100-581: Bellevue ( / ˈ b ɛ l v j uː / BEL -vew ) is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington , United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle . It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area , and the fifth-largest city in Washington . It has variously been characterized as a satellite city , a suburb , a boomburb , or an edge city . The population
200-709: A 2018 estimate, the city's median household income was among the top five cities in the state of Washington. In 2008, Bellevue was number one in CNNMoney 's list of the best places to live and launch a business, and in 2010 was again ranked as the fourth-best place to live in America. In 2014, Bellevue was ranked as the second-best place to live by USA Today . More than 145 companies have been located in Bellevue; companies currently headquartered there include PACCAR Inc , T-Mobile US , and Valve . The technology company Amazon
300-419: A Mayor from among its members (not by popular vote), who serves as council chair for two years but has no veto power. As of 2022, the mayor is Lynne Robinson and the deputy mayor is Jared Nieuwenhuis. The mayor administrates council meetings, helps set the issues on the council's meeting agendas, and serves as the city's most visible spokesperson. Operational authority is held by the city manager , who administers
400-460: A bridge". Unlike the older bridge, maintenance vehicles can now access the pontoons from beneath the upper roadway deck without interrupting traffic. According to a project engineer on the site, the deck had to be structurally isolated from the main support structure using a damping system to ensure seismic resistance up to a magnitude 9 earthquake to comply with local building codes. The original deck design called for three support columns but
500-556: A community fun run and walk on the bridge, and a bicycle ride hosted by the Cascade Bicycle Club on the bridge and the Interstate 5 express lanes the following day. As part of the opening ceremonies, the bridge was certified as the world's longest floating bridge by Guinness World Records , at 7,708.49 feet (2,349.55 m) long; the bridge took the record from the previous Evergreen Point Floating Bridge , which
600-571: A crane-lifted load of steel pipes swung out of control into a King County Metro bus and an overhead highway sign. The bridge deck was lifted into place in August 2015, and the final concrete pour was finished in October 2015, completing the bridge deck. The new bridge was dedicated on April 2, 2016, in a ceremony presided over by Governor of Washington Jay Inslee and attended by an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 people. The ceremony also included
700-437: A float switch that sits about 3 inches (7.6 cm) off the floor. If the pontoon is breached, an alarm will sound inside the maintenance building. From there, a pump can be lowered into the chamber and controlled from the deck above. The bridge deck is made of 776 precast concrete sections that are elevated 20 feet (6.1 m) above the concrete pontoons that forms the lower deck which essentially creates "a bridge on top of
800-667: A light rail line with the construction of the bridge was dropped in 2008 after Sound Transit chose to prioritize the East Link Extension on the I-90 floating bridge . A first line on the SR ;520 corridor would also cause capacity issues on the section south of the Lake Washington Ship Canal. Electronic tolling with the " Good to Go " system began on the old bridge in 2011; tolling on the new bridge
900-434: A major earthquake. Additionally, near the end of its lifetime, vibrations induced by storm surges and strong winds were able to compromise the aging drawspan, anchor cables, and pontoons, leading to structural failure in a major storm . Even if the storms were below the maximum threshold for failure to occur, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) would still close the floating bridge to traffic. Although
1000-639: A major engineering facility in downtown Bellevue. As of 2020, there are several high-rise office buildings in Downtown Bellevue that are under construction or in active planning and design phases, including Bellevue 600 , part of a major Amazon campus. Several high-rise residential buildings are also planned in downtown, spurred in part by future light rail service, on former retail and low-rise commercial lots. As of 2024, Amazon has 12,000 employees in Bellevue and has reduced its workforce in Seattle. By
1100-462: A potential tunnel in the form of cash, services, free access to rights-of-way and one-time tax revenues that result from the East Link project. In November 2011, the city council signed an agreement with Sound Transit. Tunnel construction started in early 2016 while the remainder of downtown Bellevue construction began in mid-2017. As of July 2023, former Bellevue City Council member Claudia Balducci
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#17327901710041200-480: A replacement began in 1997 and was approved in 2011; the $ 4.65 billion budget was derived from state gas taxes and federal sources, as well as toll revenue. Construction of the 77 concrete pontoons began in 2011 and on-site assembly began in 2014. The Evergreen Point Floating Bridge carries six lanes of traffic—including two lanes for high-occupancy vehicles —and has a multi-use trail for cyclists and pedestrians on its north side. It also carries bus traffic and
