Bellevue Squared

Bellevue developer Kemper Freeman generated headlines statewide today with plans to add 2 million new square feet of retail, office, hotel, residential, dining and entertainment space to his Bellevue Collection, which includes Bellevue Square Mall as well as Lincoln Square. The expansion will cost $1.2 billion.Reports project 375,000 square feet of new retail, dining and entertainment space, 700,000 square feet of office space as well as new luxury and boutique hotels. Worried about where you might park for these new additions to the Bellevue skyline? You needn't. Part of the plan is two new, six-level underground parking garages.Developers at Wright Runstad tend to promote their plans to incorporate light rail into their new Spring District, an overhaul of the old warehouse district just East of Bellevue Square.Coincidentally, Bellevue City Councilman John Chelminiak said today that the Bellevue departments of Planning and Building Services have compiled a comprehensive assessment of the health of city neighborhoods, including downtown. They will be presenting those results to the City Council in the next few weeks at a council meeting. Suburban cities like Bellevue, Redmond and Kirkland face similar challenges — policies that must balance wealth and poverty. The Seattle Times today reports that for the first time there are more poor people living in suburbs than in big cities.