Shoreline sits immediately north of Seattle’s city limits, with Puget Sound on its west side and two Link light rail stations along I-5. OFM’s April 1, 2026 estimate counts 64,710 residents, up from 58,608 in the 2020 Census. Buyers get a saltwater beach, a botanic garden, dozens of neighborhood parks and Link connections to downtown Seattle, Sea-Tac Airport and the Eastside.
Light rail since 2024
Link reached Shoreline on August 30, 2024, when Sound Transit opened the 1 Line extension to Lynnwood with two Shoreline stations. Shoreline South/148th is an elevated station just northeast of I-5 at the NE 145th Street exit. Shoreline North/185th, on the east side of I-5, serves Shoreline Stadium and the Shoreline Conference Center, with pedestrian pathways to the west side of the freeway. Each opened with a parking garage of about 500 spaces. Since March 2026, Sound Transit’s 1 and 2 Lines both run north to Lynnwood, so trains from these stations reach downtown Seattle, Sea-Tac Airport and, on the 2 Line, the Eastside.
Shoreline South/148th is also the western end of Sound Transit’s Stride S3 bus rapid transit line, which Sound Transit projects to open in 2028, running along NE 145th Street and SR 522 to Lake Forest Park, Kenmore and Bothell.
On the Sound
Richmond Beach Saltwater Park has a public beach on Puget Sound, with views toward the Olympic Mountains. The bowl-shaped site was mined for sand and gravel in the early 1900s and bought by King County in 1952 as a regional park, according to the city’s 2007 master plan for the park; the city took it over after incorporating in 1995. Today the city lists an off-leash dog area, a playground, two reservable picnic shelters, a terrace with a view, public art and trails.
Gardens and parks
The city’s parks team maintains 42 parks, along with the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden and the Interurban Trail. The garden began in 1958, when Dr. Art Kruckeberg and his wife Mareen moved to a farmhouse in Shoreline and started a naturalistic garden of Pacific Northwest natives and rare species. The garden counts more than 2,000 rare and native plants on four acres of woodland, with a nursery, ponds, sculpture and a redwood-and-copper play structure.
Echo Lake Park has open water access, paved trails and a playground. HistoryLink notes Echo Lake was a popular bathing beach from 1916 to 1966.
A stop called Ronald
HistoryLink writes that homesteaders arrived in the 1880s, and the Great Northern line through the area was finished in 1891. The Interurban followed, with electric trains running between Everett and Tacoma by 1910. Judge James Ronald gave the line a right-of-way and asked to name his station “Evanor,” after his daughters; the Interurban’s builder renamed it Ronald instead. Shoreline incorporated in 1995. The Shoreline Historical Museum documents the history of Shoreline, Lake Forest Park and north Seattle; check its site for visiting information.
Living here
Between the beach at Richmond Beach and two Link stations, Shoreline mixes saltwater weekends with an easy train ride. Chase Hedin is a Managing Broker who works out of Woodinville. Weighing Shoreline against Lake Forest Park or Seattle, or planning a sale? Reach out anytime. Start a conversation · What’s my home worth?