1300-507: A result of the pontoon issues, the estimated opening of the bridge was pushed back from December 2014 into 2016. Construction of the bridge deck, beginning with the eastern approach in Medina , began in March 2012. In March 2015, two construction accidents on the bridge slowed construction for reevaluation of safety measures: a contractor was killed after a high fall on the east highrise; and
1400-588: Is also a landing zone for paragliding at the base of Tiger Mountain at 47°30′01.6″N 122°01′19.1″W / 47.500444°N 122.021972°W / 47.500444; -122.021972 . The Woodinville Subdivision is a rail line built in the late 19th century. In 2008, the Wilburton Tunnel was eliminated, severing the line. The right-of-way was purchased the same year by the Port of Seattle . Eastside cities and King County purchased portions of
1500-495: Is also the own brand of Costco , which founded its first warehouse in Seattle (#1), and operates from its corporate headquarters in the Eastside city of Issaquah . For the purposes of population estimates, Eastside includes Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Sammamish, Issaquah, Newcastle, Mercer Island, Woodinville, Kenmore, and Bothell. There are public and private airfields on the Eastside. Major facilities include: There
1600-598: Is designed for a future retrofit that would add light rail service. The original Evergreen Point Floating Bridge, also named for state governor Albert D. Rosellini , opened on August 28, 1963, carrying the four-lane State Route 520 (at the time designated temporarily as the Evergreen Point branch of Primary State Highway 1 until the 1964 state highway renumbering ). The 7,578-foot-long (2,310 m) floating span consisted of 33 pontoons and cost $ 24.7 million to construct (equivalent to $ 246 million in 2024);
1700-437: Is located in Bellevue, serving students from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 8 . At the elementary level, Bellevue is home to several Montessori schools, the Eastside's only Waldorf education at Three Cedars School, as well as Bellevue Christian School . The Seattle Japanese School , a Japanese weekend supplementary school , holds its classes in Bellevue. Bellevue is an economic hub of the Seattle region's Eastside and home to
1800-552: Is located in the Larsen Lake and Phantom Lake green belt and whose outlet is near where Interstate 90 meets Lake Washington's eastern shore. The city is bisected by Interstate 405 running north–south, and the southern portion is crossed from west to east by Interstate 90. The State Route 520 freeway roughly delineates the upper reaches of Bellevue. According to the United States Census Bureau ,
1900-496: Is now one of the largest shopping centers in the region. Opened in 1946, the mall has undergone several significant phases of expansion since the 1980s. The city's plans include the Bel-Red Corridor Project, a large-scale planning effort to encourage the redevelopment of the large Bel-Red section of the city bordering the adjacent city of Redmond which is a major employment area in the city. Patterned after
2000-501: Is planned to be completed in 2023. Some sections of the railroad in Bellevue were demolished in 2008 to make way for the expansion of I-405 and will require the construction of additional structures to supplement the existing right of way. The city once had an operating airfield named Bellevue Airfield , which shut down in 1983. Bellevue has a council-manager form of government with seven non-partisan council members elected at large for staggered four-year terms. The City Council selects
2100-522: Is the longest floating bridge in the world , as well as the world's widest measuring 116 feet (35 m) at its midpoint. It is a toll bridge and uses electronic collection. The bridge opened in April 2016 and replaced original Evergreen Point Floating Bridge at the site, which was 130 feet (40 m) shorter and four lanes wide. The original bridge was vulnerable to earthquakes and strong wind events, which would frequently shut down traffic. Planning for
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#17327901710042200-508: The 2010 census , there were 122,363 people, 50,355 households, and 32,145 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,827.7 inhabitants per square mile (1,477.9/km). There were 55,551 housing units at an average density of 1,737.6 per square mile (670.9/km). The racial makeup of the city was 62.6% White, 2.2% African American, 0.4% Native American, 27.6% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 3.1% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.0% of
2300-557: The Eastside area, bridge replacement was explored as early as 1969, when building a parallel span was explored and rejected. The Eastside is also served by the Interstate 90 floating bridges completed in 1940 and 1989, carrying traffic across Mercer Island to and from Bellevue. The original Evergreen Point Floating Bridge was designed before the implementation of modern earthquake engineering standards, with vulnerabilities in its hollow support structures that could have failed in
2400-583: The "suburban crescent". Several Indigenous peoples have lived on the Eastside for thousands of years prior to American colonization. The various subgroups of the Hachuamish, as well as the Sammamish , had many villages along the eastern coast of Lake Washington and the Sammamish River . Although they were more contained to the southernmost reaches of the Eastside, the modern-day site of Renton
