Burien, Washington
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Burien ( ) is a suburban city in King County, Washington, United States, located south of
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
on
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
. As of the 2020 census, Burien's population was 52,066, which is a 56.3% increase since incorporation in 1993, making it the 25th most populous city in Washington. An annexation in 2010 increased the city's population significantly.


History

European settlement in the Burien area dates to 1864, when George Ouellet (1831–1899), a
French-Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the prov ...
born in Sainte-Marie-de-Beauce, Quebec, purchased his first of several land patents for homestead sites directly from a federal land office.Highline Historical Society, ''Gottlieb Burian and His Family History: From Hussinetz, Silesia to Sunnydale, Washington''
downloaded July 29, 2012
Ouellet had first arrived in the
Washington Territory The Washington Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington. It was created from the ...
at Port Madison on Bainbridge Island, off the Kitsap Peninsula, in 1858. Three years after purchasing his homestead in the Burien area, he married 14-year-old Elizabeth Cushner, who was born in the Washington Territory, and started a family. Several years later, the Ouellet family moved to the White River Valley, near Auburn. A popular local tale recounts that an early settler named Mike Kelly gave the community its first name after he emerged from the trees and said, "This is truly a sunny dale." Today, a few long-time residents still refer to the Burien area as Sunnydale. In 1884, Gottlieb Burian (1837–1902) and his wife Emma (Wurm) Burian (1840–1905),
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
immigrants from Hussinetz, Lower Silesia, who owned two taverns in downtown Seattle, arrived in Sunnydale. The tiny community was without improved roads or commercial buildings and was reached primarily by trails. Burian built a cabin on the southeast corner of Lake Burien and reportedly formed the community into a town bearing his name (misspelled over the years). A real estate office was built and soon attracted large numbers of new residents to Burien. In the early 1900s, visitors from Seattle came by the Mosquito Fleet to Three Tree Point, just west of town, to sunbathe and swim. In 1915, the Lake Burien Railway was completed. It ran on what is today Ambaum Boulevard from Burien to White Center to Seattle. A small passenger train ran the tracks and was affectionately named by the residents the Toonerville Trolley.


Incorporation

Several proposals to incorporate the greater Burien area, an unincorporated portion of King County, were attempted but failed. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, citizens felt they needed a more responsive government to help address the looming threat of the
Port of Seattle The Port of Seattle is a public agency that is in King County, Washington. It oversees the seaport of Seattle as well as Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. With a portfolio of properties ranging from parks and waterfront real estate, to ...
's airport runway expansion (known as the "Third Runway") at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport to the east, so an effort was again made to incorporate as a city. Citizens also felt that multi-family apartments and dwellings had proliferated out of control in Burien and other unincorporated areas of King County, and that they had no local voice in government, other than the King County Council, that would hear their concerns. The city of Burien was incorporated on February 28, 1993, after voter approval.


North Highline annexation

Late in 2004, the city assessed the possibility of annexing North Highline (which includes White Center and Boulevard Park), "one of the largest urban unincorporated areas of King County," which would double the size of Burien. Many citizens spoke against the annexation and created picket signs and petitions to protest against it. Other citizens welcomed the expansion, as they felt parts of the so-called North Highline area should have been part of the original Burien incorporation, and the area in question is part of the larger Highline area. (The Highline area includes the cities of Burien, Seatac, Des Moines, Federal Way and an unincorporated area called North Highline.) In May 2008, the Burien City Council proposed an annexation of the southern portion of North Highline, comprising 14,000 residents. In late summer of 2008, the city of Burien prepared to submit their annexation proposal to King County's Boundary Review Board. However, after the city of Seattle protested Burien's proposal, Burien opted to withdraw their annexation plan and resubmit it after new countywide planning policies went into effect. In October 2008, the Burien City Council voted to resubmit their annexation plan to the county Boundary Review Board. However, the cities of Burien and Seattle, along with King County and other stakeholders, first participated and completed
mediation Mediation is a structured, voluntary process for resolving disputes, facilitated by a neutral third party known as the mediator. It is a structured, interactive process where an independent third party, the mediator, assists disputing parties ...
to ensure the interests of all parties involved were met. Affected stakeholders would have agreed to a preliminary annexation framework that stipulated how annexation would play out between the cities of Burien and Seattle and with King County. However, the Seattle City Council voted against the agreement that February. It is not known if Seattle has any future plans for annexation of any part of the North Highline area. On April 16, 2009, the Boundary Review Board of King County approved Burien's proposal for annexation of the southern portion of the North Highline area: parts of the Riverton-Boulevard Park CDP. In early May 2009, both King County and the city of Burien passed resolutions to place an annexation proposition on the August 18 primary ballot. The annexation area voted on consisted of southern North Highline and had an area of about and approximately 14,000 citizens. The ballot issue was approved by a majority of southern North Highline residents, and on April 1, 2010, southern North Highline became part of Burien. After the annexation vote, a special census was conducted, and it was determined that the newly annexed area had 14,292 residents. This resulted in a new population total of 52,066, making Burien the 25th largest city in Washington State. The Boundary Review Board approved a second proposal for Burien to annex northern North Highline (also known as Area Y) in February 2012, but this was rejected by Area Y residents in November 2012.


Downtown development

In 2017, the Town Square development in downtown Burien was completed. It includes retail space, condominiums, rental apartments, a senior living center, and a King County Library branch with underground parking. City Hall is located on the top floor of the library building. Town Square Park is at the center of the square and features a spray park for children and a rain garden.


