From gathering place to loan store

In Sunday's Everett Herald, columnist Julie Muhlstein pays tribute to the recently razed 25th Street Market, a quasi-Third Place and community landmark. Muhlstein's vivid portrait throws into relief the 25th Street Market's apparent, excretable replacement: a future Moneytree Store. Hmmm. Nothing quite says "community values" better than a new payday lender. According to a 2006 report by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), "A Drain on Our Neighborhoods: Payday Lending in Washington State," there are more payday lenders in the U.S. than Burger Kings and McDonald's combined. The report cites a Department of Financial Institutions' study that found the number of payday stores in Washington ballooned from 377 in 2000 to 716 in 2005. More disturbing is the tab: "Predatory payday loans cost King County residents $40 million in fees and interest each year," the report states. The total is $23.4 million for Pierce County. Arguably, payday lenders fill a critical niche for the credit-less working poor, which may explain the industry's tendency to drop anchor in low-income neighborhoods and within walking distance of military bases. Naval Station Everett ranks second only to Boeing as Snohomish County's largest employer. Give these folks credit: The industry has the self-preservation smarts to feed and clothe the political class, contributing almost $200,000 to candidates and legislators in 2005, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Recall the hubbub last year when state lawmakers pledged to tackle the menace of predatory lending and establish a reasonable rate cap? Reform efforts died quietly in committee. For shame: The storefront-lending crisis begs reform, from changing the fee structures for lenders to elbowing banks to step up and fill the need. So the city of Everett loses a gathering place to something, well, altogether different. If only Washington's poor had a spare $200,000 to grease the machine.