2500-475: The 1920s, James S. Ditty predicted that it would become a city with a population of 200,000. He envisioned plans that included the bridging of Lake Washington and an area filled with golf courses and airports. His map with these visions was published in 1928. Once the Murrow Memorial Bridge opened, access from Seattle improved, and the area began to evolve into a bedroom community . In 1942,
2600-498: The 1963 bridge. Congestion on the old bridge was blamed on lack of shoulders, where disabled vehicles would cause severe backups. Ornamental elements include four sentinel towers rising 43 feet (13 m) above the bridge deck at the approaches, and belvederes on the north side. The bridge features advanced monitoring devices and new maintenance facilities. Beneath the bridge is a three-story high brick building used to control and monitor various life support and utility systems on
2700-560: The Bellevue Strawberry Festival was cancelled. The primary reason was that some 90 percent of the agricultural workforce in the area was of Japanese ancestry, and all of these farmers and their families had been forcibly interned in camps following the start of World War II. The fair would not be revived for another 45 years. Following the expulsion of the ethnic Japanese farming community, a large quantity of farmland became available for development. This made way for
2800-491: The Bellevue Strawberry Festival was conceived of in 1925, and by the 1930s it had grown to attract as many as 15,000 visitors. At the time, Bellevue was still a small town with around 2,000 residents. Prior to the opening of the Lake Washington Floating Bridge in 1940, Bellevue was mostly rural farmland area with little development. Although it was small, developers were pushing to change that; in
2900-627: The City's 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the largest employers in the city are: The city has numerous thriving commercial districts, with four major shopping centers: Bellevue Square in the downtown area, Factoria Mall to the south, Crossroads Mall to the east, and the Overlake Shopping District in the north. As of 2018, one in three Bellevue residents was born outside the United States, most likely due to
3000-564: The Downtown. Bellevue was also served by a railroad , a Burlington Northern branch line known as the Woodinville Subdivision , which included the historic Wilburton Trestle . The line is now disused, though part of the track bed at Wilburton Station will be reused by Sound Transit's light-rail construction. Construction of Eastrail , a rail trail on the abandoned Woodinville Subdivision right of way through Bellevue,
3100-492: The Eastside include the cities of Bellevue , Kirkland , Redmond , Sammamish , Issaquah , Newcastle , and Mercer Island . The towns west of Bellevue, collectively known as the Gold Coast , are usually considered part of the Eastside. These include Beaux Arts Village , Clyde Hill , Hunts Point , Medina , and Yarrow Point . The Northshore cities of Kenmore , Bothell , and Woodinville may be considered part of
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3200-435: The Eastside's cities. The Eastside is also home to many video game and interactive media companies. These include Bungie , Valve , ArenaNet , Sucker Punch , Monolith Productions , Sony Online Entertainment , Warner Brothers Entertainment , Microsoft Game Studios , Epic Games , Unity Technologies and DigiPen Institute of Technology . Kirkland hosts the annual Junior League Softball World Series . Kirkland Signature
3300-482: The Eastside, as each city contains portions that are east of the lake and south of its northernmost tip. Similarly, on the southeast tip of Lake Washington, Renton may also be included. The most expansive definitions of the Eastside can include cities in the Snoqualmie Valley , including Duvall , Carnation , Fall City , Snoqualmie , and North Bend . In politics, the area is sometimes referred to as
3400-632: The Murrow bridge, Homer M. Hadley Memorial Bridge , as well as the replacement of the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge . Currently, the area is growing several edge cities . Bellevue is the largest city on the Eastside and fifth largest in the state. A major technology center, the Eastside is home to many large high-tech companies, mainly in the software and wireless industries, including Microsoft , T-Mobile US , Nintendo of America , AT&T Mobility (formerly Cingular),
3500-673: The Port property for conversion to a rail trail called the Eastside Rail Corridor . The Eastside is connected to Seattle by the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge from Medina ( State Route 520 ) and the Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge and Third Lake Washington Bridge from Bellevue via Mercer Island ( Interstate 90 ). It is also served by Interstate 405 , a loop route of Interstate 5 that runs to
3600-587: The Puget Sound lowland, Bellevue has a mild oceanic climate . It also has frequent rain showers from October to May, with precipitation levels typically being over 2 inches (51 mm). On average, the hottest month is July, while January is the coldest. Bellevue gets an average of 32.02 inches (813 mm) of rain per year, based on data from 1981 to 2013. However, the city published an analysis of rainfall stating that 2016 saw an usually high 47.14 inches (1,197 mm) of rainfall, and that rainfall in 2014–2016
3700-545: The app-based service is funded by the city's hotel room tax and fare-free for passengers. The 2 Line of Sound Transit's Link light rail system is planned to run from Seattle through Mercer Island and Bellevue before ending in Redmond. The $ 3.7 billion project was approved by voters in 2008 as part of the Sound Transit 2 ballot measure. It began construction in 2016 and was scheduled to begin service in 2023, but
