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Edmonds is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is located in the southwest corner of the county, facing
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 ...
and the Olympic Mountains to the west. The city is part of the Seattle metropolitan area and is located north 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 southwest of Everett. With a population of 42,853 residents in the 2020 U.S. census, Edmonds is the third most populous city in the county. Edmonds was established in 1876 by logger George Brackett, who bought the land claim of an earlier settler. It was incorporated as a city in 1890, shortly before the arrival of the Great Northern Railway. Early residents of the city were employed by the shingle mills and logging companies that operated in the area until the 1950s. The hills surrounding Edmonds were developed into suburban bedroom communities in the mid-to-late 20th century and subsequently annexed into the city. Edmonds is a regional hub for the
arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...
, with museums, specialized facilities, and major annual festivals within the city's downtown area. The city is connected to nearby areas by two state highways and the state ferry system, which operates a ferry route to Kingston on the Kitsap Peninsula. Public transit service in Edmonds is centered around the downtown train station, served by
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
and Sounder commuter trains, and includes several Community Transit bus routes that travel through outlying neighborhoods.


History


19th and early 20th centuries

Prior to the 19th century, the Edmonds area was inhabited by the Suquamish tribe, who foraged and fished near the flat beach forming modern-day downtown. No archaeological evidence of a permanent settlement in Edmonds has been found, despite claims that a fishing village had existed near the modern-day downtown. An exploratory expedition of
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 ...
led by Charles Wilkes charted the Edmonds area in 1841, naming "Point Edmund" (now Point Edwards) to the southwest of the modern-day downtown. A land claim for the area was filed by Pleasant Ewell in 1866 and was sold to various landowners before being eventually purchased by Canadian-born logger George Brackett in 1872 for $650. Brackett had allegedly found the future site of Edmonds in 1870 while searching for potential logging areas on his canoe, which was blown ashore during a storm. Brackett and his family moved from Ballard to Point Edmund in 1876, intent on creating a town. He drained a marshland near the waterfront and began logging the area, then known as "Brackett's Landing". Additional settlers arrived over the next few years, necessitating the construction of a wharf and general store by 1881. In 1884, the settlement was
plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...
ted and gained its first
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
, christened with the name "Edmonds", either a misspelling of Point Edmund or the name of George Franklin Edmunds, a U.S. Senator from Vermont who Brackett admired. By the end of the decade, Edmonds had gained its first schoolhouse, sawmill, hotel, and drug store. The Town of Edmonds was formally incorporated as a fourth-class village of on August 14, 1890, following an election by residents on August 7. To meet the minimum population of 300 residents required for incorporation, a popular legend states that Brackett added the names of his two oxen to the census conducted prior to the election. Edmonds is the oldest incorporated city in Snohomish County. Brackett was elected as the town's mayor for several months, and the new town council passed ordinances to regulate or ban saloons, gambling establishments, and boarding houses. The same year, Edmonds was selected as a stop on the Seattle and Montana Railroad (later absorbed into the Great Northern Railway), sparking interest from real estate investors. The Minneapolis Realty and Investment Company bought of the townsite from Brackett for $36,000,and built a new hotel and wharf. The railway arrived in 1891, but failed to spark a land rush and the investment plan fell apart during the Panic of 1893, leaving Brackett to foreclose on the land. Edmonds was supported by four shingle mills that prospered in the 1890s, along with an iron foundry that manufactured steel plates for shingles. By 1908, the town had gained its own water system, electricity, paved streets, and telephone service. In September 1908, Edmonds voted to become a third-class city, with a reported population of 1,546 residents. The city unsuccessfully lobbied for a branch of the interurban line from Everett to
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 ...
, which would have supplemented passenger steamships on the Mosquito fleet and passenger trains operated by Great Northern. A major fire on July 8, 1909, destroyed one block of buildings on Main Street and caused $20,000 in damage. After the fire, the destroyed buildings were bought by a member of the city council, and replaced by a two-story concrete building. The first automobile owned by an Edmonds resident arrived in 1911 and was followed by the completion of the North Trunk Road through modern-day Lynnwood. A branch road to Edmonds was completed in 1915 and
stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...
lines were extended to the city. Automobile ferry service began in 1923, with the inauguration of the Kingston ferry, which would be acquired by the Puget Sound Navigation Company and continue to serve the city after the decline of the Mosquito fleet. During the 1920s, Edmonds expanded its wharf and ferry dock, while a site on the south end of the waterfront was acquired by the Union Oil Company (later Unocal) for the construction of an
oil terminal An oil terminal (also called a tank farm, tankfarm, oil installation or oil depot) is an industrial facility for the storage of oil, petroleum and petrochemical products, and from which these Petroleum product, products are transported to end u ...
in 1922. A second major fire struck downtown Edmonds on April 11, 1928, damaging several buildings on the same block of Main Street as the 1909 fire. Despite the increasing scarcity of local timber, the sawmills on the Edmonds waterfront remained the city's main industry in the 1920s. During the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, all but two mills continued to operate and were supplemented by local improvement projects organized by the federal
Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...
, including regraded streets, new parks, and the addition of an auditorium and sportsfields to the
high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
.


