Judy Runstad Named the 87th Recipient of the Seattle King County First Citizen Award
March 17, 2025
Prominent attorney and civic activist Judy Runstad has been selected 2025 Seattle King County First Citizen. The widely recognized community philanthropist is the 87th recipient of the prestigious annual award.
This year’s honoree is vice chair of Wright Runstad and Company and recently retired from Foster Garvey PC after 45 years of practice. She will be honored at a civic banquet on May 8 in Bellevue.
Runstad, a highly respected attorney in the areas of real estate development and land use and environmental law, helped craft the state’s Growth Management Act. She was the 2010 recipient of the UW School of Law Women’s Caucus Distinguished Alumna Award and is a University of Washington Legend. In 2010 she was one of the Puget Sound Business Journal’s Women of Influence.
“Like those who preceded her as First Citizens, Judy Runstad exemplifies the high qualities of leadership, selflessness and philanthropy,” said Garrett Nelson, president of Seattle King County REALTORS®, the organization that founded the award in 1939.
“Judy has been at the vanguard of Seattle’s explosive growth and is a key visionary making Seattle a center of international commerce and culture,” said Michael Callahan, UW head men’s rowing coach. “Her investment in the city’s built environment has changed the way we all experience the Northwest. Her ultimate gift is nurturing people who are shapers of the community, and who ensure her legacy of bold vision and service continues,” he added.
“Judy has demonstrated a tireless commitment to Seattle and to downtown that has spanned four decades.”
—Jon Scholes, Downtown Seattle Association President & CEO
First Citizen Runstad was very active in civic matters throughout her career, and she continues her involvement in retirement. She serves on the Seattle Symphony Board, and the advisory boards of Year Up Puget Sound, and the Runstad Department of Real Estate at the University of Washington.
“When considering past recipients of the Seattle King County First Citizen Award, adding Judy Runstad to this distinguished group is about as logical as it gets. Judy has demonstrated a tireless commitment to Seattle and to downtown that has spanned four decades,” exclaimed Downtown Seattle Association (DSA) President & CEO Jon Scholes. “Whether it be adding to our signature skyline and shaping how our city has grown, championing Washington state by serving on six gubernatorial commissions or providing her time to community and volunteer roles, like serving as chair of our board of directors, Judy’s impact has made an indelible impression on our city to the benefit of us all.”
On the philanthropy front, Runstad works diligently on development campaigns for the University of Washington and Seattle Symphony. She has served as chair of the King County United Way Campaign. In 2001, a cornerstone gift from Judy and her late husband Jon, a respected real estate developer, created the Department of Real Estate at the University of Washington, now named in their honor.
In 2020, the Runstads received the Puget Sound Business Journal’s CRE Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognizes the recipients’ role “in shaping spaces through innovative approaches to design, sustainability, financial tools or community impact.”
In an interview with the PSBJ upon receiving the award, H. Jon Runstad, who died in 2023, said, “Philanthropy is just in our bones. . . If people feel comfortable, happy, and even inspired by their physical surroundings, they will be contributing members of society.” Judy Runstad added, “Jon and I both come from families where community service and leadership were emphasized. We were taught not to be observers but to be doers.”
Rachel Smith, president and CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, said she counts Judy Runstad as a mentor, friend, “and partner in crime.” She is “beyond deserving of the First Citizen award because the Puget Sound region simply wouldn’t be what it is today without Judy.” She described Judy as “many things to many people in our community – business executive, city builder, civic leader, political force of nature, and family matriarch – and no matter what role she is in, she is simply the very best,” adding, “She does it all with smarts, strategy, fierceness, and unapologetic drive, balanced with kindness, mentorship, support, and endless generosity.”
“Judy has been at the vanguard of Seattle’s explosive growth and is a key visionary making Seattle a center of international commerce and culture.”
—Michael Callahan, Blake W. Nordstrom Head Rowing Coach at the University of Washington
Judy Runstad has served on numerous corporate and nonprofit boards and councils. The list includes Wells Fargo & Company, Potlatch Corporation, SAFECO Corporation, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Puget Power (now PSE), and Washington Competitiveness Council. She received a 2007 Corporate Director of the Year award from the Seattle-Northwest Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).
Among nonprofits and community organizations, she has served on the boards (chairing several of them) at ACT Theatre, the Downtown Seattle Association, the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Tomorrow, Seattle Alliance for Education, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Foundation, Seattle Repertory Theatre, and Seattle University.
In the legal arena, her activities have included the American Bar Association’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section and its State and Local Government Section, and various leadership roles with the Washington State Bar Association.
Just as impressive is her list of honors and awards from a wide range of professional, academic, and civic organizations.
Runstad has two degrees from the University of Idaho plus an honorary doctorate, and a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law where she served as executive editor of the Law Review. She is an inductee of the University of Idaho’s Hall of Fame and past recipient of UW’s Distinguished Alumna Award.
The longtime proponent of the built environment has extensive experience representing clients in the areas of growth management, zoning, shoreline management, and regulatory matters. She served on the Kingdome Stadium Task Force and under Governor Gary Locke served on the state’s Growth Strategies Commission.
Runstad once said her greatest career accomplishment was leading the land use team for Paul and Jody Allen for the development of CenturyLink Stadium (now Lumen Field). She also cites work on Wright Runstad’s Rainier Square and Spring District developments.
In 2018, when reflecting on their work as a couple, Jon Runstad said, “Life is about teamwork -- any way you cut it,” and “You have to lead by example.” He also stated, “We have helped shape cities. That is very gratifying.”
“She does it all with smarts, strategy, fierceness, and unapologetic drive, balanced with kindness, mentorship, support, and endless generosity.”
—Rachel Smith, Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce President & CEO
About the First Citizen Award
The Seattle King County First Citizen Award salutes “giving back” whether by “time, treasure or talent” and civic engagement that enhances the region’s quality of life. Past recipients hail from both the public and private sectors, ranging from humanitarian groups, corporations, charitable, health and educational institutions, to various arts, environmental, and civic organizations. (See complete list of First Citizens).
Since its inception in 1939, the First Citizen Award, believed to be this region’s oldest such recognition, continues to celebrate community leadership and engagement, volunteerism, and public service.