Kirkland
By Amy Morgan
If you're looking for an idyllic suburb with a tasteful, dynamic waterfront district, just hop on eastbound Highway 520 and head over to Kirkland. The streets are wide and clean, the neighborhoods are largely free of crime, and there are parks on almost every corner. You can buy art for your big new house, go rollerblading on the waterfront promenade, and eat organic groceries from the neighborhood PCC. Even your teenagers will be stoked, since the Kirkland Teen Union Building hosts all-ages shows and other teen-related activities. No kidding.
Kirkland's crown jewel is its waterfront. Lake Washington Boulevard runs along the eastern shore of Lake Washington and features boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and parks with docks and volleyball courts. During the summer, the boulevard bustles with people of all ages, from tan 20-somethings playing volleyball to rollerblading moms pushing baby strollers to powerwalking retirees. During the rainy winters you can find residents cozied up in any number of hangouts, particularly those with fireplaces, like Kahili Coffee, Tully's Coffee, and Hector's Restaurant.
In addition to the parks that run along Lake Washington Boulevard, Kirkland boasts a bustling boat dock where residents spend the summers launching speedboats and parasailing. Bridle Trails State Park offers 482 acres of horse trails and jogging trails and Juanita Bay Park houses a bird sanctuary, a beach, and a wide dock that's perfect for daydreaming while watching the boats go by. Bastyr University, the premier naturopathy university in the country, nestles deep in St. Edward State Park, amid 316 acres of bike trails and walking paths. And those are just the big parks. There are dozens of smaller parks scattered throughout the neighborhoods, each with its own special charm.
Kirkland's other big draw is its art scene. There are at least a dozen art galleries in the waterfront district that all pitch in to host an art walk every second Thursday. In addition, the Kirkland Arts Center sponsors an annual three-day arts and culinary festival called Summerfest, complete with offerings from the region's many boutique wineries. The Arts Center itself is housed in a picturesque Victorian brick building, and students can study everything from ceramics to life drawing, directly from working artists with extensive pedigrees.
The bad news is that it costs a pretty penny to live in this suburban paradise. Kirkland used to be a place where urban Seattleites moved when the nesting urge kicked in. First-time property buyers could snag a nice-sized lot and a cute 1960s house for a reasonable price. Those days, however, are long gone -- it's now a haven for those who made their fortunes in the tech boom. High-end condos have sprouted up along the main arteries (particularly in the Juanita Beach area), the waterfront is famous for its $1 million-plus mansions, and its charming Craftsman bungalows and cool split-level ranch houses are now averaging around $450,000 apiece.
In fact, thanks to the sprawling suburban ideal, it's hard to even find small houses here. Laura Brodniak of Windermere Realty explains, "Three- or four-bedroom houses are the norm (in Kirkland) - there aren't many two-bedroom homes out there." Rental properties aren't much more affordable. A one-bedroom apartment typically runs between $900 and $1,500, depending on your proximity to the waterfront.
Public transportation is readily available, with King County Metro Park & Ride lots stationed along the Interstate 405 corridor and numerous bus stops along the main roads. You can reach downtown Seattle in just less than 30 minutes by bus, and if you happen to work at Microsoft, well, it's easy to get there, too. As are all Eastside residents, Kirkland dwellers are delicately attuned to the health of the Highway 520 bridge. When all is well on the bridge, it's a breeze to get downtown by car; when the bridge is suffering from congestion, though, you must choose between going south to I-90, north to Lake City Way, or even further north to the I-405/I-5 interchange. Still, it's a small price to pay for living in such a nice place. Heck, once you get here, you just might find that you don't really need to go downtown, after all.
