Charter amendment failure means no third term for Lee

Nate Hulings

of the Gateway

There was a bittersweet feeling to the Nov. 3 general election for Pierce County Council member Terry Lee.

Although his name wasn’t on the ballot, Lee’s future with the county council was: Pierce County’s proposed Charter Amendment 1 would have given Lee, R-Gig Harbor, the ability to seek a third term in office.

But as the results came in, it appeared voters would firmly reject the amendment.

Charter Amendment 1 would have both increased term limits for council members and the county executive from two consecutive four-year terms to three consecutive four-year terms. It also would have moved elections for council members and the county executive to odd-numbered years by 2015.

At last count, the amendment received only 32 percent support.

Lee has spent the past seven years serving Council District 7, which includes the Gig Harbor and Key Peninsula areas, as well as University Place.

Lee said the thought of running for a third term was never a concern.

“I never really envisioned myself as more than a two-year councilman,” Lee said. “However, there are issues I won’t be able to complete in two terms.”

More specifically, Lee would like to see the county’s Shoreline Master Plan update reach the council while he’s still in office. But that looks highly improbable now.

Lee said he believes his history in working with shoreline issues would have made him a valuable part of the final discussions.

“Now, it will land in the lap of my successor, who, most likely, won’t have the benefit of all the experience of where and why we are making revisions on and near our shorelines,” Lee said.

And although he most likely would have sought a third term had the amendment been approved by voters, Lee said its defeat does have a silver lining.

“It’s with mixed feelings that I saw it go down in flames,” he said. “You do, after a while, suffer burnout.”

Over time, Lee said the pending amendment became a mental disruption — a disruption that Lee can now put behind him and move forward.

His term expires Dec. 31, 2010, and until then, Lee will represent the district he was elected to serve.

“I still have a passion for serving my community,” he said. “Now I will get to serve it in a way that won’t be as a representative for Council District 7.”