Late 20th and early 21st centuries

The popularity of new materials for roof shingles and scarcity of available timber in the state forced most of Edmonds' mills to close by 1951. New companies were established in place of the mills, including an
aluminum Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...
fabricator and an asphalt refinery at the Unocal terminal. The now vacated waterfront was redeveloped under the direction of the Port of Edmonds, established in 1948 by a public referendum. During the 1950s and 1960s, the Port constructed a breakwater,
marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...
, public beach, and a new ferry terminal for the Washington State Ferries system. The hills surrounding downtown Edmonds to the north and east were developed into suburban subdivisions, centered around small commercial centers, and were annexed by the city. Edmonds reached its present eastern boundary along State Route 99 in May 1959, a few weeks after the incorporation of Lynnwood as a city. By 1963, the city had completed its largest annexations and petitioned to become a first-class city, with a population of 19,000 that placed it second among cities in Snohomish County. Despite population growth, Edmonds restricted the construction of multi-family dwellings in an effort to keep the downtown area and older neighborhoods "rural-like" and low density. By the end of the 1960s, Edmonds had also gained a new hospital, a
community college A community college is a type of undergraduate higher education institution, generally leading to an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an open enr ...
, and civic center campus. In the 1970s, the number of businesses in downtown Edmonds declined as suburban shopping centers lured away customers. After a number of buildings in the downtown area were demolished and replaced with condominiums and office buildings, a movement to preserve and restore historic buildings emerged with the support of the city government. The "Main Street Project", funded by local businesses, restored empty storefronts and attracted restaurants to the city in the late 1980s, fueling a downtown revival. Portions of the waterfront were acquired by the city and redeveloped into a public beach, named Brackett's Landing Park, and a public fishing pier was opened in 1979 as the first saltwater fishing pier in the state. Edmonds celebrated its centennial in 1990 with a series of events and the dedication of the Centennial Plaza. Several neighborhoods in southern Edmonds were annexed between 1995 and 1997, forming the city's southern boundary at the King County line. The Point Edwards oil terminal on the city's waterfront was closed by Unocal in 1991 and the site was sought by Edmonds and Snohomish County for redevelopment. The city favored the construction of a new multimodal transportation hub at the site, including a ferry terminal and
commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
station, while the county proposed the construction of a
sewage treatment Sewage treatment is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable to discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water p ...
plant to be used by King and Snohomish counties. The sewage treatment plant was opposed by the city government and citizen groups, and was ultimately moved to an alternative site near Woodinville in 2003. The transportation plan was put on hold after costs increased and the state ferry system diverted funding to other projects. The hilltop portion of the site was cleaned up in the 2000s and redeveloped into condominiums that opened between 2007 and 2008.


