Good morning. Five minutes on what moved in Bellevue this week, one item for your own neighborhood, the market in three numbers, and one practical thing for the house.
Bellevue this week
Council has the ten-year street list, and a sales tax and car-tab fee could pay for more of it. At Tuesday's budget session, staff laid out three scenarios for 2027–2036 transportation projects. The first uses existing revenue ($294 million). The second adds a 0.1% sales tax through the Transportation Benefit District (about $11 million a year, $398 million in all). The third also adds a $20 vehicle fee, which raises another $2 million a year for neighborhood projects ($418 million in all). Next: October 13 (utility rates), a hearing on October 27, and adoption on November 17. Source
Fourteen speed cameras by year-end. Council has authorized 14 cameras, and the city says all of them will be in place by the end of 2026. The proposed budget pays for running the program out of the program's own revenue. Source
Bellevue residents aged 15 to 24 can get up to $5,000 for a climate project. Teams of at least two people apply, the work has to happen in Bellevue, and it has to be finished by March 30, 2027. Applications are due November 5. Source
The Network on Aging has open seats. Members serve three-year terms and give 6 to 12 hours a month. You qualify if you live in Bellevue, work here or serve older adults here. Apply by October 23. Source
The 2 Line has a new stop. Pinehurst Station, at 130th Street and 5th Avenue NE in North Seattle, opened September 30, five years ahead of its original schedule. Source
Your neighborhood
Bridle Trails. Two projects on the city's ten-year transportation list are funded in all three budget scenarios. A sidewalk on NE 40th Street from 140th to 148th Avenue NE would be built in full, at $6.2 million. Crosswalks and speed reduction on 132nd Avenue NE near Bridle Trails would get design money only, $150,000. Source
Sold near you: 7 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $2.25M (range $1.50M to $6.00M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 57 days.
BelRed. Wright Runstad's request to turn the Spring District's north blocks from office into housing went to a virtual public meeting Wednesday night. Comments are accepted until the city issues a decision, so there is still time to weigh in: file 26-120531-LP, planner Jim Harris, [email protected]. Separately, the scenarios council saw Tuesday differ on Spring Boulevard between 124th and 130th Avenues NE. The base budget pays for part of construction ($38 million), and the sales-tax scenarios complete it ($74.8 million). Meeting notice · Scenarios
Sold near you: 10 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.31M (range $490K to $1.90M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 42 days.
Cougar Mountain/Lakemont. Two Lakemont Boulevard intersections are funded in all three budget scenarios. Forest Drive gets a new traffic signal ($4.4 million). Newport Way gets intersection improvements: $5.04 million in the base budget, $5.46 million if the sales tax passes. Source
Sold near you: 11 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.70M (range $825K to $3.08M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 11 days.
Crossroads. Corridor safety improvements on 156th Avenue NE from NE 8th to NE 24th Street is partly funded in every scenario, at $5.2 million. Improvements at the 148th Avenue NE and NE 8th Street intersection are not in the base budget. The sales-tax scenario funds part of construction ($4.55 million), and the scenario that adds the vehicle fee completes it ($10.5 million). Source
Sold near you: 18 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $975K (range $250K to $2.75M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 21 days.
Downtown. Schnitzer West's long-pending Arcadian design review, at 120 106th Avenue NE (filed in 2022), will now be reviewed under the city's newer mixed-use housing code (Ordinance 6906). The city has not decided the application yet. File 22-113780-LD. The proposed budget also includes $3 million to run paid on-street parking Downtown and on some BelRed and Wilburton streets. Permit · Budget
Sold near you: 25 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.40M (range $410K to $5.60M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 3 days.
Eastgate. Two projects are funded in all three budget scenarios. Improvements at the interchange of 150th Avenue SE, SE 37th Street and the eastbound I-90 off-ramp are funded in full ($1.64 million). The Bellevue College Connection gets design money ($2.64 million). The Eastgate neighborhood plan is still scheduled for council on November 10. Source
Sold near you: 21 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.17M (range $600K to $3.55M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 14 days.
Factoria. Council's consent agenda Tuesday included a three-year lease extension, through July 2029, for the police community substation at Factoria Mall. The city has had a substation there since 1997. Rent starts at $1,632 a month and rises 4% a year. On the ten-year list, improvements at the Factoria Boulevard and SE 38th Street intersection are funded in all three scenarios ($5.6 million). Lease · Scenarios
Sold near you: 15 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.00M (range $413K to $2.80M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 19 days.
Lake Hills. The city approved, with conditions, a short plat at 1050 168th Avenue SE that splits a 0.47-acre lot with a steep slope into two residential lots. The appeal period ends at 5 p.m. October 14 (file 24-123982-LN). Speed reduction on Lake Hills Boulevard from 156th to 164th Avenue SE is funded only in the scenario that adds the $20 vehicle fee ($500,000). Permit · Scenarios
Sold near you: 24 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.01M (range $474K to $3.55M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 19 days.