3800-403: The average family size was 2.93. In the city, the population was spread out, with 21.1% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.6 males. The median income for a household in the city
3900-495: The boundaries of Lake Washington School District , Renton School District and Issaquah School District . At the higher education level the city is home to Bellevue College , part of the Washington Community and Technical Colleges system. Bellevue is home to Open Window School , an independent school serving gifted students from kindergarten through eighth grade. The Jewish Day School of Metropolitan Seattle
4000-404: The bridge carried four lanes of traffic, separated by a curb that was later replaced with a simple Jersey barrier ; at the center was a drawspan that opened for large vessels traversing the lake. The original bridge would also close to traffic during sustained wind gusts of 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) or higher for more than 15 minutes. Due to increased traffic generated by rapid growth of
4100-522: The bridge design. The bridge includes HOV lanes with priority for transit and the program as a whole built several transit-only facilities. A 2008 WSDOT report included five core bus rapid transit routes proposed by Sound Transit connecting the Eastside (Kirkland, Redmond, and Bellevue) to Downtown Seattle and the University District, with a base frequency of 15 minutes, increasing up to 7 minutes at peak times. The bus rapid transit program
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4200-490: The bridge's planned HOV lanes. The bridge was engineered to accommodate a Link light rail extension with two options (both requiring 30 additional pontoons): one option would be 116 feet (35 m) wide with two lanes each direction, plus light rail to replace the HOV lanes; the other 150-foot-wide (46 m) option would retain the HOV lanes, two general purpose lanes in each direction, and add light rail. A proposal to include
4300-530: The bridge. A backup generator sits on the ground level to power all systems in case of power loss. Behind the back wall of the building lies a massive retaining wall built in response to steep hills. In 2023, the floating bridge carried an annual average of 57,913 vehicles per weekday. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic , the bridge carried a weekday average of 74,912 vehicles in 2018. Public transportation and high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) use were incorporated in
4400-493: The city has a total area of 37.505 square miles (97.14 km), of which 33.468 square miles (86.68 km) is land and 4.037 square miles (10.46 km) is water. The city's name is derived from a French term for "beautiful view". Under favorable weather conditions, scenic vistas of the Olympic Mountains and Cascade Mountains can be viewed from hilltops (and strategically positioned high-rise buildings) within
4500-612: The city is served by the Bellevue School District . There are four main public high schools – Bellevue High School , Interlake High School , Newport High School , and Sammamish High School – as well as two choice lottery high schools, International School and Big Picture School. Newsweek's 2015 ranking of U.S. public high schools placed Interlake at #359 and Newport at #391, with both schools noted for equitably helping low-income students meet average scores on standardized tests. Portions of Bellevue also lie within
4600-514: The city rejected the plan, citing the possible release of toxins in the pontoon's concrete. The pontoons were sold to a recycling company based in Gig Harbor which plans to reuse the individual pontoons for floating decks and other projects. An unaffiliated contest was held in 2012 seeking ideas for the 33 pontoons of the old bridge, with solutions ranging from a "floating High Line " to partial submersion for walking paths. The first pontoon of
4700-484: The city's day-to-day activities. The city manager is also elected by the seven members of the council instead of by popular vote. Politically, the city leans strongly Democratic, much like the Seattle/King County area as a whole. Of the 61,742 residents who cast ballots in the 2016 U.S. presidential election , 66.11% voted for Hillary Clinton , compared to 24.58% for Donald Trump . The vast majority of
4800-406: The city. The population density was 3,563.6 inhabitants per square mile (1,375.8/km). There were 48,396 housing units at an average density of 607.7/km (1,574.0/mi). The racial makeup of the city was 74.33% White, 1.99% African American, 0.32% Native American, 17.39% Asian, 0.23% Pacific Islander, 2.54% from other races, and 3.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.32% of
4900-515: The concrete. A state investigative report by concrete expert John Reilly blamed the WSDOT Bridge and Structures Office (BSO) for the error. The BSO did most of the pontoon design in-house, instead of delegating those details and the financial risk to contracting teams. The goal was to allow bids to be submitted sooner. The states top bridge engineer, Jugesh Kapur was ultimately let go over the error and another Department of Transportation employee
