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Transformation of Downtown Bellevue
Colly Radford introduced the main event, Matt Terry, from the City of Bellevue.
Since 1980, Matt has rebuilt the Planning, Permitting, Code Enforcement, and Neighborhood Improvement Departments within the City of Bellevue.
Matt did not need to state that we are in an economic downturn and that, within the City of Bellevue, there is a 26%-30% vacancy rate. He pointed out, however, that for the first few years of the 1990’s, new construction in Bellevue averaged approximately $250 million. But, through the years 1996-2001, that figure shot up to $500 million per year and brought the beginning of the transformation of Downtown Bellevue.
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Acting President John DeWater (L) thanks Matt Terry for his presentation.
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Matt pointed out a number of recent projects which have changed the feel and the look of Downtown Bellevue, including the Pacifica Building, Three Bellevue Center, the Hines Project, Galleria, Bellevue Art Museum, Lincoln Center, Technology Tower, the Summit Project, and Bellevue Square expansion; this in addition to a residential development which has brought 3,500 new units of residential space within the last ten years, with 10,000 units projected within the next 10 years. Much of this is complemented by public spaces. For instance, a substantial amount of it is oriented to the main park in Bellevue.
What does the picture look like for the next 20 years? Matt indicated that significant interchange work is going on in the I-405 corridor and that just this week, the new transportation center opened in downtown Bellevue. A number of potential changes are being considered, including the possibility of one-way streets.
Matt could not avoid dealing with some significant troubled projects. For instance, the Technology Tower, which is nothing but a hole in the ground, presents a potential risk to the surrounding streets and properties, since the construction shoring was not meant to be permanent. The City is working with the developer to at least complete the parking area and get the project built to street level.
The Summit Project, a two-building development, has resolved itself. The first building was completed and the second building was stopped after three stories, with the potential of completing it in the future when the economy turns.
The largest troubled project is Lincoln Square. Not only was this the largest construction project in Bellevue, but it was one of the largest in the western United States. The original plan was for two towers, which would integrate a major hotel, condominium space, office space, and significant retail space, built as an integrated package.
The parking garage has been completed with 3,000 stalls in it. The developer is now redefining the project to be built in three phases. The first will be the south tower, including the hotel and residential space. That is scheduled to restart in the first part of 2003 and be completed by December 2004.
The second phase will be the completion of the retail space, which is planned to be restarted in late-Summer 2003. The north tower, including the office space, is still a question mark.
For his presentation, Matt Terry was given a certificate indicating a donation has been made in his name for 240 doses of polio vaccine in Rotary’s battle to eradicate the disease by 2005.
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