Redmond: Beyond Lake Bill

The Puget Sound area has no shortage of large bodies of water. Yet, a small, puddle-sized, man-made lake that sits between the four original buildings on Microsoft's manicured Redmond campus has become recognized around the world. To Microsoft employees, it is affectionately known as "Lake Bill", for the now-famous entrepreneur that founded the world's largest software company. To the city of Redmond, founded by an Irish potato farmer, Lake Bill is a fountain of growth.

Since the Microsoft campus first opened in 1986, Redmond's population has swelled faster than any other city in the state of Washington. Redmond Real Estate remains a hot property as the world’s largest computer company continues to expand its dominant campus. The city that remains the "Bicycle Capitol of the Northwest" has become a child of the automobiles that stream daily across Lake Washington from Seattle. Any Redmond Realtor or long-term resident will tell you that this is a city of affluence in performing arts, shopping and natural amenities. The Sammamish River that attracted founder Luke McRedmond to its bounty of Salmon still beckons thousands of sportsmen to its shores.

Redmond shares the Lake Washington School District with Kirkland, as well as that district's reputation for superior schools. Beyond Microsoft, Redmond is a center of high technology education, including one of the world's few video game animation schools - "DigiPen", a collaboration of Nintendo of America, another Redmond high technology company.

Redmond also includes a destination shopping center, Redmond Towne Center, a massive collection of upscale retailers that rivals the Eastside's other mega center, Bellevue Square.

Even though Redmond was once known as "Salmonburg", it no longer has to worry about swimming upstream. When you live in Redmond, you've arrived.