About Ballard
What was once a Scandinavian fishing village has since turned into a hip, high-density urban community built amongst ongoing industrial and seafaring endeavors. In Ballard, you can find craft breweries, live music, foodie-hot spots, and one of the cities busiest farmers markets, all within blocks of Market Street (Ballard’s main thoroughfare). For you engineering fans out there, a common tourist stop, the Ballard Locks, are just walking-distance away. These locks built in 1917 by the Army Corps of Engineers allow boats of all shapes and sizes to travel between the Puget Sound and Lake Union; everything from mega-yachts to fishing vessels. If you travel a bit further west from the locks, you will find Golden Gardens, one of the few beaches in Seattle proper and home to volleyball courts, picnic shelters, marinas, and a few high-end seafood restaurants. If a thriving neighborhood delicately balancing its industrial past and its trendy future is your ideal spot, get out to Ballard and see it for yourself.