Geography

Edmonds is located in the southwest corner of Snohomish County in Western Washington, and is considered a suburb 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 ...
, located to the south. The city is bordered to the west by Puget Sound and the city of Woodway, which lies south of Pine Street and west of 5th Avenue South. To the south of the county boundary at 244th Street Southwest is
Shoreline A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
in King County. The city's southeastern border with Mountlake Terrace is defined by the Interurban Trail, while the eastern and northern borders with Lynnwood run along 76th Avenue West, Olympic View Drive, and Lund's Gulch. The unincorporated area of Esperance, located in the southeast corner of the city, is an
enclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is so ...
of Edmonds and has resisted several attempts at annexation. 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. Edmonds has of shoreline, which is crossed by several small streams. The Puget Sound makes up 86 percent of the city's
drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
, with other streams flowing into Lake Ballinger to the southeast. The city's main commercial districts are Downtown Edmonds, situated in a valley known as the "bowl", and the State Route 99 corridor at its east end. The downtown area and "bowl" have views of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains. The city has several outlying suburban neighborhood with their own commercial centers, including Firdale, Five Corners, Perrinville, Seaview, Sherwood, and Westgate.


Economy

, Edmonds has an estimated
workforce In macroeconomics, the workforce or labour force is the sum of people either working (i.e., the employed) or looking for work (i.e., the unemployed): \text = \text + \text Those neither working in the marketplace nor looking for work are out ...
population of 22,152 and an unemployment rate of 3.8 percent. As of 2019, most of the city's employed residents commute to neighboring cities for work, including 11 percent to Seattle, 6 percent to Lynnwood, 6 percent to Everett, and 5 percent to
Shoreline A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...
. Only 11.7 percent of residents work at employers within Edmonds city limits. The average one-way commute for Edmonds residents was approximately 31 minutes; 71 percent of commuters drove alone to their workplace, while 9 percent
carpool Carpooling is the sharing of Automobile, car journeys so that more than one person travels in a car, and prevents the need for others to have to drive to a location themselves. Carpooling is considered a Demand-Responsive Transport (DRT) serv ...
ed and 9 percent used public transit. The most common occupational industry for Edmonds residents is in educational and health services, employing 23 percent, followed by retail (13%) and professional services (12%). The nearest shopping malls are Alderwood in Lynnwood and Aurora Village in Shoreline, the latter of which was seen as a potential annexation target by Edmonds in the 1990s. The city has over 13,000 jobs, a ratio of 0.325 jobs per capita—a figure that is lower than neighboring cities. Approximately 70 percent of jobs in Edmonds are in the services sector, which includes health care and professional services. Other large industries in Edmonds include retail (12%), education (6%), and construction (4%). The city's largest employers are the Edmonds School District, Swedish Medical Center, and large retailers, which includes grocery stores and car dealerships. The car dealerships, which are primarily located along the State Route 99 corridor, account for $152 million in annual retail sales, which contributes to the city's general
sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...
revenue.


Demographics

Edmonds is the third most populous city in Snohomish County, behind Everett and Marysville, with 39,709 people counted during the 2010 U.S. census. The city had an estimated population of over 40,000 in 2015 and is growing at an annual rate of 1 percent. Between 1960 and 1990, Edmonds' population tripled from 8,000 to over 30,000 due to a series of
annexation Annexation, in international law, is the forcible acquisition and assertion of legal title over one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. In current international law, it is generally held t ...
s and natural growth. The population growth also brought an influx of Asian immigrants and their descendants to Edmonds, predominantly
Koreans Koreans are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. The majority of Koreans live in the two Korean sovereign states of North and South Korea, which are collectively referred to as Korea. As of 2021, an estimated 7.3 m ...
, who now make up about 7 percent of the population and are the largest non-white group in the city. The city's population is expected to reach 45,000 by 2035. According to 2012 estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau, Edmonds has a median family income of $93,125 and a
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 ...
of $43,048, ranking 20th of 281 areas within the state of Washington. Approximately 5.2 percent of families and 9 percent of the overall 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 14 percent of those under the age of 18 and 5 percent aged 65 or older.


2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 39,709 people, 17,381 households, and 10,722 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 18,378 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 83.4% White, 2.6% African American, 0.7% Native American, 7.1% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 1.8% from other races, and 4.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.3% of the population. There were 17,381 households, of which 25.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 38.3% were non-families. 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.82. The median age in the city was 46.3 years. 18.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.5% were from 25 to 44; 32.8% were from 45 to 64; and 19.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.3% male and 52.7% female. The median age and number of retirees in Edmonds is significantly higher than the countywide average.


