Redmond Washington Travel guide at Wikivoyage

By the late 1980s, Downtown Redmond had become “a series of strip centers surrounded by parking lots”, sparking plans for a mixed-use revitalized downtown. Redmond’s main shopping district is the Redmond Way/Cleveland Street corridor in downtown Redmond. Redmond is internally well-connected by bicycle paths, but getting into Redmond, especially from areas due west like Kirkland, can be more difficult than you’d expect. Downtown Redmond is the east terminus of the Link light rail 2 Line, from Lynnwood City Center via Seattle, Mercer Island and Bellevue.

Explore Redmond by Light Rail

The city’s urban downtown lies just north of Lake Sammamish; residential areas lie north and west of the lake. The Bear Creek, Sammamish Valley, Southeast Redmond, and Willows/Rose Hill neighborhoods encompass various land uses, including business parks, industrial areas, and residential spaces. The predominantly residential neighborhood of Education Hill lies north of downtown and was named for the five schools in the area, including Redmond High School; it was previously known as Poverty Hill until the 1950s, when it was annexed into Redmond. The Overlake neighborhood, which also encompasses part of Bellevue, lies southwest of downtown and includes the Microsoft headquarters campus and other office complexes as well as residential areas.

The largest employer in the city by far is Microsoft, which moved its headquarters to Redmond in 1986. 22.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 38.7% were from 25 to 44; 21.6% were from 45 to 64; and 9.5% were 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.98.

Since 2010, by city ordinance, Redmond has appointed a poet laureate. Redmond Lights is an annual community festival held the first Saturday of December. Redmond has a collection of outdoor sculptures throughout its streets and parks, many of which are part of a rotating sculpture exhibition. Redmond Derby Days is an annual community festival held the second full weekend of July and celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2015. Unlike Bellevue and other neighboring cities, the city of Redmond does not have a business and occupation tax on income. As of 2023update, approximately 89 percent of employees for Redmond companies commute from outside the city.

Redmond Is Ready for the World’s Games

The logging industry expanded significantly in 1889 when the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway built a station in the center of town. More settlers came, and with the establishment of the first post office in 1881, the name of the community was changed to Melrose. Luke McRedmond filed a Homestead Act claim for land next to the Sammamish Slough on September 9, 1870, and the following year Warren Perrigo took up land adjacent to him.

Redmond’s four new light rail stations—Downtown, Marymoor Village, Redmond Technology Station, and Overlake—make 1xbet app getting around the city more convenient than ever. Since 2018, it has leased a portion of its building to the Redmond city government for use as a community center. The unincorporated English Hill neighborhood in northern Redmond is served by the Northshore School District, while the Redmond Ridge area to the east is part of the Lake Washington School District.

Celebrate the Crosslake Connection from Redmond to Seattle for games, restaurants, and other activities. The city is home to Redmond Regional Library, the second-largest branch in the King County Library System. The Bear Creek School, a non-denominational Christian prep school, is the largest with nearly 750 enrolled students. Several private schools in Redmond offer K–12 education, including Montessori programs.

Founded in 1871 as an agricultural, fishing, and logging center, it was first called Salmonberg after the abundant local fish. Education Hill, Grass Lawn, Idylwood, and North Redmond primarily consist of residential land uses. The Overlake Intercultural District in Redmond is a vibrant new urban hub celebrating diverse cultures. With a salmon-bearing stream running through it, Bear Creek covers 489 acres (0.76 square miles) and represents about 4.5% of Redmond’s land area.