By MARK HIGGINS
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Not all old-timers resent the newcomers. Duane Isackson still runs a sawmill that has been owned and operated continuously by his family for 61 years. His Swedish family came to homestead on the plateau in 1886, says Isackson, who lives about a quarter-mile from where he grew up.

The family mill is a relic, but its saw can still rip a 24-foot log into planks, which Isackson then will plane for custom homes and buildings.

Isackson's sister sold off part of the family homestead a few years back, which was developed into the Broadmoore housing subdivision with homes selling for more than $300,000.

His wife sometimes talks about moving off the plateau, he says, but he can't imagine living anywhere else.

As for that country feel, Isackson says, "I still got it on my place."

Continued:

• King County's rural getaway wrestles with rapid growth
• Safety, quiet have lured many to popular plateau
• Some think a new city is the answer
• Balancing past with pocketbook isn't easy