2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 39,515 people, 16,904 households, and 10,818 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,437.6 people per square mile (1,714.3/km2). There were 17,508 housing units at an average density of 1,966.2 per square mile (759.5/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 87.73% White, 1.34% African American, 0.80% Native American, 5.56% Asian, 0.26% Pacific Islander, 1.26% from other races, and 3.05% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.32% of the population. There were 16,904 households, out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.0% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.85. In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 20.6% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.


Government and politics

Edmonds operates as a non-charter code city under a
mayor–council government A mayor–council government is a system of local government in which a mayor who is directly elected by the voters acts as chief executive, while a separately elected city council constitutes the legislative body. It is one of the two most comm ...
, with an elected mayor and a seven-member city council. The mayor is elected to a four-year term and is a nonpartisan position. Mike Rosen was elected mayor in 2023, defeating incumbent and former councilmember Mike Nelson. The city council's seven members are elected
at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...
to four-year terms and serve as the legislative body that establishes city policy. The municipal government employs 224 people full-time and operates on an annual budget of $98 million that is mostly funded by
property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, re ...
and retail sales taxes. The budget funds the city's various departments, which includes parks and recreation,
public works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...
, water utilities, the municipal court, and emergency services. The city's
fire department A fire department (North American English) or fire brigade (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a fire company, fire authority, fire district, fire and rescue, or fire service in some areas, is an organi ...
was disbanded in January 2010 in favor of contracted service from Fire District 1 (now South County Fire), a regional entity serving several areas in southwestern Snohomish County. At the federal level, Edmonds has been part of the 2nd congressional district since 2022 alongside Everett and most of Northwestern Washington. The city had previously been part of the 7th congressional district from 2012 to 2022. At the state level, the city is divided between the 21st and 32nd legislative districts. Edmonds is wholly part of the Snohomish County Council's 3rd district along with Lynnwood and Woodway.


Culture


Arts and events

Edmonds is considered a major hub for the arts in Snohomish County, with a dozen galleries and other arts facilities. The city government established the Edmonds Art Commission in 1975 and developed its public arts program in the following decades. The city has a collection of 35 outdoor art installations, 22 flower pole structures, and maintains several facilities dedicated to various arts. One of its initiatives was the 1979 conversion of the former Edmonds High School building into the Frances Anderson Cultural and Leisure Center, which hosts art classes, exhibitions, ballet classes, community events, child-care programs, and recreational sports leagues. The city also renovated the high school auditorium into the Edmonds Center for the Arts in 2006, serving as the home of theatrical performances, concerts, performing arts, and films. The annual Edmonds Arts Festival has been held since 1957, with three days of art exhibitions and performances over
Father's Day Father's Day is a day set aside for honoring one's father, as well as fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society. "Father's Day" complements similar celebrations honoring family members, such as Mother's Day and, in som ...
weekend in June. The festival is one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest, attracting 75,000 visitors, and has 200 participating artists with booths along Main Street and at the Frances Anderson Center. The Cascadia Art Museum opened in 2015 at the location of a former grocery store in downtown Edmonds and focuses on regional Northwest art. Downtown Edmonds also has a single-screen movie theater that was built in the 1920s and remains independently owned and operated. In addition to the visual arts, Edmonds has several active performing arts organizations. The Driftwood Players host year-round theatrical performances at the Wade James Theatre near Yost Park, while the Phoenix Theatre is based at Firdale Village. The city also hosts the annual Edmonds Jazz Connection over Memorial Day weekend in late May, with several school
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
groups and professional performers. In November 2018, Edmonds was designated as the first creative district in Washington by ArtsWA, the state art agency. One of the city's main landmarks is a small fountain located at the center of a
roundabout A roundabout, a rotary and a traffic circle are types of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junct ...
on Main Street. The first fountain, which included a twisted sculpture at its center, was installed in 1973 and drew criticism from local residents and merchants for its ugliness. It was destroyed in 1998 by a drunk driver and replaced with a temporary gazebo, which had been used as a prop for a TV series. The gazebo was popular and replaced with a bronze structure in 2000, which was later destroyed by a driver five years later. The gazebo was rebuilt in 2006 and has remained since. Edmonds is home to a weekly farmers' market that runs from June to October on Saturdays and is sponsored by the Edmonds–South Snohomish County Historical Society. The city also has several annual summer festivals, including the Edmonds Waterfront Festival in early June, the Edmonds Art Festival in mid-June, the Edmonds in Bloom garden festival in July, and the Taste of Edmonds food festival in August.


