Bellevue City Council Meeting - October 20, 2026

The Bellevue City Council’s October 20, 2026 meeting included a study session on the preliminary 2027–28 budget and a parking-reform land use code amendment. On parking reform, council directed staff to finalize an ordinance for later action, with the quarter-mile BRT parking-reduction distance and elimination of residential visitor-parking minimums receiving majority support; the council also supported the staff recommendation on large-stall incentives and garage-clearance requirements. No contract awards or vendor selections were made. Council approved Ordinances 6944 and 6945 for two site-specific rezones, which were land-use actions rather than procurement decisions.

Budget discussion covered nearly $120 million for the Thriving People and Communities area and just under $500 million for the High-Quality Built and Natural Environments area for the biennium. Staff presented proposed development-services rate increases of about 9.25%–9.54%, with estimated total fee increases of roughly 6.2%–6.3% for example projects; these were discussed as part of the budget, not adopted as a procurement award. The preliminary budget includes a proposed $5 million, five-year partnership with Washington Builds for clean-energy financing—$1 million for residential heat-pump loan buy-downs and $4 million for a revolving commercial-building loan fund—and more than $7 million annually in human-services investments. Council gave staff direction to return with funding options for new children-and-families sales-tax revenue of just over $1 million annually, focusing on child care and early learning, family financial assistance and housing stability, and youth behavioral health, while considering food and basic-needs programs; no final allocation was made. Capital and program items discussed included park projects, a proposed aquatic center, and permitting and sustainability initiatives.