Sammamish, Washington
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Sammamish (pronounced Template:IPA) is a city located in King County, Washington. It was incorporated in 1999. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 34,104.
Based on per capita income, one of the more reliable measures of affluence, Sammamish ranks 11th of 522 areas in the state of Washington to be ranked.
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History
The Sammamish Plateau was part of unincorporated King County for most of its history. A vote in 1991 to join neighboring Issaquah failed, as did a vote on incorporation the following year. A renewed movement to become a city, born of frustration with development policies set by the county government, met with voter approval in 1998. Sammamish was officially incorporated on August 31, 1999.
Geography
Sammamish is located at Template:Coor dms (Template:Coor d) Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 47.4 km² (18.3 mi²). 46.7 km² (18.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.6 km² (0.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.37% water.
Situated on the shores and hilly terrain east of Lake Sammamish, the city features a beautiful landscape of trees, mountains, and lakes. Other than Lake Sammamish, Beaver Lake and Pine Lake are the two biggest lakes in Sammamish.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 34,104 people, 11,131 households, and 9,650 families residing in the city. The population density was 729.5/km² (1,888.9/mi²). There were 11,599 housing units at an average density of 248.1/km² (642.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.82% White, 0.85% African American, 0.29% Native American, 7.89% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.60% from other races, and 2.46% from two or more races. 2.50% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 11,131 households out of which 53.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 79.5% were married couples living together, 5.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.3% were non-families. 9.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.06 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the city the population was spread out with 33.4% under the age of 18, 4.8% from 18 to 24, 33.2% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 4.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 101.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $101,592, and the median income for a family was $104,356. Males had a median income of $76,688 versus $47,164 for females. The per capita income for the city was $42,971. 2.0% of the population and 1.6% of families were below the poverty line. 1.7% of those under the age of 18 and 3.2% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
More about the City of Sammamish
While the young city of Sammamish is still growing and gaining essential facilities, there remains a variety of options for activities and enjoyment in the city, in addition to the infrastructure used for work purposes.
Recreation
For recreation, residents and visitors enjoy the beautiful waters of Lake Sammamish. In addition, four major city parks exist: Beaver Lake Park, Pine Lake Park, NE Sammamish Park, and East Sammamish Park. As the city continues to grow, several new parks are planned, such as Soaring Eagle Park, the Sammamish Commons, and Ebright Creek Park. Finally, the East Lake Sammamish Trail, to open in 2006, will allow nearby residents and visitors to witness Sammamish's natural beauty on a lakeside path.
The city's central park, the Sammamish Commons, which is being built in combination with the city center project (City Hall, recreation facilities, police station, post office, and relocated library / community center), will open in late 2006. It is hoped that this will be the most successful city project to date, rivaling the signicant improvement of the main arterial—228th Avenue NE/SE—in importance.
Transportation information
The city's transportation infrastructure includes two major arterials, 228th Avenue Northeast/Southeast and East Lake Sammamish Parkway Northeast/Southeast. Newly-widened 228th Avenue Northeast/Southeast takes drivers from the north side of the city to the south in about 15 minutes. East Lake Sammamish Parkway Northeast/Southeast, a more scenic route, gives drivers a beautiful view of Lake Sammamish, often with sublime glimpses of Mt. Rainier.
Politics
On the national level, Sammamish leans toward the Republican Party. In 2004, Republican George W. Bush received 58 percent of the vote here, defeating Democrat John Kerry, who received around 42 percent.
Sammamish Citizen Corps
Sammamish Citizens Corps offers several interlinked community volunteer programs and events including an active Citizens Emergency Response Team under the direction of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security. The Sammamish Citizen Corps group is modeling how community groups can be born to serve each other and their own community, while it learns from neighboring cities like Redmond with similar and more mature organizations in place. Sammamish is a city that encourages citizen involvement, emergency preparedness, strong neighborhood watch organizations, and volunteerism.
Schools
The city is part of two major school districts: Lake Washington School District (northern Sammamish) and Issaquah School District (southern Sammamish). Two high schools, Eastlake High School of the LWSD and Skyline High School of ISD exist within the city limits, as well as three middle/junior high schools and nearly a dozen elementary schools.
Public transit
With service provided both by Sound Transit and King County Metro, Sammamish currently has three bus routes that provide access to other Eastside cities and Seattle.
1. Route 216 - Seattle commuter service on weekdays via Redmond
2. Route 269 - Commuter service to Redmond and Issaquah on weekdays
3. Route 927 - Local transportation service with DART (Dial-A-Ride Transit) access to/from Issaquah