Media

Edmonds was served by one weekly newspaper, the ''Edmonds Tribune-Review'', for most of the 20th century. The newspaper was formed by the merger of two rival publications in 1910 and ran until 1982, when it was replaced by an Edmonds section in '' The Enterprise'', a regional newspaper based in Lynnwood. Today, Edmonds is served by '' The Everett Herald'' and ''
The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...
''. Since 1986, the '' Edmonds Beacon'' has published a free weekly newspaper alongside sister papers in Mukilteo and Mill Creek. Edmonds is also home to a local blog, MyEdmondsNews.com, that has covered city affairs since 2009 and is an affiliate of ''The Seattle Times''. The Edmonds library was established in 1901 and moved into a permanent building funded by philanthropist
Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie ( , ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the History of the iron and steel industry in the United States, American steel industry in the late ...
in 1911. The Carnegie Library served as a dual library and city hall until 1962, when a new
civic center A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains of one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, ...
opened. The city government built a new library in 1982 that features of space and an outdoor plaza overlooking Puget Sound. Service was initially contracted out to the Sno-Isle Libraries system until Edmonds was annexed outright in 2001. The Edmonds library was severely damaged by a burst pipe on June 24, 2022, and was closed indefinitely; the library's collection of books and other materials were mostly undamaged by the incident. A temporary location at an adjacent city building opened the following month with most services and limited materials while the original library was repaired and renovated. The library reopened on January 13, 2024.


Parks and recreation

Edmonds has 23 city parks with of open and preserved space, along with several facilities shared with the school district and the county government, totaling . Downtown Edmonds has several major parks, including the public
beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...
at Brackett's Landing on both sides of the ferry terminal, City Park overlooking Edmonds Marsh, and the future Civic Field. A small 9/11 memorial, including a steel beam from the World Trade Center, is located at a
fire station __NOTOC__ A fire station (also called a fire house, fire hall, firemen's hall, or engine house) is a structure or other area for storing firefighting apparatuses such as fire apparatus, fire engines and related vehicles, personal protective equ ...
near downtown Edmonds and was dedicated in 2015. In addition to the neighborhood and community parks in Edmonds, the city also maintains
dog park A dog park is a park for dogs to exercise and play off-leash in a controlled environment under the supervision of their owners. Description Dog parks have varying features, although they typically offer a fence, separate double-gated entry an ...
s, sports fields, a seasonal
swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming and associated activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built abo ...
, and a skate park. Edmonds Stadium, which was home to high school sports and minor league football and soccer teams (including the North Sound SeaWolves), was opened in 1937 and closed in 2017. The Edmonds senior center first opened in 1967 in a former two-story warehouse building, expanding into a former boat showroom shortly afterward; both were replaced by a new building, named the Edmonds Waterfront Center, that held a virtual opening event in 2021 due to local
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
restrictions before holding a grand opening the following year. The city also has several urban forests and natural reserves, which preserve the original vegetation of the area and provide hiking and walking trails. Edmonds Marsh Park, on south of downtown, preserves one of the few remaining saltwater marshes in the state and is home to 225 species of bird and several walking trails. The largest wooded space in the city is the county-run Southwest County Park, with of land along Olympic View Drive at the north end of the city. In 2023, the Edmonds city government planned to acquire a shopping center on State Route 99 for use as a public park, but chose not to pursue the $37 million plan in 2024 due to budget issues. The Port of Edmonds maintains the city's public
marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : "related to the sea") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo ...
, which has 890 slips and is one of the largest in the Puget Sound region. The marina is dredged to a depth of and located southwest of downtown Edmonds. Further north and offshore from Brackett's Landing, the city also maintains a marine park called the Edmonds Underwater Park, which was developed primarily for
scuba diving Scuba diving is a Diving mode, mode of underwater diving whereby divers use Scuba set, breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and therefore has a limited but variable endurance. The word ''scub ...
. The park attracts 25,000 visitors annually and is one of the most popular diving spots in the state. The park features man-made reefs, several
shipwreck A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. It results from the event of ''shipwrecking'', which may be intentional or unintentional. There were approximately thre ...
s, a submerged dock, and habitats for marine life.