5000-462: The construction of a southbound onramp from the I-5 express lanes , the addition of light rail to the project, and an eight-lane bridge. The final environmental impact statement for the project was issued in 2011, allowing for construction of the pontoons to begin the following year. Funding was allocated to major phases of the project at different times. The $ 4.5 billion in funding comes largely from
5100-506: The downtown business district and is connected to Interstate 405 by NE 6th St. and a direct-access Texas T HOV ramp. Local buses run into Kirkland , Redmond , Issaquah , Renton , and the University District ; regional buses go to Bothell , Lynnwood , Everett , Seattle , Renton , Kent and Auburn , among other cities. An electric microtransit shuttle service operated by Circuit, Inc. began operating in August 2023;
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#17327901710045200-404: The early 20th century, to support small-scale farming on leased land plots. By the early part of the 20th century, Bellevue had acquired a reputation as a weekend getaway destination for Seattle residents, who would arrive by ferry at Meydenbauer Bay and spend the day at nearby Wildwood Park. After the ferry landing was moved to Medina , however, tourism to Bellevue waned. To counter this decline,
5300-549: The east of Lake Washington from Tukwila to Lynnwood . 47°36′N 122°10′W / 47.600°N 122.167°W / 47.600; -122.167 Evergreen Point Floating Bridge The Evergreen Point Floating Bridge , also known as the 520 Bridge and officially the Governor Albert D. Rosellini Bridge , carries Washington State Route 520 across Lake Washington from Seattle to its eastern suburbs . The 7,710-foot-long (2,350 m) floating span
5400-449: The first batch of completed pontoons, estimating that it would cost $ 400 million to repair cracks and other flaws that would bring down the bridge's predicted lifespan below the desired 75 years. The problems were originally speculated to stem from shortcuts allegedly taken by the contractor to complete pontoons to meet set deadlines; the proposed solutions to fix the pontoons included adding high-tension steel cables and post-tensioning of
5500-580: The floating span at transitional spans, which connect the deck to fixed bridges and approaches using hinges to move up to 24 inches (61 cm) for fluctuations in lake water levels moving the pontoons. All the pontoons are designed with watertight compartments that are monitored remotely with sensors to detect leaks that could lead to catastrophic failure. The bridge's 58 anchors all feature 3-inch-thick (7.6 cm), 1,000-foot-long (300 m) steel cables and are divided into three types: 45 587-short-ton (533 t) fluke anchors used in softer soils deep in
5600-542: The following month, with the exception of a single set of four columns preserved for a future park, to make way for a work platform. The new approach bridge opened for westbound traffic in August 2017, with later revisions to extend the HOV lane towards the Montlake interchange. The bridge's multi-use bike and pedestrian path partially opened in July 2016, with access to the completed sections for an "out-and-back" experience;
5700-481: The following month. The remainder of the SR 520 megaproject, which includes replacement of the Portage Bay bridge and Montlake Boulevard interchange, is scheduled to be completed in 2031. The new Evergreen Point Floating Bridge was designed to be more stable in stronger winds and raised the bridge deck much higher above the surface of the lake than the old bridge. Unlike the original floating bridge, where
5800-554: The former Western Wireless (now part of Verizon Wireless ), Vulcan Ventures , 180 Solutions and InfoSpace . Companies like Paccar , Puget Sound Energy , Symetra Insurance , Boeing , Verizon Wireless , Google , Amazon , Yahoo , Walt Disney , and Fox Sports also have national, major divisional or regional offices in the Eastside. The Eastside is also a hub for biotech and medical companies including Amgen , Icos , and Merck . Many local magnates, including Bill Gates , Steve Ballmer , John Stanton , and Craig McCaw , live in
5900-460: The headquarters of various sizes, including the U.S. operations for many international firms. Since 2005, the city has become a hub for software engineering and other technology development centers. These include PACCAR Inc , T-Mobile US , Eddie Bauer , SAP Concur , and Symetra . Bellevue hosts a number of satellite offices for large technology companies such as eBay , Meta , ByteDance , Oracle , Salesforce , Google , and Microsoft ; Microsoft
6000-534: The incorporated city. South of I-90, the city continues up Cougar Mountain , at the top of which is an unincorporated King County location called Hilltop. To the west of Cougar Mountain, Bellevue includes the Coal Creek , Somerset, and Factoria neighborhoods. Bellevue is bordered by the cities of Kirkland to the north and Redmond to the northeast along the Overlake and Crossroads neighborhoods. Across
6100-417: The initial development of the Bellevue downtown area. Bellevue incorporated as a third-class city on the March 31, 1953. Following the 1963 opening of a second bridge across the lake, the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge , the city began to grow more rapidly. The Crossroads community was annexed in 1964. Lake Hills was annexed in 1969. By the 1970 census, Bellevue had become the fourth most populous city in
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#17327901710046200-416: The lakebed; eight 107-short-ton (97 t) gravity anchors used in solid soils nearer to the shore; and five 10-foot-diameter (3.0 m), 79-to-92-foot-long (24 to 28 m) drilled shaft anchors used in conjunction with the gravity anchors to prevent navigation hazards. To ensure storm resistance in the event of water seeping into the pontoons, each pontoon is outfitted with a leak detection system with
