Look down any of Issaquah, Washington's streets and
you'll see the thickly forested slopes of the encompassing
'Issaquah Alps'. More than most towns, Issaquah is
defined not so much by arbitrary city limits as by people's
loyalties and love of community and natural beauty...

Skip Rowley (C.E.O., Rowley Enterprises, Inc.): "That's easy to answer -- the people. And I would also encompass with the people the environment and the quality of life we have here. I started working in Issaquah when I was 15 -- 40 years ago. I grew up in Bellevue and when I got out of the University, I moved here and have lived here pretty much ever since. My family has a major investment here... and our whole business is centered around here. But it's the quality of life -- that's why we live here. Communities go through a lot of things as they grow up and get older, and it's been fun to be involved in those things and to work with other communities and through our problems. Issaquah has a greater feeling of community than any other Eastside community -- I'm always happy to come home to Issaquah. Issaquah also has wonderful natural and environmental attributes which add to the beauty of this place. But I've got to say it's the people who make Issaquah."

Suzanne Suther (Executive Director, Greater Issaquah Chamber of Commerce): "In 1962, my family -- my husband and our four children -- moved to Issaquah from Seattle. Specifically, we wanted to raise our children in the suburbs. In many ways, Front Street looks like the way it did then -- a little piece of Americana. I think it has a sweetness about it... For the most part, I like the devotion to the welfare of the community and the sense of community. For instance, right now we have a mural going up on the Darigold building about the history of dairy farming in Issaquah. In just a few short weeks, a couple of people took an idea and made it happen, and I see that happen over and over again. Look at Salmon Days; the hatchery -- making it more accessible and helping people understand what a miracle happens there every year; the Depot; the flowers; and the fruit-bearing trees and bushes. Over and over again, people are working together and they're devoted to keeping Issaquah healthy."

Jim Curnow (Owner-goldsmith, The Jeweler's Bench West): "First off, it's a great place to have a business -- I've had a business here for 10 years. I started out very small and as Issaquah has grown, I have grown... Issaquah's on the map now -- drawing people from a lot of areas, drawing in the buying customers... because they are things happening all around you. I like that the city has tried to keep a theme throughout -- old light posts and such. The style of 'old' Issaquah is still here... it's a wonder-world with a traditional, downtown theme. And I like that there's a real mix of people and lots of foot traffic from all walks of life. They're happy, and they like where they live and shop."

Nick Petruzzelli (Co-owner, Nicolino Ristorante): "One of the first things I like is the view of the hills and the mountains around us -- it reminds me of the northern part of Italy. I'm originally from Italy, and then California, and we came here because it is a nice place to raise a family. Also, the community is very nice here. We opened the restaurant in July, 1991, on my sixth wedding anniversary, so it's a double celebration every year! The people here in Issaquah have been very supportive... I like the set-up of the town -- the nice downtown, and Gilman Boulevard, and the green trees and everything. I hope Issaquah stays the way it is now..."

Aaron Barough (General Manager, Gilman Village): "I think that the thing I like most about Issaquah is how strong a sense of community there is in the city -- more, to me, than anyplace I can think of. It feels nice to be in a place where people have that. A lot of people talk about how beautiful it is here, but for me, it's the community. My in-laws live here, and my wife was raised here, and we'll be building our home here... One example of that sense of community -- one of the things I like most -- is that when they did the local improvement for Gilman Boulevard, they landscaped it with edible fruit trees. Not every town would do that. I walk Gilman Boulevard every day from one end to the other in the summer and it's nice to see people -- from mothers with kids to construction workers -- enjoying picking the fruit off the trees and bushes... That's a wonderful thing to have done! And a great thing for the community."

Copyright © 1995 by the Bellevue, WA-based Journal American newspaper.

Excerpts published in "Issaquah: The City and the Salmon", a Northwest Media special supplement to the Snoqualmie Valley Reporter, on 10-04-95, and the JA on 10-05-95. Chinook salmon image available via <http://www.riverdale.k12.or.us/salmon.html> Aerial photograph courtesy of Chuck Metzger (CRB; Branch Manager, Windermere Real Estate East, Inc.), <http://www.say64k.com/cmetzger.html>