Historical preservation

Edmonds' sole entry on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
, the Carnegie Library, was added in 1973 and currently houses the Edmonds Historical Museum, a local museum operated by the Edmonds–South Snohomish County Historical Society. The city government created its own historical commission in 2007 and now maintains a separate register of historic places with 18 buildings. The city's historic designation, unlike the national register, comes without design or building restrictions and primarily includes historic homes and businesses.


Sister city

Edmonds has one
sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...
relationship, established in 1988 with Hekinan in Japan's
Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...
. The relationship is commemorated with a totem pole and plaque on the waterfront. Three times per year, the two cities send visiting delegations, including exchange students, in addition to regularly exchanging gifts and holiday greetings.


Notable people

* Guy Anderson, painter * Steven W. Bailey, actor * Brian Baird, former U.S. Congressman * Jean-Luc Baker, ice dancer and Olympian * Brian Basset, cartoonist * David Bazan, musician * Sean Beighton, Olympic curling coach and former curler * George Benson, former Seattle city councilmember * Alan Stephenson Boyd, former U.S. Secretary of Transportation * Maria Cantwell, U.S. Senator * Ryan Couture, MMA fighter * Annie Crawley, underwater photographer and filmmaker * Andra Day, singer and actress *
Anna Faris Anna Kay Faris ( ; born November 29, 1976) is an American actress. Known for playing comedic roles, she rose to prominence with the lead part of Cindy Campbell in the Scary Movie (film series), ''Scary Movie'' films (2000–2006). Her film credi ...
, actress * Vern Fonk, insurance salesman * Susan Gould, civil activist and state legislator * Morris Graves, artist * Dave Hamilton, professional baseball player * Bridget Hanley, actress * Missouri T. B. Hanna, suffragist and newspaper publisher * Chris Henderson, professional soccer player * Lori Henry, soccer player and coach * Ken Jennings, author and ''
Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead g ...
'' host * Erik Scott Kimerer, voice actor * Corey Kispert, professional basketball player * Sota Kitahara, professional soccer player * Marko Liias, state senator * Todd Linden, professional baseball player * Jay Park, musician * Paull Shin, state senator * Rick Steves, travel author and television host * Rosalynn Sumners, figure skater and Olympic medalist * Scott Uderitz, professional soccer player * Helen Westcott, actress


Education

Edmonds is wholly within the boundaries of the Edmonds School District, which also serves Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace, and Woodway. The city is home to Edmonds Woodway High School, of the district's five high schools, which was formed in 1990 after the merger of Edmonds and Woodway and moved in 1998 to a new campus east of the city. The high school has 1,800 students and hosts an IB Diploma Programme. The school district also operates an alternative high school, Scriber Lake, two K–8 schools, five elementary schools, and two combined elementary–middle schools within Edmonds city limits. Edmonds is located near the campus of Edmonds College, which actually lies within Lynnwood city limits. The city was formerly home to the private Puget Sound Christian College, which operated from 1977 to 2001 at the former Edmonds High School building (now the Edmonds Center for the Arts). Edmonds is also home to several
private school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...
s, which accommodate grade levels from preschool to high school.