6300-572: The last weekend in July. The biennial Bellevue Sculpture Exhibition draws thousands of visitors to the Downtown Park to view up to 46 three-dimensional artworks from artists around the country. Eastside (King County, Washington) The Eastside of the King County, Washington area in the United States is a collective term for the suburbs of Seattle located on the east side of Lake Washington . The most common definitions of
6400-512: The late 2010s, Microsoft had become the largest employer in Bellevue, where it had several offices to supplement its headquarters campus in Redmond. The company's workforce in the city peaked at 9,300 in 2021 and later declined as it consolidated offices at its headquarters and vacated its leased offices pace in Downtown Bellevue and Eastgate. Other technology companies, including ByteDance and The Pokémon Company International, have since expanded their office leases in Downtown Bellevue. According to
6500-473: The new floating bridge to the existing western approach was completed in September 2014. The north side of the new western approach, which would ultimately carry westbound traffic and the multi-use trail, began construction in October 2014. The project included removal of unused ramps over SR 520 that were built in the 1960s for the cancelled R.H. Thomson Expressway project; the ramps were demolished
6600-619: The old bridge to be disassembled was towed through the Lake Washington Ship Canal in July 2016. As of December 2020, several pontoons of the old bridge are anchored in the Pitt River in Pitt Meadows, British Columbia . Construction of the 1.2-mile (1.9 km) western approach to the floating bridge, a conventional viaduct that crosses Union Bay , was split into three projects. A temporary bridge to connect
6700-581: The opening of the bridge's westbound lanes, the Washington State Transportation Commission proposed increasing toll rates to introduce nighttime tolling by 2017. The toll rate increase and nighttime toll was approved by the commission and implemented on July 1, 2017. The old bridge was planned to be decommissioned by floating away pontoons to an industrial site in Kenmore for disposal and recycling; in March 2016,
6800-419: The original bridge carried two lanes of traffic in each direction, it did not include shoulders or pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure. The lack of a shoulder led to traffic congestion in the event of an accident, which would block one or two lanes in a given direction and block emergency services from accessing the bridge. Planning of the replacement bridge started in 1997 with a cross-lake study conducted by
6900-408: The population. There were 45,836 households, out of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.0% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.6% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and
7000-441: The population. There were 50,355 households, of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.9% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.2% were non-families. 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size
7100-399: The prevalence of multinational technology companies in the city. Around 23% of Bellevue's well-educated workforce are in engineering or science-related industries. About half of its residents identify as a person of color or ethnic minority. According to a 2018 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $ 113,698. In a 2020 survey of Centers for Disease Control data, Bellevue
7200-424: The rate for standard two axle passenger vehicles ranges from a minimum of $ 1.35 from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. to a maximum of $ 4.90 during peak commuting hours on weekdays; an additional $ 2 is charged for mail users. Major holidays are assessed at the weekend rate, which ranges from $ 1.35 overnight to $ 2.95 from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Vehicles with more than two axels are charged an additional rate. In 2023,
7300-497: The redevelopment of the downtown core, plans include superblock mixed-use projects similar to Lincoln Square , premised on private construction and the development of infrastructure such as the 2 Line of Link light rail that will extend to the Eastside. Bellevue lies between Lake Washington to the west and the smaller Lake Sammamish to the east. Much of Bellevue is drained by the Kelsey Creek watershed, whose source
7400-416: The road surface is directly on pontoons connected end-to-end, the new bridge featured pontoons laid north–south, perpendicular to the direction of vehicular traffic, and a road surface on a platform raised 20 feet (6.1 m) above the water. This design includes shoulders and a protected pedestrian and bicycle path across the viaduct. The floating bridge is laid atop 77 concrete pontoons that float above
7500-784: The short East Channel Bridge , I-90 connects Bellevue to Mercer Island to the southwest. Issaquah is to the east, down I-90 at the south end of Lake Sammamish. The city is bordered to the west by many affluent suburbs such as Medina , Clyde Hill , Hunts Point and Yarrow Point . The south end of Bellevue is bordered by the city of Renton , and to the southeast, the relatively recently incorporated city of Newcastle . Neighborhoods within Bellevue include Bellecrest, Bel-Red , Bridle Trails , Crossroads , Eastgate /Cougar Mountain, Enatai, Factoria , Lake Hills , Newport , Newport Hills, Northeast Bellevue, Northwest Bellevue, Overlake , Sammamish/East Bellevue, Somerset , Sunset, Tam O'Shanter, West Bellevue, Wilburton , and Woodridge. Like much of
