Medina

Located on the West end of Bellevue, and just across the lake from Seattle, Medina makes up a large part of the Lake Washington waterfront, while having just over 3,000 total residents. The Lake Washington waterfront in Medina is nicknamed “Medina’s Gold Coast”, and is some of the most sought after waterfront in the Pacific Northwest. Medina today is a small, very quiet, very private community. Medina’s schools are part of the larger City of Bellevue School District, which is one of the top ranking and award winning school districts in the nation. The City takes safety and security seriously, with highly visible police officers using current technology to create and maintain a safe small town community.

History
Named in 1891 after the city of Medina in Saudi Arabia, Medina was platted in 1914 and officially incorporated on August 19, 1955. In 1891, T.L. Dabney built the first landing in Medina on what later became known as Dabney Point. The landing was across from the Leschi Park landing and it became the main crossing point for settlers to enter “the Points Country”. As the community around the landing began to grow, local residents wanted to give it a distinct name. A community meeting was held and three women were appointed to select a name for the community. Flora Belote’s choice was the name selected. She had decided on the name “Medeena”, after the Arabian city. Dabney was offended, he wanted it named “Floridine”. Dabney built a large sign that said “Floridine” and placed it in the water beside his landing. The next evening when he came home from working in Seattle, he found his sign had been replaced by a “Medeena” sign. He promptly took it down and put his sign back up. This feud continued for several days, with Dabney replacing the “Medeena” sign each evening when he would return from work. The ladies prevailed. Dabney eventually tired and left the “Medeena” sign up

More Information can be found at MedinaWA.gov

Additional Area Photos