I'm on my second dose of Pfizer today and so far (knocks on wood) feeling fine, so I'll be trying to livetweet tonight's Bellevue City Council meeting. Topics this evening include the Amazon donation I mentioned a while back & Grand Connection planning discussions.
Conversation
On the Consent Calendar today (and thus not up for discussion) are three contracts the city is entering with three different engineering firms "to provide on-call services to the City of Bellevue to support the advancement of New Mobility technology projects."
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These three items advance parts of the City's 2018 Smart Mobility Plan. Council will also be receiving an informational update this evening on that plan, as well as other updates on curb, traffic, and data management initiatives.
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We're back from Executive Session, and all CMs are present for tonight's meeting.
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After a commendation of a long-time City employee who is now retiring, the Council has approved tonight's agenda with an additional amendment to add a resolution to the end of tonight's meeting. Not sure what that will be at this time.
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BDA representative speaking on the org's support of the Grand Connection design guidelines that will be discussed later this evening. Also wants the City to explore approaches to actually completing the corridor, especially for properties not currently planning on redeveloping.
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Rep from Amazon now speaking about the company's donation that I reported on earlier this week. I thought the $1 million to the Human Services fund was what was donated in September 2020, but this actually is an additional amount to last year's funding.
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NEW - in addition to $1 million donation to Bellevue's Human Services fund that was announced back in September, Amazon will donate $439k towards neighborhood enhancement programs and park improvement projects within the city. Projects listed below.
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Moved on to the Grand Connection Design Guidelines. These will be planning code amendments and aesthetic guidelines for projects and redevelopments that are conducted along the GC corridor.
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Planning Commission Chair Moolgavkar outlining the engagement process around these guidelines, which will be incorporated into the city's Land Use code. The community supported wayfinding elements & design elements that reflect Bellevue's diversity.
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1 nebulous thing is that the GC is less of a "project" and more of a "vision" - today's discussion focuses on just 1 piece of that vision. Not a lot of concrete projects to point to right now as being *the* GC, but all these things provide framework to realize the GC's potential.
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The City has been engaging stakeholders over a complicated year-long process but staff have arrived at solutions they think will really activate pedestrian space and mesh well with the architectural design of new developments, such as Amazon's new Bellevue 600 north of BTC.
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So what's actually being done this evening? The proposed LUCA would add design guidelines on public spaces and corridors along the GC. It also cements the idea of different "rooms" along the corridor - consistent elements across a particular section, separated from other "rooms".
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Maps of aforementioned rooms. Each of these will have slightly different design elements to make them unique amongst each other.
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CM Barksdale supports the PC's recommendation & likes the rooms element which will provide "a rich & varied experience." Also emphasizing elements around diversity and safety that Council should maybe discuss to be brought back for a later meeting.
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Staff noting that there will be opportunities to come back and discuss placemaking opportunities, such as events, that can help better contribute to diverse communities using the space. Barksdale also notes the importance of public art in that discussion.
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CM Robertson supports this plan, but is emphasizing concerns raised by BDA's letter, is asking if staff can respond to their concerns. Staff will write a response, but had reviewed the letter before the meeting and felt that most concerns had been addressed in this LUCA.
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CM Stokes thinks that the challenge of integrating existing buildings with the new buildings presents an exciting opportunity aesthetically to create a cohesive design. Appreciates the artistic & cultural pieces and is excited to advance the LUCA.
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DM Nieuwenhuis asking which stakeholders beyond the BDA, Transpo Commission, PC, Library Board, etc. were involved in this process. In addition to nearby property owners, staff used public comments from the framework's development process (some from 3 years ago) for guidance.
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Nieuwenhuis now asking if the GC is still intended as a bikeable corridor or if emphasis is on walkability. Staff says GC will support low-speed bike access but is seeing the Downtown network (Lake to Lake, Main St, 108th, and others forthcoming) as serving higher-speed needs.
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CM Zahn has several questions, focusing around 1) electricity access for performers, 2) clarifying that there won't be driveways along the corridor, 3) confirming that stormwater design features are guidelines and not prescribed standards, 4) how micromobility would work on GC
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Large plazas will have lighting and electrical outlets to accommodate performances & more uses. Accessibility will be thought of as a core of the design rather than feeling like an ancillary afterthought. Micromobility is being thought more around the larger DT network.
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Driveways will still often need to persist on the sections along Bellevue Way, but the Plaza As Street section (where there is presently a small outlet from nearby parking lots) is what's being considered to minimize driveway/ped conflicts.
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Council approves a motion to move forward the LUCA for final action at a later meeting, and the motion carries unanimously.
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In a wholesomely funny moment, Mayor Robinson notes that she can't hear City Manager Miyake when Council's returned from break, only to realize that she hasn't put her headphones back in.
This may or may not have happened to me more than once over the past year. :D
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We're now moving on to the informational update on the transportation elements of the Bellevue Smart Cities plan. Numerous staff present this evening to discuss the readiness of the city for the eventual arrival of AVs in Bellevue, as well as using curb space more effectively.
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Bellevue's adoption of a Smart City plan in 2018 had six different elements, of which the Transportation one is being discussed this evening.
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Currently discussing how the City has reached near 100% traffic camera usage at signalized intersections around the city. Staff recently made all traffic cameras live and have facilitated sharing of information w/ other departments. Check out cameras here. trafficmap.bellevuewa.gov
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Staff reporting that changing the site from static images to live feed changed web traffic has helped increase usage by the general public. During the winter storms earlier this year, web traffic increased from a typical 150 users/day to 5k/day.
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Later this quarter, Bellevue will be starting an AV Strategic Vision to evaluate AV readiness and engage with local stakeholders on how to ready the city for what's previously been described as the "eventual" arrival of AVs.
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Crossroads Connect, a micromobility program to connect people with the RapidRide B line and Eastgate P&R, now also connects riders to vaccine sites. City saw 50% growth in ridership in low income & minority communities between March & April since adding this service.
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Staff will be seeking more funding to continue the pilot after funding runs out in August. A fancily-dressed is now discussing the city's curb management program & projects he managed over the last couple of years.
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COVID caused a large pivot in what the Smarts Cities Collaborative looked to accomplish, shifting the focus to more immediate need related to COVID. Bellevue's project is using various vendors' camera systems to analyze curbside usage and is verifying these systems' performance.
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The cities in this collaborative also worked on multiple guiding documents on how curb use should be decided. Check out more information here.
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