By Owen Rice

What was once a bedroom community on the eastside of Seattle’s Lake Washington, Bellevue has become the fifth largest city in the state and is a thriving hub for dynamic businesses. Bellevue has been rated amongst the top places for entrepreneurs to launch startups and most recently, Livability ranked Bellevue #10 on their 2018 Top 100 Best Places to Live list.

But what has caused the tremendous growth in this community? Here are three important factors that have heavily contributed to Bellevue’s booming success.

Business Landscape

Real estate developers and influential businesses in Bellevue have strategically created a Central Business District that feels like a big city in a flourishing neighborhood. There is no industrial transition zone between the business district and the neighborhoods, allowing many people to walk or ride their bikes to downtown from their homes. In just over a decade, Bellevue’s skyline has gone from that of an overlooked suburban area, to that of a typical large U.S. city, noticeable from the air as the second largest skyline in the Seattle area.

Vast Variety of Career Opportunities

The career choices for ambitious individuals range from working with small startups to Fortune 500 businesses. Bellevue is home to companies such as T-Mobile, SAP Concur, Symetra, Paccar, Eddie Bauer and Smartsheet. It is clear that companies are recognizing and taking advantage of the talent pool that resides in Bellevue. For example, in mid-2017, Amazon fully leased Centre 425, a recently finished 357,000-square foot office building in the core of downtown. Rumor has it that Amazon will also move into two more buildings, Tower 333 and Summit III, which total over 740,000 square feet. Aside from the Central Business District, the greater Bellevue area that extends to neighboring city, Redmond, hosts a large concentration of companies including Facebook and Microsoft’s headquarters. REI is also moving into Bellevue. Their new headquarters is currently under construction and scheduled to deliver in the first quarter of 2020. It will be located in the new Spring District directly east of downtown Bellevue, which is also home to the Global Innovation Exchange and will include a new Sound Transit East Link Light Rail Station connecting Bellevue with Downtown Seattle and the Sea-Tac Airport.

Outstanding Quality of Life

Aside from the dynamic businesses, the growing city offers an outstanding quality of life. Bellevue is an outdoor enthusiast’s heaven; there are over 100 parks maintained by the city and it is surrounded by Lake Washington, Lake Sammamish and the Cascade Mountain Range. In the spring, summer and fall, the Bellevue Farmers Market supports local farmers and provides residents with a great platform for community. Cultural venues sprawl throughout the city ranging from the Bellevue Art Museum to local cultural centers. Bellevue recently announced the development of the Tateuchi Center in downtown, a 2,000-seat concert hall combining music, dance and theatre scheduled to deliver in 2020. The Bellevue School District, which has 27 K-12 schools, has been ranked by notable publications as some of the best schools in the nation. With many choices, including an International School, parents and children have great options to choose from and receive a world class education.

As you can see, there is no sign of Bellevue’s boom slowing down as the office market remains tight and job growth remains steady. Our team at Hughes Marino is excited to work with companies in Bellevue and to support the continued growth of a flourishing city on a trajectory for long-term success.