Because Costco's Backyard Used to Be a Skydiving Strip
Why Issaquah? Because Costco's Backyard Used to Be a Skydiving Strip
Category: Local History (Bonus Post) | Suggested length: 700-800 words | Target reader: history-curious buyers and longtime residents
Here's a piece of local history most newcomers never hear.
From the early 1940s until 1987, a chunk of the Pickering family's dairy farm just north of what's now I-90 operated as a recreational airfield.
A Farm Turned Airfield
The field went through several names over the decades:
The Seattle Sky Ranch
Issaquah Airport
Eventually, the Issaquah Skyport
It became genuinely woven into local identity. Weekly air shows, gliding, ballooning, and one of the region's best-known skydiving centers all operated from this one patch of farmland. Old Issaquah T-shirts showed parachutes floating over the valley, a small detail that tells you how central the Skyport was to how the town saw itself.
The Fight to Save It
The Skyport closed for good in 1987, after a long, emotional battle between residents who wanted to save it and developers who wanted to build on it.
The developers won.
THen and Now
Seven years later, in 1994, Costco moved its corporate headquarters onto land right next door.
Today, the nine-story Costco headquarters tower that's visible from the freeway sits almost exactly where skydivers once floated down onto a grass runway. It's a striking bit of then-and-now for a city whose skyline has changed more than most people realize, and a piece of history that rarely comes up unless someone who's been here long enough tells you about it.
For Buyers & Sellers
This kind of story is exactly what separates a generic relocation pitch from one that actually captures a place. It costs nothing to mention in a conversation with a buyer, and it tends to be the detail people remember.
Want more stories like this one? This is a bonus post in our Why Issaquah? series; the main series continues to cover the neighborhoods, outdoor life, and community that make the city worth choosing today. Reach out to Kelly Azzarello Real Estate any time.