Lakewood, Washington

3 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10 F or many years, despite Lakewood, Washington’s rich history and a seemingly endless bounty of natural amenities offering everything from rustic relaxation to adrenaline filled adventures, the city was considered a bedroom community for nearby Tacoma and Seattle. In recent times, the current city council and the community began working toward strengthening Lakewood’s own identity and creating spaces for the community to gather, to celebrate, and to host festivals for the entire city. However, they still believed most people would always leave for work. Cue the COVID-19 pandemic, and while it negatively impacted so many economies, people, and families, Lakewood saw it as an opportunity to become a destination and not just a place where its residents slept. John Caulfield, the City Manager, says he knows the pandemic has caused a lot of uncertainties, but in Lakewood they’re choosing to look at the glass as half full. He shares, “We view what’s happened recently, and what continues to occur, as opportunities. A lot of this disruption that’s occurred – the remote work, the reduced commute times, the increased online consumerism – has actually created the exodus of people from major urban areas into suburban areas such as Lakewood. We view that as a huge, huge opportunity. We actually believe that we can take advantage of that by people not just coming here to live, but also working here and bringing their business here.” The young City of Lakewood, which formally incorporated in 1996 in Pierce County, has already seen population growth since the pandemic began with new residents bringing the population to nearly 64,000. Lakewood is a little under 10 miles from Tacoma, WA with a bus taking just 14 minutes. Lakewood is also only about an hour from Seattle, giving residents access to big city amenities, AT A GLANCE LAKEWOOD, WASHINGTON WHAT: A young, community-focused city; population 70,000 WHERE: Pierce County, Washington WEBSITE: http://cityoflakewood.us/ Where opportunities abound ood ngton ,