Infrastructure


Transportation

Edmonds is served by several modes of transportation that converge in the downtown area, including roads, railroads, ferries, and buses. The city's ferry terminal is located at the west end of Main Street at Brackett's Landing Park and is served by a ferry route to Kingston on the Kitsap Peninsula. From 1979 to 1980, Washington State Ferries also ran ferries to Port Townsend during repairs to the Hood Canal Bridge. The Edmonds train station lies a block southwest of the terminal and is served by
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's intercity ''Cascades'' and ''
Empire Builder The ''Empire Builder'' is a daily long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and either Seattle or Portland via two sections west of Spokane. Introduced in 1929, it was the flagship passenger train of the Great North ...
'' trains as well as Sound Transit's Sounder commuter train. These trains operate on the
BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...
, which runs along the Edmonds waterfront and is primarily used for freight transport. Two state highways, State Route 104 and State Route 524, connect the downtown area to eastern Edmonds and other points in southern Snohomish County and northern King County. An additional state highway, State Route 99, runs north–south in eastern Edmonds and connects the city's commercial district to Seattle and Everett. Public transportation in Edmonds is provided by Community Transit, which serves most of Snohomish County and covers 74 percent of Edmonds residents. Community Transit's local buses run on major streets and connect downtown Edmonds to transit hubs at Aurora Village, Lynnwood City Center station, and Edmonds Community College. It also operates the Swift Blue Line on State Route 99, a bus rapid transit service connecting Aurora Village and Everett. Until 2024, Community Transit operated direct express buses to from
park and ride A park and ride, also known as incentive parking or a commuter lot, is a parking lot with public transport connections that allows commuters and other people heading to city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, Rail transport, r ...
lots in Edmonds to Downtown Seattle and the University District. They were replaced by the
Link light rail Link light rail is a light rail system with some rapid transit characteristics that serves the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. It is managed by Sound Transit in partnership with local transit pro ...
extension to Lynnwood and a new express bus that connects Downtown Edmonds to Mountlake Terrace station.


Utilities

Electric power Electric power is the rate of transfer of electrical energy within a electric circuit, circuit. Its SI unit is the watt, the general unit of power (physics), power, defined as one joule per second. Standard prefixes apply to watts as with oth ...
in Edmonds is provided by the Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD), a consumer-owned
public utility A public utility company (usually just utility) is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service (often also providing a service using that infrastructure). Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and ...
that serves all of Snohomish County. In 2017, the city signed a clean energy pledge that would mandate the use of renewable energy sources to generate all of its electricity by 2025. Puget Sound Energy provides
natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
service to the city's residents and businesses. The city's municipal tap water is provided by the Alderwood Water District, which sources its water from Everett's Spada Lake Reservoir. The city government maintains its own sanitary sewer and
wastewater treatment Wastewater treatment is a process which removes and eliminates contaminants from wastewater. It thus converts it into an effluent that can be returned to the water cycle. Once back in the water cycle, the effluent creates an acceptable impact on ...
services, including a treatment plant in downtown; wastewater is also sent to the regional Brightwater plant near Maltby, which was originally planned to be built in Edmonds. Disposal of
garbage Garbage, trash (American English), rubbish (British English), or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans, usually due to a perceived lack of utility. The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products, purely liquid or ...
, recycling, and yard waste is contracted by the city government to three private companies serving different areas of Edmonds.


Health care

Edmonds is home to one
general hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...
, a branch of Swedish Health Services, which is located on State Route 99. It opened on January 26, 1964, as Stevens Memorial Hospital (named for Washington territorial governor Isaac Stevens), and was initially run as a private facility until 1967, when Snohomish County Public Hospital District 2 was formed to oversee it. The public hospital district was led by a five-member elected board of commissioners from within the district, which eventually encompassed Brier, Edmonds, Esperance, Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace, and Woodway as well as parts of Bothell and unincorporated Snohomish County. Stevens Hospital was expanded with the addition of a nine-story medical tower in 1972 as demand increased from population growth in surrounding areas, but demand faltered as mismanagement plagued its reputation among locals in the early 2000s. The public hospital district ultimately reached an agreement with Swedish in 2010, with the latter leasing the hospital from the former starting on September 1; the former rebranded as the Verdant Health Commission the following year and refocused its efforts as a public health department. Prior to Stevens/Swedish, a general hospital existed in downtown Edmonds in the mid 1920s, while another one existed in the early 1950s. The hospital sits at the center of a district of medical and professional services offices along State Route 99.


See also

* North American Martyrs Parish


References


External links


City of Edmonds
{{Authority control Cities in Washington (state) Cities in Snohomish County, Washington Cities in the Seattle metropolitan area Populated places established in 1876 Populated places on Puget Sound 1876 establishments in Washington Territory