Newport. Two speed-reduction projects are funded in all three budget scenarios, at $200,000 each: 116th Avenue SE south of SE 60th Street, and 124th Avenue SE north of Coal Creek Parkway. Source
Sold near you: 15 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.23M (range $325K to $2.00M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 19 days.
Northeast Bellevue. Corridor safety improvements on 164th Avenue NE from Northup Way to NE 30th Street are funded in every scenario ($4.3 million). So are the crosswalk upgrades at NE 28th Street and Bel-Red Road, and at NE 24th Street and 171st Avenue NE. The base budget funds part of the crosswalk construction ($1.8 million); the sales-tax scenarios complete it ($2 million). Source
Sold near you: 17 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $950K (range $250K to $2.75M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 21 days.
Northwest Bellevue. The Hearing Examiner has recommended approving the Bellewood Townhomes rezone. It would lift a 1976 zoning agreement so the 1978 office buildings at 2229 and 2233 112th Avenue NE, near NE 24th Street, can be replaced with 42 townhomes. Council took it up Tuesday, and its final vote is tentatively set for October 20. Source
Sold near you: 12 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.81M (range $288K to $6.00M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 34 days.
Somerset. Pedestrian improvements on Somerset Drive are on the ten-year list, but only in the scenario that adds the $20 vehicle fee ($2 million). They are not in the base budget or the sales-tax-only scenario. Source
Sold near you: 17 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.73M (range $413K to $3.25M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 19 days.
West Bellevue. A rebuild of the Lake Washington Boulevard and NE 10th Street intersection is funded in all three scenarios ($7 million). An upgrade of the NE 8th Street and 92nd Avenue NE signal is funded only if the sales tax passes ($2 million). The Meydenbauer South Reservoir community meeting is tonight, 6:30 to 8 p.m., City Hall Room 1E-108. Source
Sold near you: 19 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.40M (range $410K to $5.60M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 3 days.
West Lake Sammamish. Phase 3 of West Lake Sammamish Parkway is completed in every scenario ($29 million). Phase 4 gets part of its construction money: $15 million in the base budget, $17.7 million with the sales tax. A sidewalk on SE 34th Street from 162nd Place SE to the parkway gets design money only in the base budget ($1.35 million) and is built in the sales-tax scenarios ($7.73 million). Source
Sold near you: 4 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $2.43M (range $1.55M to $2.97M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 31 days.
Wilburton. The Grand Connection Crossing over I-405 now has an updated cost: $265.5 million, up from the $175 million to $230 million range on the project page last week. The city plans to start construction in late 2027 or early 2028 and finish by 2031. General contractor Kraemer North America is on board, and the tax-increment district that will help pay for it has been set up. Source
Sold near you: 22 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.63M (range $550K to $5.00M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 22 days.
Woodridge. Multimodal improvements on SE 8th Street, from 112th Avenue SE to the Lake Hills Connector, are partly funded in the base budget ($18.5 million) and completed in the sales-tax scenarios ($24.2 million). Intersection work where the Lake Hills Connector meets SE 8th Street is funded in all three scenarios ($6 million). Source
Sold near you: 11 homes closed within a mile of the neighborhood center in the last 45 days, median $1.57M (range $605K to $2.20M); the fastest went from listing to closing in 26 days.
The market in 60 seconds
Three numbers from the live sales data behind the monthly Bellevue market report: the median sold price is $1.48M, the median home takes 58 days from listing to closing, and there are 5.3 months of inventory at the current pace. Under three months favors sellers and above six favors buyers. After three pulls above six (5.9, 6.8, 7.0), Bellevue moved back below that line. More homes closed and fewer were for sale: closings in the trailing 30 days rose from 99 to 124, and active listings fell from 692 to 658. Each sale took longer, though: 58 days, up from 49. Single-family homes are tighter, at 4.5 months. Bellevue market report #market · What would yours sell for? #value
One useful thing: know the tree rules before the windstorms
In Bellevue, a significant tree is at least 6 inches across, measured 4.5 feet above the ground, and a landmark tree is at least 24 inches. On a single-family lot with no construction underway, removing either kind takes a Tree Removal Only permit through MyBuildingPermit.com. Lot size sets how many can come down in twelve months without replanting: one landmark or two significant trees on lots up to 10,000 square feet, and up to four significant trees on larger lots. Pruning less than 25% of a tree's live branches and leaves needs no permit. Rules · Permit
That's the week. Reply with anything you want tracked in Bellevue, and if a neighbor would read it, forward it. Next Thursday: the October 13 budget session, where utility rates come up.
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The Bellevue Dispatch is a RexMont Real Estate publication. Adriano Tori, Designated Broker. Reply to this email and a person reads it.