Roosevelt, Seattle
Roosevelt is a neighborhood in northern Seattle, Washington. Its main thoroughfare, originally 10th Avenue, was renamed Roosevelt Way upon Theodore Roosevelt's death in 1919. The neighborhood received the name as the result of a Community Club contest held eight years later, in 1927.
Roosevelt's principal and minor arterials are the one-way pair Roosevelt Way and 12th Avenue NE, Lake City Way and 15th Avenue NE, and NE 65th and 75th Streets. City streets are laid out and designated in a pattern; see street layout of Seattle, directionals.
The boundaries of the neighborhood are Interstate 5 to the west, beyond which lies Green Lake; NE Ravenna Boulevard and NE 60th Street to the south, beyond which is the University District; 15th Avenue NE to the east, beyond which is Ravenna; and Lake City Way to the north, beyond which lies Maple Leaf.
History
The Roosevelt neighborhood was annexed to Seattle in 1891, but development remained sparse until the early 20th century. In its early years, the area was informally called the "Hollywood District", but it was officially renamed Roosevelt in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt. After Roosevelt's death in 1919, Seattle renamed 10th Avenue NE as Roosevelt Way NE, and the new high school was dedicated as Roosevelt [High School (Seattle)|Roosevelt High School]. A community club–sponsored contest in 1927 then adopted “Roosevelt” as the neighborhood's name, replacing the Hollywood moniker. Notably, Ravenna Park was also briefly renamed "Roosevelt Park" from 1919 to 1931, until local protests restored the original name.During the 1920s, Roosevelt developed rapidly into a busy residential and commercial district. A thriving business strip grew along Roosevelt Way NE as the automobile age arrived. The Hollywood Theater opened in 1923 at NE 66th Street, amid this period of “tremendous growth” in the area. On January 1, 1928, Sears, Roebuck & Co. opened a North Seattle department store at Roosevelt Way and NE 65th Street, anchoring the retail core. This Sears store operated for the next 52 years. By the end of the 1920s, most of the neighborhood's present single‑family homes and low‑rise buildings had been constructed.
Following World War II, the neighborhood's population and housing density increased as University of Washington faculty, staff, and students settled in Roosevelt. The construction of Interstate 5 in the early 1960s cut along Roosevelt's western edge, establishing a firm boundary with the Green Lake area. Traditional retail shifted in the late 20th century: the Roosevelt Way Sears store closed in January 1980, and its building was later redeveloped as the Roosevelt Square shopping center. By the 1970s–1990s, the business district took on an eclectic character, including a cluster of alternative bookstores and holistic health shops that a local writer dubbed Seattle's "Metaphysical Belt."
In the early 21st century, major planning efforts and infrastructure projects brought significant changes. In the 2000s, Roosevelt community activists—embracing a "Yes In My Front Yard" motto—successfully lobbied Sound Transit to site a planned light rail station in the neighborhood's center rather than alongside I‑5. To prepare for transit‑oriented growth, the Seattle City Council approved a comprehensive rezoning of Roosevelt in January 2012, allowing mid‑rise buildings up to about 65 feet near the future station. While many residents supported the light‑rail project, some advocated lower height limits to preserve sight‑lines of the high school's historic façade.