Leavenworth and Icicle Creek

Leavenworth Washington is located in Chelan County between Stevens Pass and Cashmere at an elevation of 1171 feet where Icicle Creek enters the Wenatchee River. According to the U.S. Census in 2020, Leavenworth had a population of 2263 people. The greater Leavenworth area, encompassed by the 98826 zip code, includes Lake Wenatchee and the Chumstick Valley and the communities of Plain, Merritt, and Coles Corner. While the Leavenworth zip code is quite large, the city limits of Leavenworth are much smaller.

History of Leavenworth

The town of Leavenworth developed alongside the Great Northern Railway that crossed the Cascade Mountains at Stevens Pass. After the completion of the railroad in 1893, local landowner Charles Leavenworth laid out streets next to the new tracks. By 1903, Leavenworth Washington was home to the second biggest sawmill in the state of Washington. In 1906, Leavenworth officially incorporated as a city.

Eventually the railroad moved from Tumwater Canyon to the Chumstick Canyon to avoid the avalanches common in the area and the railroad left downtown Leavenworth too. Both mining and logging industries were in decline and Leavenworth began to lose its luster. Project LIFE (Leavenworth Improvement For Everyone) decided that the future of Leavenworth was tourism. Since Leavenworth’s mountain scenery was so reminiscent of the Alps, a Bavarian theme was adopted by the community in the early 1960s.

Leavenworth now attracts over 1 million visitors from all over the world. It hosts one of the biggest Oktoberfest celebrations outside of Munich each year. The Christmas Lighting festival brings national attention with A+E naming Leavenworth Washington “Holiday Town USA” and Good Morning America making regular appearances.

Leavenworth Washington Homes for Sale

The city of Leavenworth is intersected by Highway 2 running from Tumwater Canyon east towards Wenatchee. The commercial zone is located along the highway and to the south. If you are looking for Leavenworth condominium to purchase and use as a short term rental, this commercial zone should be the area of your focus. Condominiums situated north of Highway 2 are almost certainly zoned for residential use and not commercial use. These condos cannot be used as vacation rentals.

Most of the homes for sale within the Leavenworth city limits are north of Highway 2, but there are some neighborhoods south as well. Older homes in the city limits on smaller building lots often are the most affordable Leavenworth WA homes for sale.

Much of the new home construction is occurring in newer neighborhoods on lower Ski Hill. This would include houses on the north side of Pine Street and on Pinegrass. These properties are conveniently located close to the new Alpine Lakes Elementary School and not far from Icicle River Middle School and Cascade High School.

Residential neighborhoods near the city limits include Ski Hill, Eagle Creek, and Fox Road. Headed out Icicle Road, popular locations include Wilson, Shore and Prowell Streets as well as East Leavenworth Road or Dempsey Road. Outside of the city limits, Leavenworth homes often are built on lot size of one to two acres and many have spectacular mountain views of Wedge Mountain or Sleeping Lady. View homes on large lots are often some of the most desireable Leavenworth WA homes for sale.

Leavenworth Washington Schools

Cascade School District: The schools in the Leavenworth/Lake Wenatchee area belong to the Cascade School District. There are three elementary schools, one middle and one high school.

Elementary Schools:

• Peshastin/Dryden Elementary (K-2) -located on School Rd. in Peshastin, WA. This school has started an exciting new program called FLEX-Foreign Language Exposure Program where children are exposed to Spanish at an early age.
• Alpine Lakes Elementary (3-5) -located in Leavenworth, WA.
• Beaver Valley Elementary (K-5) -located in Plain, WA. This school covers the surrounding areas of Plain and Lake Wenatchee.

Middle School: Icicle River Middle School (6-8) -located in Leavenworth, WA. Alpine Lakes and Beaver Valley Elementary feed into this middle school.

High School: Cascade High School -located in Leavenworth, WA.