Published November 22 2024

Plus, electric vehicle roadmap, smart communities awards and proclamations for transgender awareness and road traffic victims remembrance

The City Council unanimously approved the 2025-2026 Operating Budget and 2025-2030 Capital Improvement Plans as lights in Council Chambers flickered and a bomb cyclone moved through the area Tuesday night.

After three public hearings and several presentations over the past four months about various aspects of the $1.86 billion budget, the council received a final presentation on the overall budget, including 14 pieces of legislation to adopt the package. This included allocations for Community Development Block Grants, Human Services funding, water, stormwater and sewer rates, development services and school impact fees, and property tax adjustments, in addition to the CIP and other discrete budget items.

"This is a very balanced and prudent budget the council has approached with very good fiscal stewardship in mind," said City Manager Diane Carlson.

"You did a budget overhaul and reconciled our entire system in a way that made it much more accurate and realistic," added Mayor Lynne Robinson upon adoption. "We are lucky to have a flat budget and I feel like it's…responsive and its responsible."

Further detail is available in the meeting materials and the full presentation and discussion can be found on Bellevue Television's replay of the meeting.

Electric vehicle roadmap

The council also received an overview of the recently completed Bellevue Electric Vehicle Roadmap (EV Roadmap) and Electric Vehicle Readiness (EV Readiness) options, which staff began working on in late 2023, based on actions established in the current Sustainable Bellevue Plan.

Council expressed appreciation for the thorough update and added several questions for staff to explore at a future presentation.

The EV Roadmap guides city strategy and investment in electric vehicle infrastructure. Key strategies from the EV Roadmap include building private sector partnerships, increasing community awareness of financial incentives, exploring code and policy changes, and creating resources and incentives to expand charging access in multifamily buildings.

EV readiness will be discussed further in future council meetings. More detail on this week's introduction can be found in the meeting materials.

Governor's Smart Communities Awards

In other business, the council received two Governor's Smart Communities Awards. Presented annually since 2006, the Governor's Smart Communities Awards recognize local governments and their partners for exceptional land use planning and development.

Bellevue was recognized for its Housing Stability Program, under the Smart Housing Strategies category, which recognizes creative plans, policies, programs and actions. The Housing Stability Program is a revenue program developed to generate capital and operational support for projects serving the city's most vulnerable residents along with funding for behavioral support services critical to stable living.

In partnership with King County, the city also received a Judge's Merit Award for the Eastrail Wilburton Framework Plan, a unique trail-oriented development guide featured as an important part of the growth strategy for Wilburton. Working with King County Parks, the city created a roadmap for a 100-foot-wide linear park and trail through the heart of one of the fastest growing areas in the Puget Sound region.

Bellevue was one of only two cities to receive two awards, underscoring the city's commitment to effective implementation of the state's Growth Management Act. Full details are available in the meeting materials.

Proclamations issued for key recognition occasions

The council proclaimed Nov.13-19 as Transgender Awareness Week and Nov. 20 as Transgender Day of Remembrance for trans victims of violence. Nov. 17 was proclaimed as World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.