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Council starts BelRed "Look Forward" code amendments to implement adopted subarea policy changes
Summary
Council unanimously directed staff to begin a Land Use Code Amendment (LUCA) for BelRed to implement comprehensive-plan and subarea changes adopted in October, focusing on housing, arts district supports, stream restoration and multimodal streets.
The Bellevue City Council voted to initiate the BelRed Look Forward Land Use Code Amendment (LUCA) to implement policy updates the council adopted for the BelRed subarea.
Background and goals: Staff said the BelRed Look Forward LUCA implements changes from a 2024 comprehensive-plan/subarea update and aims to help meet city housing and job growth targets by enabling higher density around light-rail stations while also supporting arts, open space and stream rehabilitation. "We are planning for 35,000 housing units by the planning horizon, of which roughly 7,900 units would be planned for in BelRed in the next 20 years," staff said in the presentation.
Scope and priorities: The LUCA scope includes three principal topic areas: land use and housing (including exploring voluntary incentive-based and mandatory options for delivering affordable housing and coordinating transfer-of-development-rights options with King County); streets and streams (refining the BelRed street-implementation approach and strengthening incentives for stream daylighting); and arts and identity (reinforcing and incentivizing the BelRed Arts District through land-use tools and an amenity system).
Engagement and sequencing: Staff said they will build the LUCA using recent learnings from other TOD-area code updates (for example Wilburton), work with internal and external stakeholders, and present a draft in mid-2025 with Planning Commission review and public hearings to follow. Staff indicated opportunities to adapt components of the Wilburton LUCA and planned sequencing intended to return a recommendation to council by late 2025.
Council comments and priorities: Councilmembers urged staff to prioritize housing production while balancing preservation of small businesses and arts space, to maintain predictable rules for developers and to avoid duplicative programs across city initiatives. Councilmember Zahn asked that staff coordinate with the Triple C effort to ensure equity considerations are incorporated.
Council action: A motion to initiate the BelRed Look Forward LUCA passed unanimously by voice vote. Staff will proceed with stakeholder engagement and a draft code review process.
