With King County facing significant budget shortfalls, many Auburn-area service organizations and non-profit agencies that depend on county contributions are preparing for leaner economic times.

Their collective message to county leaders, expressed during an open forum Wednesday at the Auburn Valley YMCA, was unanimous and direct:

Please maintain that level of support.

“We are probably not going to get you more but fighting to get you what you have,” County Executive Ron Sims told Auburn leaders at the roundtable. “We will be your partner. Your dreams are ours.”

The meeting allowed Auburn representatives – from health and mental care, youth and adult services, and arts and education sectors – to discuss their performances, expectations and ideas in wake of a sour economic forecast.

“No institution, profit and non-profit, is immune from what’s happening with the budget,” said county councilmember Pete von Reichbauer, who accompanied Sims at the morning discussions. “We created a forum to stay ahead of the storm.”

The Metropolitan King County Council closed an unprecedented $93 million shortfall with a 2009 budget that protects the highest priorities of public safety, health and quality of life.

However, members said action is still needed in the state Legislature to lift restrictions on revenue sources provided to counties in order to avoid facing the same budget shortfalls next year.

With deficits of $40 million and $62 million looming in 2010 and 2011, council members and others said service cuts in those years could be drastic.

The crisis in the county’s general fund — it will drop to about $646 million next year — is due to declining revenue from sales and property taxes and investments, combined with rising labor and health-insurance costs.

Such a forecast will have a trickle-down effect on city agencies, notably non-profit groups who are struggling to provide services and attract support, notably through donations, as demographics change in greater South King County.

The recession has affected many of these groups in the fight against the economic plight.

The county is doing what it can to avoid drastic cuts, said von Reichbauer.

For instance, von Reichbauer and county officals helped restore funding to the Auburn Youth Resources, a program that provides vital services to at risk children and young adults in South King County.

“Cutting funding to key youth programs in our community, such as Auburn Youth Resources, costs our county in the long run, both financially and socially,” von Reichabuer said. “An investment today in treatment, counseling and support programs for at-risk youths saves future costs to our criminal justice system.

“Helping children in our community find the support they need to put their lives on the right track is always the right decision.”

Terry Pollard, group executive director for the YMCA, said his organization’s multi-faceted programs are vital to the area, especially to youth and families.

“We need a positive place for them to go,” he said.

Jackie Edwards, who operates Auburn Regional Theater along with her husband Phil, says it is important to support local arts. The theater is doing what it can to be an influential player in youth and family development.

“Our hope is we can continue to grow,” Jackie Edwards said. “We need those opportunities with the county’s continued support.”