In response to “Council sets criteria for building arts center” (Feb. 4):

A distinguishing characteristic of winners is that they don’t take their eye off the goal.

Winners are less concerned with timing than they are with eliminating obstacles to success. Federal Way wants to spur economic development and so thrive and prosper — a reasonable and achievable objective.

Economists, pundits and pols have vividly described our current depressed status — current, not permanent. Economies are in constant motion. Where there’s downturn there inevitably follows upswing. Just as some predicted that one day the boom years would bust, so now we can foresee that these tough times too will pass. And the winners, history has taught us, are those who neither rest on their laurels nor sit on their hands.

Federal Way will not emerge from this current plight victorious if we wait for better times before moving ahead.

Let’s not get stuck on terminology. A performing arts center by whatever name is a proactive step toward revitalizing the economy and stimulating commerce. While it offers a variety of opportunities for local activity, a dual-use facility such as the one that has been proposed can realize its most powerful potential as a magnet for out-of-towners — who represent true engines of growth. A performing arts center or dual-use facility is a reason for people to come here from elsewhere, bringing their dollars, interests and vitality with them.

Rather than chide their constituents for moving too fast toward the goal of prosperity and growth, our elected officials need to quicken their pace to assume a leadership role. Let’s begin now to pull out of these doldrums and begin working toward a future where Federal Way is a destination, not three exits on the interstate that folks pass on their way to someplace else.

Sharon Cooper

Des Moines