Geography

Burien is located in western King County and is bordered to the north by the city of
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
and the unincorporated communities of White Center and Boulevard Park, to the east by the cities of Tukwila and SeaTac, to the south by the city of Normandy Park, and to the west by
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. The city's western border consists of of shoreline along Puget Sound. Lake Burien, a state-owned water body, is located within the city. It has been the subject of contentious debate due to it being surrounded by private property with no public access. "Olde Burien" is a name for the area surrounding SW 152nd Street on the west side of Ambaum Boulevard.


Demographics

As of the 2022
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, there are 19,903 estimated households in Burien with an average of 2.56 persons per household. The city has a median household income of $84,583. Approximately 11.4% of the city's population lives at or below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
. Burien has an estimated 67.9% employment rate, with 29.9% of the population holding a bachelor's degree or higher and 83.8% holding a high school diploma. The top five reported ancestries (people were allowed to report up to two ancestries, thus the figures will generally add to more than 100%) were English (68.3%), Spanish (16.0%), Indo-European (3.3%), Asian and Pacific Islander (9.1%), and Other (3.3%). The median age in the city was 39.5 years.


2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 52,066 people, 19,874 households, and 12,333 families residing in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 20,785 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 47.59%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 7.66%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.55% Native American, 14.13% Asian, 1.76%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 14.83% from some other races and 12.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 24.50% of the population. 20.8% of residents were under the age of 18, 5.7% were under 5 years of age, and 15.3% were 65 and older.


2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 33,313 people, 13,253 households, and 8,013 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 14,322 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 63.51%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 5.88%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.54% Native American, 9.92% Asian, 1.77%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 11.49% from some other races and 5.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 20.72% of the population. There were 13,253 households, of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 39.5% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.12. The median age in the city was 38.5 years. 22.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.4% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.1% were from 25 to 44; 28.3% were from 45 to 64; and 12.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.3% male and 49.7% female.


2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 31,881 people, 13,399 households, and 8,066 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 13,898 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 75.74%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 5.14%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.29% Native American, 7.00% Asian, 1.16%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 5.40% from some other races and 4.28% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 10.66% of the population. There were 13,399 households, out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. 32.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.98. In the city the population was spread out, with 22.8% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.7 males. The median income for a household in the city was $41,577, and the median income for a family was $53,814. Males had a median income of $39,248 versus $29,694 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $23,737. About 6.9% of families and 9.4% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 13.1% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.


Crime

According to the Uniform Crime Report statistics compiled by the
Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
(FBI) in 2023, there were 266 violent crimes and 2,103 property crimes per 100,000 residents. Of these, the violent crimes consisted of 6 murders, 28 forcible rapes, 108 robberies and 124 aggravated assaults, while 369 burglaries, 930 larceny-thefts, 783 motor vehicle thefts and 21 acts of arson defined the property offenses.


Government and infrastructure

In the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Burien cast 71.98% of its vote for Democrat
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
. Burien is a Council-Manager government. There are seven elected councilmembers. A mayor is chosen by the council from among the elected councilmembers. The
City Manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city in the council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are referred to as the chief executive officer (CEO) or chief administ ...
is appointed by the council, and reports to the entire council. Burien contracts with the King County Sheriff's Office for police services. Deputies assigned to Burien wear city uniforms and drive patrol cars marked with the city logo. According to the Chief of Police, there are currently 43 patrol officers, detectives, support personnel and a chief assigned full-time to the city.


Education

Burien is served by the Highline School District. High schools in Burien include Highline High School, Big Picture, CHOICE Academy, and the Puget Sound Skills Center. There are also many different middle schools in Burien, with St.Francis being a notable private school. John F. Kennedy Catholic High School is located in Burien. In 1997 the city was subject to international media attention when Shorewood Elementary School teacher Mary Kay Letourneau raped one of her sixth grade students and became pregnant with his child. She was initially sentenced to six months imprisonment for her crimes, but having resumed raping her victim upon her release she triggered a seven year and five month prison sentence.


Media

The city is served by the ''Highline Times'' (established 1945), a community weekly newspaper owned by Robinson Newspapers. It is a subscriber-based publication with limited free distribution.
King County Library System The King County Library System (KCLS) is a public library system serving most residents of King County, Washington, United States. It has 49 locations in the areas of the county around Seattle, which has a separate Seattle Public Library, city l ...
operates the Burien Library. The current facility opened on June 13, 2009. The Boulevard Park Library is a smaller, community library (6,356 sq ft) in the Burien city limits. The 1971 facility is also operated by KCLS, with a history going back to 1937.


Transportation

King County Metro King County Metro, officially the King County Metro Transit Department and often shortened to Metro, is the public transit authority of King County, Washington, which includes the city of Seattle. It is the eighth-largest transit bus agency in t ...
operates public transportation services out of Burien, including buses that connect the city to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, Bellevue,
Downtown Seattle Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...
, West Seattle,
Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
, Auburn, Renton, Normandy Park,
Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...
, and Tukwila. The Burien Transit Center began construction in July 2008 and finished in June 2009. The city lies at the junction of State Route 509 and State Route 518, immediately northwest of the airport. Several major arterial streets connect downtown Burien to areas to the north, including Ambaum Boulevard and Des Moines Memorial Drive.


Notable residents

*
Jerry Cantrell Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internatio ...
, musician * Sean Kinney, musician * Kristina McMorris, author * Ann Rule, true-crime author * Anne Whitfield, actress


See also

* Seahurst Park


References


External links


City of Burien – official website

Highline Heritage Museum

Burien — Thumbnail History
{{authority control Cities in Washington (state) Cities in King County, Washington Cities in the Seattle metropolitan area Populated places established in 1870 Former census-designated places in Washington (state) Populated places on Puget Sound 1870 establishments in Washington Territory