Good morning, and welcome to the first Redmond Dispatch. Five minutes on what moved in Redmond this week, one item for your own neighborhood, the market in three numbers, and one practical thing for the house.
Redmond this week
Council meets Tuesday on a new fire fee, a new permitting department and the budget. Three sessions at City Hall, 15670 NE 85th Street, on October 13. At 4:30 PM a committee gets a budget-process update and a resolution to sell the city's former Pacer Propane lot at 18459 NE 76th Street. At 6:15 PM council meets jointly with the parks commission. The 7 PM study session takes up a fire impact fee on new development of $1.03 per square foot for all home types, replacing today's per-unit fee from January 1, 2027, and a new department that would bring development review and permitting under one roof. Study sessions are discussion; the fee is slated for approval November 17. Watch on RCTV at redmond.gov/rctvlive. Committee agenda · Study session agenda · Fire fee staff report
Redmond's tree rules date from 1998. The first full rewrite gets a public hearing Wednesday. The Planning Commission opens its October 14 meeting, 7 PM in Council Chambers at City Hall, with testimony on the Tree Code Update. The commission returns to it November 4 and November 18; council adoption is expected in the first quarter of 2027, and comments are taken until then. Planning Commission memo · Tree Code Update
No 2 Line trains west of South Bellevue this weekend. From Saturday, October 17, through the end of service Sunday, October 18, shuttle buses replace trains between South Bellevue and International District/Chinatown, every 10 to 15 minutes. Trains keep running every 10 minutes between Downtown Redmond and South Bellevue, so all four Redmond stations stay open. Plan extra time into Seattle. Sound Transit
No school Friday, October 16. Lake Washington School District has a LEAP day on the 16th, and preschool programs pause October 13–15 for conferences. Wednesday early release (90 minutes elementary, 105 secondary) continues. LWSD 2026–27 calendar
Harvest Festival, Saturday, October 17, at Farrel-McWhirter Park. Two sessions, 10 AM to noon and 1 to 3 PM, at 19545 Redmond Road: pressed cider, wagon rides, butter making and a trail scavenger hunt, with a pony ride and a pumpkin for kids 12 and under. Passes on the city calendar. City of Redmond
Your neighborhood
Bear Creek. Avondale Road between NE 90th Street and Novelty Hill Road is next for about 2,500 feet of new water main, 3.2 lane miles of repaving and buffered bike lanes on both sides; the city expects construction to start this year and finish by late 2027. City of Redmond Sold near you: 9 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.40M (range $100K to $1.75M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 32 days.
Downtown. Downtown Park, 16101 Redmond Way, is two acres with a raised lawn, 117 trees and the Buoyant pavilion and water wall, open dawn to 11 PM. Halloween starts early nearby: Trunk or Treat at City Hall on Friday, October 30, 5 to 7:30 PM. Downtown Park · Trunk or Treat Sold near you: 16 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $719K (range $325K to $1.48M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 18 days.
Education Hill. Hartman Park's wooden play structure comes out for a fully accessible playground; construction is scheduled for early 2027, finishing in spring. The 40-acre park at 17300 NE 104th Street, with the Redmond Pool, joined the free RedLink shuttle's service area on September 1. Hartman playground · RedLink Sold near you: 12 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.32M (range $870K to $1.79M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 27 days.
Grass Lawn. (evergreen) Grass Lawn Park, 7031 148th Avenue NE, has six lit tennis courts, a pavilion, a picnic shelter and a summer splash pad. Softball Field 1 was resurfaced and now carries Redmond's first cricket practice pitch. Park page · Field project Sold near you: 26 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $725K (range $198K to $3.50M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 18 days.
Idylwood. A new water main is going in along NE 24th Street, working west from West Lake Sammamish Parkway NE through November, Monday to Thursday, 7 AM to 5 PM. Expect lane shifts or flaggers with one lane alternating. Final repaving is planned for 2027. City of Redmond Sold near you: 3 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.53M (range $1.40M to $3.10M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 9 days.
North Redmond. Just past the city line, King County's NE 128th Way stays closed between 181st Avenue NE and Avondale Road NE for a fish-passage culvert; the county extended the closure for drainage work and now expects to reopen the road October 30. The detour, just over five miles, uses SR 202, NE 116th Street and Avondale Road NE. King County Sold near you: 6 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.87M (range $1.23M to $2.30M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 21 days.
Overlake. Wednesday's Planning Commission hearing also adds a shared-use path on the north side of NE 40th Street, between 158th and 156th Avenues NE, to the city's transportation project list. During the October 17–18 shuttle weekend, Overlake Village and Redmond Technology stations keep 10-minute trains. Planning Commission memo Sold near you: no closed sales within 0.8 mile in the last 45 days.
Sammamish Valley. (evergreen) The Redmond Central Connector is finished: its last 1.6 miles, from the 9900 block of Willows Road NE to NE 124th Street, opened in September 2025, completing a 3.9-mile trail that links the Sammamish River, Bear Creek and East Lake Sammamish trails. City of Redmond Sold near you: 8 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.00M (range $291K to $2.30M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 22 days.
Southeast Redmond. Tuesday's committee takes up declaring the former Pacer Propane lot at 18459 NE 76th Street surplus so it can be sold; the city bought it as temporary space while rebuilding its maintenance center, which is moving to a new site. Wednesday's hearing adds a planned shared-use path on NE 70th Street from 188th Avenue NE to the Evans Creek Trail. Committee memo · Planning Commission memo Sold near you: 5 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.15M (range $795K to $1.63M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 34 days.
Willows/Rose Hill. Willows Road has daytime lane closures, 7 AM to 5 PM, between NE 116th and NE 124th Streets while crews lay about 1,300 feet of 12-inch water main; the city's traffic alert runs through November 20. Traffic alert · Project page Sold near you: 5 homes closed within 0.8 mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $2.40M (range $875K to $3.05M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 34 days.
The market in 60 seconds
Across Redmond ZIPs 98052 and 98053, the median home sold for $1.30M over the last 30 days (76 closings; single-family alone $1.475M). The median home took 61 days from listing to closing, and there are 4.1 months of inventory on the market.
That is balanced territory: under three months favors sellers, above six favors buyers. For an owner, price and condition set the timeline. For a buyer, there is room to negotiate; 9% of homes closed above asking. (ZIP 98053 also takes in unincorporated areas east of the city line.)
One useful thing: November 2, not October 31
The second half of 2026 King County property tax is due Monday, November 2; October 31 falls on a Saturday. Pay online, or mail a check postmarked by the due date to King County Treasury, 201 S. Jackson St., Suite 710, Seattle, WA 98104, with your account number on it. The county will email or text a reminder about 30 days ahead if you sign up. King County Treasury
While you're out front: fall is catch-basin season for the city's more than 12,000 storm drains. Rake leaves off the drain on your curb before the rain does it for you. Focus, Fall 2026
That's the week. Reply with anything you want tracked in Redmond, and if a neighbor would read it, forward it. They can subscribe at redmonddispatch.com. From here the Dispatch arrives Thursdays at 6 AM; next up: the October 20 budget hearing, the Pacer Propane vote and the tree code's next round.
The Redmond Dispatch is a RexMont Real Estate publication. Adriano Tori, Designated Broker. Reply to this email and a person reads it.