7600-477: The state Department of Transportation. The study followed several others in the late 20th century to find solutions to traffic on the SR 520 floating bridge, with most proposals rejected after heavy opposition from communities on both ends of the bridge. The preferred alternative for the bridge's design, with four general-purpose lanes and two HOV lanes, was announced by WSDOT in April 2010. Alternative options included
7700-441: The state gas tax earmarked for highways in 2005, toll revenue, and federal highway funds and loans. In 2014, the budget for the project was increased by $ 250 million to cover cost overruns. The western portions of the project in Seattle, which are budgeted at $ 2 billion, were the last to be funded as part of the 2015 and 2022 legislative transportation packages. The first stage of the SR 520 floating bridge replacement project
7800-458: The state of Washington, behind only Seattle, Spokane , and Tacoma . Bellevue remains one of the largest cities in the state, with several high-rise structures in its core and a burgeoning business community. The city experienced a building boom during the mid-2000s, with the building of developments such as Lincoln Square and the Bravern. Bellevue Square is located in downtown Bellevue and
7900-535: The trail was fully opened on December 20, 2017. The original approach bridge continued to carry eastbound traffic until it was closed in November 2019 to prepare for construction of the south half of the new approach bridge. All four lanes of traffic between Montlake Boulevard and the floating bridge was directed onto the westbound approach bridge, which was narrowed and restriped for the multi-year construction period. A temporary onramp from Lake Washington Boulevard
8000-489: The water and are secured by 58 anchors to the lake bottom. Of the pontoons, 21 are longitudinal pontoons that support the deck and structure and are 360 by 75 by 28 feet (109.7 m × 22.9 m × 8.5 m) and weigh 11,000 short tons (10,000 t); 54 smaller supplemental pontoons, weighing 2,500 short tons (2,300 t), are used to stabilize the weight of the bridge; and two "cross" pontoons, weighing 10,100 short tons (9,200 t), are sited at each end of
8100-436: The years prior to World War II they became centers of dairy and berry farming. During the post-war boom, they became bedroom communities for Seattle. This was made possible by the 1940 construction of the Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge across Lake Washington, as well as the later construction of the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge in 1963; additional traffic later led to the construction of an additional bridge paralleling
8200-470: Was $ 62,338, and the median income for a family was $ 76,868. Males had a median income of $ 56,456 versus $ 37,124 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 36,905. About 3.8% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line , including 5.7% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over. Bellevue is the site of the annual Bellevue Arts and Crafts Fair (originally Pacific Northwest Arts and Crafts Fair), held since 1947 during
8300-506: Was 130 feet (40 m) shorter in length. Traffic on the new bridge was shifted over in two stages, beginning with westbound traffic on April 11 and ending with eastbound traffic on April 25. Initially, the bridge narrowed from 6 lanes to 4 lanes at the end of the floating span, over 1.2 miles (1.9 km) east of the Montlake Boulevard interchange, and was not fully traversable for bicyclists and pedestrians. Shortly after
8400-587: Was 151,854 at the 2020 census . The city's name is derived from the French term belle vue ("beautiful view"). Bellevue is home to some of the world's largest technology companies. Before and after the 2008 recession, its downtown area has been undergoing rapid change with many high-rise projects being constructed. Downtown Bellevue is currently the second-largest city center in Washington state, with 1,300 businesses, 45,000 employees, and 10,200 residents. In
8500-438: Was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age in the city was 38.5 years. 21.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30.8% were from 25 to 44; 26.5% were from 45 to 64; and 13.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.1% male and 49.9% female. As of the 2000 census , there were 109,569 people, 45,836 households, and 29,060 families residing in
8600-460: Was 4,538.2 inhabitants per square mile (1,752.2/km). There were 64,688 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 44.7% White , 2.6% African American , 0.4% Native American , 40.6% Asian , 0.2% Pacific Islander , 3.4% from some other races and 8.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.3% of the population. 20.0% of residents were under the age of 18, 4.9% were under 5 years of age, and 14.6% were 65 and older. As of
8700-597: Was a member of the Sound Transit Board of Directors. The City of Bellevue has undertaken an extensive "Bel-Red Area Transformation" process which seeks to plan some 900 acres (3.6 km) in the Spring District in the city's northern portion, all of which has been premised on the extension of light rail to the Eastside under Sound Transit 2. The top-down and highly integrated land use and transportation planning has been similar to earlier planning for
