Fremont

Welcome to Fremont. Self-billed as "The Center Of the Universe", Fremont once was full of many drifters, artists, hippies and leather-clad bikers. Although many from that era left in the early 1990's, much of the spirit remains. Fremont is an eclectic and friendly neighborhood where everybody knows your name. Like its neighbors Wallingford and Ballard, it is very much a walking community. There are a great assortment of art galleries and studios, boutique retail stores, vintage shops, tattoo parlors, barbershops, recording studios, restaurants and pubs, coffee shops (of course) and its own gourmet chocolate factory. Built in 1917, the Fremont Bridge connects Fremont to Queen Anne and has opened more times than any other drawbridge on the planet to accommodate boats in the busy ship canal sailing from the Puget Sound to marinas in Lake Union and Lake Washington. Some of the nation's top companies (Google, Adobe, and Getty Images to name a few) have moved into prime office space under the historic bridge and along the canal with the Burke Gilman Trail running right alongside.

Added to the area's own natural beauty and viewpoints, some of Seattle's best-known statues adorn the retail core. "Waiting for the Interurban" and the "Fremont Troll" are well-loved and oft decorated by the community. More unconventional is the Lenin statue. It was originally displayed in communist Slovakia and considered to be a part of the neighborhood's counterculture roots. First Friday Art Walks present additional opportunities to explore the artistic galleries and treasures of Fremont on foot. Additional entertainment highlights include the famously fun and funky Summer Solstice Parade and well-known year-round Fremont Sunday Marketplace where you can find "everything you can imagine and some things you can't." On summer weekends the market grounds host the Fremont Outdoor Cinema playing new favorites weekly including the occassional Jet City Improv led Twisted Flick.

The views, amenities, character and charm of the Fremont neighborhood has brought in many new residents and made it increasingly more popular and up-scale. Many of the unique older homes and businesses are being replaced with condos, town-homes, and office complexes. After an early boom of rapid multi-unit growth, most of the latest construction has tried to maintain the craftsman/bungelow look and feel of the original buildings. The northern section still remains mostly small single-family homes. Overall, Fremont is known for funky retail section and it's neighborly community of people and pets. It's estimated that there are three dogs for every fire hydrant! Luckily north Fremont's Woodland Park is one of the best spots in town to take the dogs, kids and friends out to play.