The Bellevue City Council on Dec. 2 unanimously approved contracts and preliminary funding steps to advance a planned police training facility that city staff say will expand local training capabilities.

Council approved a professional services agreement with Stanley J Howe Architects not to exceed $131,500 to produce architectural plans and engineering coordination for the project, and separately approved a professional services agreement with JEO Consulting Group for engineering services not to exceed $54,010. Both motions passed with unanimous council votes.

Police Chief Ken Clary told the council the department currently trains at a leased outdoor range near Harlem Lewis but "we could lose that lease at any time," making a permanent site a priority. He said the city has roughly $556,000 in Capital Improvement Program (CIP) funds dedicated to preliminary work on the training site, including dirt work, utilities and concrete, and that the budgeted sum would cover the current design-phase contracts.

Clary described the planned complex as "state of the art. It is 3 different ranges: 1 for static shooting for qualification shoots, standing on the line shooting approximately 24 lanes which is about twice our current capacity, and then we'll have a dynamic range where you'll be able to move and shoot around obstacles like vehicles," and an adjacent 400-meter rifle range that he said "there's nothing like it in the region." He said the city hopes to secure further funding next year to build an indoor training building to accompany the outdoor ranges.

Council members asked about timeline and where current training occurs; Clary said staff signed a one-year lease for 2026 while the site is built out and described the staged approach: site work now, building later. The council approved the contracts and the related budget authority to proceed with the design and preliminary work.

Next steps: architects and engineers will complete design and coordination work; staff said they will return to council with future requests for construction funding and schedule details.