8800-424: Was at one point headquartered in Bellevue but has since moved to the neighboring community of Redmond, Washington . Celebrated video game companies Valve , Bungie , Sucker Punch Productions , and The Pokémon Company International are also based here. In 2019, Amazon and Facebook announced plans to open large engineering centers in Bellevue with plans to add several thousand employees. In 2018, Google also opened
8900-418: Was demoted. A floating, 660-short-ton (600 t) cofferdam was launched in November 2013 to assist in repairs of the pontoons, functioning as a portable drydock that wrapped around parts of the pontoons. The repairs were made by the contractor at the direction of WSDOT from December 2013 to June 2014 and cost a total of approximately $ 208 million, using up the majority of the program's reserve funds. As
9000-410: Was first settled by European Americans in 1869 by William Meydenbauer and Aaron Mercer, who claimed homestead tracts several miles apart. Both moved away within a few years, and permanent residents did not arrive until 1879. By 1882, a community, consisting mostly of logging homesteaders, had established itself. Once the land had been logged, it was gradually cleared, largely by Japanese immigrant labor in
9100-492: Was founded in Bellevue by Jeff Bezos . The Duwamish , whose main settlements were located in present-day Renton and Seattle, maintained a small outpost settlement called Satskal ( SAH-tsah-kahl ) along the Mercer Slough , south of present-day downtown Bellevue. It was from this village that an attack on the settlers of Elliott Bay was staged. The Duwamish also had a village near Factoria called 'pah-pah-DEEL'. Bellevue
9200-421: Was in place from its opening in 2016. The tolls are projected to generate $ 1.2 billion by 2056 to pay off bonds for the project as well as bridge operations and maintenance, debt service, future repairs, insurance, and deferred sales tax. The toll varies by time of day as well as day of week and applies in each direction. Rates are reviewed annually to cover all operational costs and debt service. Since August 2024,
9300-486: Was later delayed to 2024 due to construction issues. The first section, from South Bellevue station to Redmond Technology station in Overlake, opened on April 27, 2024. The Bellevue City Council lobbied Sound Transit, the regional transit authority, to construct its light rail line underground through Bellevue's rapidly growing downtown. The city government promised to devote between $ 104 million and $ 150 million toward
9400-403: Was later revised to two due to aesthetic issues. Moreover, the lighting mounted on top of the deck had to be positioned to minimize light pollution as well as its effect on aquatic habitat. The bridge has two general purpose lanes and one high-occupancy vehicle lane (HOV lane) per direction. It includes shoulders and a 14-foot-wide (4.3 m) pedestrian/bicycle path on the north side, unlike
9500-415: Was not implemented and replaced by increased frequency on King County Metro and Sound Transit Express routes that serve the corridor. Existing freeway bus stations (also known as "flyer stops") on the Eastside at Evergreen Point and Yarrow Point were rebuilt and moved from the freeway's shoulder to the median , accompanied by landscaped lids with parking and lawns, in 2014 for increased compatibility with
9600-410: Was opened a month later to replace the last of the unused Thomson Expressway ramps. Two mobile gantry cranes were used to disassemble and lift pieces of the old approach bridge beginning in 2020 after a construction delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The eastbound lanes on the approach bridge were opened to limited traffic in July 2023 and expanded to carry three lanes in its permanent configuration
9700-404: Was ranked first among small U.S. cities with the highest percentage of physically active adults, with 86 percent reporting that they exercise. In 2006, Bellevue was rated one of the 25 safest cities in America, based on the per-capita incidence of violent crime. As of the 2020 census , there were 151,854 people, 60,953 households, and 39,419 families residing in the city. The population density
9800-526: Was the center of Duwamish society. Farther out in the Snoqualmie Valley, the Snoqualmie were historically one of the most populous tribes in the Puget Sound region. The cities on the Eastside mostly began as centers of logging or mining in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Once logged, the land was eventually cleared (primarily by Japanese immigrant labor) to support farming. In
9900-474: Was the construction of 77 concrete pontoons in 2011 and 2012 by Kiewit-General-Manson at two purpose-built facilities in Aberdeen and Tacoma . The pontoons were floated to the bridge on Lake Washington via the Lake Washington Ship Canal . Pontoon assembly and fastening, to form the floating bridge's deck, began in 2014 and concluded in July 2015. In 2012, WSDOT identified cracks and other problems with
10000-405: Was trending unusually high. The wet season of 2017, defined as the period from October through April, saw a similar rainfall of 47.26 inches (1,200 mm). Bellevue is the main Eastside hub for both the local transit authority, King County Metro , and Sound Transit , the regional transit system. The Bellevue Transit Center , which serves both Metro and Sound buses, is located in the heart of
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