Federal Way Neighborhood

Federal Way, South of Seattle

Federal Way sits at the Southern border of King County. With a population of 90,000, it's a large city that sometimes flies under the radar. Located adjacent to I-5, Federal Way has quality commute access into Seattle or Tacoma, with Highway 99 as an easy backup route. Federal Way is home to the Weyerhauser company, the largest private owner of softwood timberland in the world. Nearby attractions include Wild Waves and Enchanted Village theme parks, as well as Dash Point State Park on the waterfront.

Federal Way, Washington

Federal Way is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is a city within the Seattle metropolitan area. The population was 89,306 at the 2010 census and an estimated 96,289 in 2019. Federal Way is the tenth largest city in Washington and the fifth largest in King County, according to the Census Bureau's 2019 population estimate.

Federal Way, Washington

History

Originally a logging settlement, the area was first called "Federal Way" in 1929. The name derived from Federal Highway U.S. 99 (now State Route 99 or Pacific Highway South), which ran from Everett and Seattle to Tacoma. The name "Federal Way" was first used in 1929 when five existing schools consolidated operations into School District #210 and planned construction of Federal Way High School, which opened in 1930 and gave its name to the school district.The local chamber of commerce adopted the name in the early 1950s.

Attempts to incorporate the city were voted down in 1971, 1981 and 1985. The voters eventually approved incorporation as a city on February 28, 1990; the official act of incorporation was held at the Sportsworld Lanes bowling complex.

Commerce and attractions

Until 2014, Federal Way was home to Weyerhaeuser, the largest private owner of softwood timberland in the world. Weyerhaeuser had opened much of its land in Federal Way to the public, including two botanical gardens: the Rhododendron Species Foundation and Botanical Garden, and the Pacific Bonsai Museum. In 2014, the company announced it would vacate its Federal Way headquarters. City leaders have suggested promoting the location as a potential community college. Federal Way is also home to the US headquarters of World Vision International.

Other attractions in the city include the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center, which features an Olympic-size swimming pool which has been used for the 1990 Goodwill Games and 2012 US Olympic Swim & Dive Trials. Celebration Park includes sports fields, a playground, and wooded trails. The city has also developed many lakefront and neighborhood parks, playgrounds, and trails.

The 40-acre (16 ha) PowellsWood Garden, known for its outstanding structural plantings and perennial borders, is located off South Dash Point Road. This land, on a portion of the Cold Creek ravine, was purchased by Monte and Diane Powell in 1993 in order to preserve green space in an increasingly urbanized area.

Wild Waves Theme & Water Park, the largest amusement park in the region, opened in 1977 on the south side of the city. It is the Seattle area's only permanent amusement park. Six Flags purchased Wild Waves in December 2000. However, after low sales, Six Flags sold the park in April 2007 to Parc Management LLC of Jacksonville, Florida, for $31.75 million.

Federal Way is locally identified by its 1990s semi-urban development, characterized by landscaped off-street multi-structure apartment complexes and shopping centers. The Commons at Federal Way, the city's only indoor shopping mall, is located on South 320th Street and Pacific Highway South (State Route 99) near the city's main Interstate 5 exit.

Major city and state parks

• Steel Lake Park – located on S 312th Street east of Pacific Hwy S; large lakefront area with picnic areas, playground, and boat launch.
• Celebration Park – on 11th Avenue S just south of S 324th Street; with sports fields and wooded trails, and Independence Day fireworks.
• Dash Point State Park – 53rd Avenue SW & SW Dash Point Road; the only developed waterfront park located within the city, including hiking trails and campground.
• West Hylebos Wetlands Park – at S 348th Street and 4th Avenue S, with hiking trails through wetlands. The park also features two iconic buildings: the nearby Barker Cabin built in 1883, which is the city's oldest known building, and the 22-by-22-foot (6.7 by 6.7 m) Denny Cabin, which was once located west of present-day Seattle Center. The Denny Cabin was built by David Denny in 1889 as a real-estate office and was made from trees cut down on Queen Anne Hill.
• Dumas Bay Centre Park – on SW Dash Point Road; includes a beach, picnic area and walking trail
• Lakota Park – on SW Dash Point Road; includes baseball field, softball field, football field and 440 yard running track
• Saghalie Park – at 19th Avenue SW; includes basketball court, 440-yard track, children's playground, soccer and football field, sand volleyball, tennis courts and baseball courts
• The BPA Trail extends from the entrance to Celebration Park west to approximately 18th Avenue SW, then south to the Pierce County border. The trail is paved and lies under the Bonneville Power Administration electricity transmission line.

