As of 2017 the greater Seattle population was estimated 3,798,902. That includes Seattle Tacoma and Bellevue but not the close in suburbs which are also growing at a break-neck pace. Bellevue and other communities east of Seattle are reached by two bridges. The recently built replacement SR 520 Evergreen Point bridge, at 7710 feet long is the longest floating bridge in the world, with electronic tolling and a generously sized pedestrian and bike lane and plans to incorporate the light rail system now under construction. As home to a number of the region’s top tech companies, employment growth anticipated at almost 40 percent over the next ten years Bellevue and its neighboring cities Redmond, Bothell and Woodenville and at the top of the regional boom. Microsoft continues to expand is huge campus while new downtown Bellevue skyscrapers pop up in what 20 years ago was a series of small strip malls and whole new neighborhoods, like Bellevue’s Spring District emerge from what was lightly developed industrial land. Residential complexes like Sparc are developed in tandem with tech incubators like the GIX global innovation exchange, a joint venture of the University of Washington and Tsinghua University in Beijing that got early support from Microsoft and now is training an international cadre of young innovators, mostly from China and the US.
To online shopping (Amazon) and PC software (Microsoft) and and fresh coffee (Starbucks), add craft beer brewing to the list of modern culture where Seattle has led the way. Red Hook Ale Brewery began in a former transmission shop in Ballard and become so popular that it was bought out by Anheuser Busch. Many others followed and most were also bought out but Seattle’s Fremont Brewery has stayed independent and become one of the most successful independent breweries in the country. Started by burned out attorney and home brewer Matt Lincecum with $10000 home equity loan in a 4000 square foot commercial garage space the brewery produced a scant 1700 barrels in their first year. Last year they produced 43,000. Now some 70 employees they produce a range of ales and stouts, with distribution up and down the West coast and in Colorado and Lincecum, a true fanatic about quality and craft still maintains control over the recipes. He regrets the fact that so many of the new breed of craft brewers have been snapped up by multinationals. Lincecum checks his own brew kettles and inspects the barrels of aging specially ales. Patrons and their dog enjoy an evening at the brew bub
