The "Gold Coast" houses affluent citizens

By JOHN IWASAKI
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

When Mitch Wasserman meets people unfamiliar with Clyde Hill -- a town in the midst of some of Washington's priciest real estate -- he provides a deadpan description.

"Do you know where Bellevue is?" he asks with a twinkle in his eye. "Bellevue is a suburb of Clyde Hill."

The joke is indicative of a changing attitude among residents of Clyde Hill, Medina, Yarrow Point and Hunts Point, the four affluent communities often lumped together under the "Gold Coast" label.

Fifteen years ago, many of the combined 7,500 residents might have told outsiders that they lived in Bellevue, even though their virtually all-residential communities foster distinct identities.

Now they more readily provide their towns' names, a change that corresponds with moves here by some of Washington's richest business, sports and entertainment figures. Among them are numerous Microsoft multimillionaires, former and current Seattle SuperSonics, various CEOs and saxophonist Kenny G, whose 3-acre estate is for sale at $26.5 million.

Average household income in the four towns that make up the "Gold Coast," ranges from $158,059 in Medina to $172,046 for the other three communities, according to Jim Hebert, who runs a Bellevue market research firm.

Adding to the image of affluence are the string of boats moored around the Points and the private Overlake Golf & Country Club in the center of Medina.

These celebrities makes their communities more familiar to non-residents, says Yarrow Point Mayor Jeanne Berry.

"You can't help but be fascinated by some of the gated property fronts," admits Matt Owen, a West Seattle resident who frequently visits his sister and brother-in-law in Medina.

Topping the who's who list is Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. His 4.5-acre compound, valued at $53 million, is of unending interest to tourists on cruises or driving on Evergreen Point Road, the main street through Medina.

When people stop at Medina's first and only grocery store to ask where the billionaire lives, "I give only one answer: 'You can't see anything from the street,' " store operator Charlie Song says wearily.

Those who live in the communities say the focus on wealth is overblown, with average income figures skewed by extremely affluent individuals.

Commercial real estate developer Fred McConkey doesn't like to tell people he's from Hunts Point because people connect the area with "the super-rich -- and I'm not and I don't pretend to be."

"We don't have a waterfront. By no means is it only the wealthy who live here," agrees Clyde Hill Mayor Phil Rourke. "We have a sensitivity to the Gold Coast term because it does not accurately represent the whole community. It just isn't the case.