Redwood City has been the county seat since San Mateo County was formed in 1856, and it was the first city in the county to incorporate, in 1867. About eighty-four thousand people live there now, across a city that runs from the bay up toward the Santa Cruz Mountains.
The arches over Broadway read "Climate Best By Government Test", which is the best-known thing about the town and not quite what it sounds like. The slogan won a Chamber of Commerce contest in 1925; the winner, Wilbur Doxsee, took a ten-dollar prize, and when he was later asked how he knew, he said he had made it up. Treat it as civic folklore, which is how the city treats it.
Downtown was rebuilt deliberately and it worked: the History Museum opened in the 1910 courthouse in 1999, the Fox Theatre reopened in 2001, and Courthouse Square and a twenty-screen cinema arrived in 2006 — the courthouse dome is lit at night and changes color every eleven seconds. The Port of Redwood City, in use since 1851, is the only deep-water port in the South Bay. Stanford opened a 35-acre campus here in 2019 with some 2,700 staff, and Electronic Arts and Box are both headquartered in the city. Oracle was headquartered in Redwood Shores until 2020 and still has a large campus there.
Redwood Shores is worth understanding separately. It is part of Redwood City, built from the 1960s on reclaimed bay marshland with its own lagoons, and it has its own ZIP, 94065, and its own elementary district — Belmont–Redwood Shores rather than Redwood City. You also cannot drive from Redwood Shores to the rest of the city without passing through San Carlos or Belmont.
Photo: Coolcaesar, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Redwood City, in the questions people ask us.
Is Redwood Shores part of Redwood City?
Yes, though it works differently: it is on reclaimed bay land with its own lagoons and its own ZIP code, 94065, and its elementary and middle schools are in the Belmont–Redwood Shores district rather than Redwood City's. You also have to drive through San Carlos or Belmont to get to the rest of the city.
Is Emerald Hills in Redwood City?
Not officially. Emerald Lake Hills is unincorporated San Mateo County, as are Palomar Park, Kensington Square and North Fair Oaks. The addresses look like Redwood City and the services are not the city's — it matters for taxes, permits and policing, so check before you assume.
Is there really a ferry to San Francisco?
Not yet. A terminal is proposed off Seaport Boulevard and is still in environmental review, with San Francisco Bay Ferry to run it if it happens. There is no opening date, so do not buy on the strength of it. Caltrain, at 1 James Avenue, is the commute that exists today.
Which high school will my children attend?
One of the Sequoia Union High School District's — Carlmont, Menlo-Atherton, Sequoia or Woodside. The district assigns by attendance boundary, so confirm the exact address with them rather than trusting a map online.
I have held a California real estate license since 1989, and in that time the Bay Area has changed almost beyond recognition. What has not changed is how a good move happens: through someone who knows the neighbourhoods, knows the people, and can make the right introduction at the right moment. I call myself a real estate consultant as well as an agent because most of the job is advice — when to sell, what to fix, which town suits the way you live — and the connections I have made since 1989 are there to be used for my clients.
A consultant, an agent and a connector.
Marisa Roman Wachhorst
