BIA Exploration

Exploring a New Model to Enhance the Downtown Experience

Since June 2025, the Bellevue Downtown Association (BDA), under the oversight of its Board of Directors, has been exploring whether a Business Improvement Area (BIA) could provide the structure and sustainable funding needed to support enhanced services, activation, and the long-term performance of Downtown Bellevue.

OVERVIEW

Downtown Bellevue is growing and evolving as the Eastside’s premier urban center. With more than 60,000 workers, 16,000 residents, expanding light rail access, and transformative investments like the Grand Connection, expectations for the downtown experience continue to rise.

Today, the BDA operates on an annual budget of approximately $2.9 million. The organization is financially healthy, but much of its funding is tied to sponsorships, events, programs, and member services. That model works well for the work the BDA delivers today, but it is not designed to scale daily, year-round services and activation that make downtown feel consistently vibrant, welcoming, and worth returning to.

Employers increasingly compete for talent that wants to live and work in active urban environments. Retailers benefit from clean, animated, and well-managed public spaces that attract customers and encourage longer visits. Residents increasingly expect walkable amenities, experiences, and a strong sense of place close to home. These are needs that extend beyond the boundaries any single property owner can manage alone.

Property owners continue to express the need for more to meet these growing expectations. That is the gap this work is intended to address. Through its strategic planning process, the BDA identified the need for a more sustainable funding mechanism to support the long-term success of downtown. The Board of Directors approved moving forward with feasibility analysis and stakeholder engagement to explore potential solutions, and downtown property owners are now helping shape what that future model could look like.