Does an election in Massachusetts matter in Federal Way? By Saturday morning, Twin Lakes will likely know the answer.
A proposal asks Twin Lakes residents to pay an extra $300 a year in exchange for limited membership to their neighborhood’s cash-strapped private country club. Feb. 6 marks the second time residents have voted on it.
At first, the debate simmered on The Mirror’s editorial pages as detailed letters trickled in from both sides.
But a funny thing happened after last month’s game-changing election in Massachusetts, where Republican Scott Brown captured a Senate seat long held by the late Ted Kennedy.
“Zeitgeist” is a term that means “in the spirit of the times,” and on the morning after that election, the nation’s political zeitgeist certainly smelled different.
The election seemed to spark a wave of letters against the Twin Lakes proposal, which in turn generated more letters from the proposal’s supporters. The letters were often lengthy but always passionate. With a finite amount of print space in The Mirror, the debate was transplanted to the Internet, where readers may freely comment on any letter or story.
On Dec. 10, the Twin Lakes community fell short by 80 homeowners to reach a 60 percent quorum for the first scheduled vote. A source from the country club said that with all the proxies received so far, today’s meeting would need 10 people present to meet a now-lowered quorum requirement of 30 percent.
Judging by the crowded Decatur High School gymnasium at last December’s meeting, that shouldn’t be a problem.
It is difficult to guess which way the residents will vote. On one hand, the proposal’s supporters say $300 more per year is a small investment for potentially retaining thousands of dollars in property values. In the real estate world, golf course communities are associated with higher home values. With no guaranteed outcome for the club or property values, voting yes for the proposal is seen as playing it safe.
On the other hand, some wonder why the country club’s financial problem is a problem for all Twin Lakes residents. A good share of residents are indifferent to the club. Many object to paying for something they don’t want — and see the proposal as a phony sales pitch rather than a sincere plea for help.
Consider the economic zeitgeist in America today: Now is not the best time to ask the average citizen for more money. Likewise, today’s Twin Lakes vote could act as a barometer for the Feb. 9 special election, which features a library tax levy and a school district technology levy.
Regardless of where you stand on those levies, a rejection of the relatively small-potatoes Twin Lakes proposal may signal an overall willingness by voters to err on the side of no.
