business Meeting. No no bylaw amendments passed at Westercon 70, and therefore there are no bylaw amendments passed on to Westercon 71 in Denver.
2017 Westercon Business Meeting Video
The 2017 Westercon Business Meeting had no substantive business to transact other than hearing the initial presentation from the newly-seated Westercon 72 (2019) committee. Here is the entire meeting (all six minutes of it):