Trilliums at Dash Point State Park

Downtown tower projects

In 2007, the city of Federal Way purchased a downtown lot formerly used by a defunct AMC Theatres cinema, and invited proposals from two developers, United Properties and Alpert Capital, to develop a multi-use tower project in the downtown core, adjacent to the recently built transit center. Such a project follows in the steps of similar multi-use developments such as Kent Station in nearby Kent. The city awarded the contract to United Properties' "Symphony" project, comprising four 15–22 story towers, including 60,000 square feet (5,600 m2) of retail and office space, 900 housing units, and a large downtown park which would be relinquished to the city. Transfer of the land to United Properties followed by construction of the first tower was scheduled to start in mid-2008. However, in July 2008, United Properties requested a one-year extension on the terms of the purchase agreement, citing difficulties in the credit and housing markets to acquire the necessary funds. In August 2009, United suggested scrapping the Symphony plan and instead building a performing arts center on the property, a proposal the city rejected.

In September 2009 the South Korean development firm Lander Korus joined onto the project with United. Korus proposed adding Asian elements to the building in order to attract investment and interest from the city's influential Korean population and foreign investment. However, by July 2010, after having granted United and Korus five extensions to close on the project, the city transferred the deal to another Korean developer, Twin Development, which had planned a similar project on another lot. The new developer brought a new design, with two 45-story and one 35-story mixed-use towers. As of 2011 the new developers had yet to close on the property, citing financing difficulties, and had received the seventh extension on the land from the city, which expired in March 2011. The developers were banking on the city's recently granted EB-5 visa qualification to encourage foreign investment in exchange for permanent resident status. As of February 1, 2011, this deal was also dead, as the developer had failed to make a required escrow deposit by the end of January.

In 2011 the city renewed its Request for Quotes for the undeveloped site, and received three proposals. The city ultimately chose a proposal by Arcadd known as the "Crystal Palace", a densely packed glass multi-tower structure where some of the towers bend outward near the top under 20 stories with a larger retail and public space pavilion at the base. The developers, however, were unable to obtain the funds by the initial deadline. After extending the deadline eight months to allow Arcadd to obtain the necessary earnest money, and still seeing no progress, the city decided to move on with a different plan. As of May 2013, plans for a downtown park and plaza complex were underway. In 2014, the lot was repaved, leaving the AMC Theaters building foundation in place, but filling inside its perimeter with sod. The lot was rechristened Town Square Park and opened in early 2014. A plan for a more permanent park design on the site is being considered.

To the north of the downtown park, an elevated lot which was formerly the location of a Toys "R" Us store has been purchased by the city, which is slated to host a planned performing arts and civic center (PACC). The PACC proposal has been controversial, largely over funding and self-sustaining concerns (a similar city project, the Federal Way Community Center, opened in 2007 and ran for most of its operational history in the red), but has the support of most city leaders. It opened as the Performing Arts & Event Center (PAEC) in August 2017.

Also in 2014, ahead of Veterans Day, the city introduced a 60-foot (18 m) flagpole on South 320th Street between Pacific Highway South and Pete von Reichbauer Way South. The pole holds a 15-by-25-foot (4.6 by 7.6 m) flag. While intended to be officially raised on Veterans Day, a smaller flag was raised to half mast on the pole in late October, in memory of State Representative Roger Freeman who died October 29 of that year. The portion of South 320th Street from Pacific Highway to Interstate 5 was dual-named "Veterans Way" in honor of veterans.

Economy

Largest employers

According to Federal Way's 2017 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the largest employers in Federal Way are:

Geography

Federal Way is located in the southwest corner of King County at 47°18′47″N 122°20′21″W (47.312960, −122.339173).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.46 square miles (58.17 km2), of which 22.26 square miles (57.65 km2) are land and 0.20 square miles (0.52 km2) are water.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Federal Way is served by I-5 (exits at 348th Street and 320th Street) and US Highway 99.

The Federal Way Transit Center, located on 23rd Ave S, was opened in 2006 and provides bus services.

There is an ongoing project (Federal Way Link Extension) to extend Sound Transit light rail from the Angle Lake Station in the City of SeaTac to the Federal Way Transit Center. In January 2017 the final route was approved. Construction is planned to begin in 2019 and the service is expected to open for service in 2024.

Source Wikipedia