Meetings for the week of March 9th

The goal of this newsletter is to enable participatory democracy by increasing public access to transparent information about our city. I don't think many people will feel the need to speak up more than a few times a year, but I want to be sure you know when you have an opportunity to make a difference. Am I providing enough info, or do you need more guidance/tips/support? Please reach out if there's any way you think I might be able to make it easier for you! 

Recently posted on NewBellevue.com: 

Update to: Is 20% enough? (link) - added map of sites that will be prime targets for redevelopment 

Bus Map Changes (link) - changes that are happening on March 28th and this fall, includes info about all the celebrations

Power for our new housing (link) - maxing out overhead electrical capacity - and update about HB 2418 

A post about Summer Camp Sign Ups is in the works and may go out before the next newsletter - there is a Camp Fair on 3/15 if you want more info about summer camps in the area, and city-run program sign ups start on 3/30.

Tuesday, March 10th 

City Council, 6pm (link)

Oral Communications: There will be 30 minutes for public comment; speaker sign-up starts at noon (link) Speakers commenting about items on the agenda will be prioritized, but this is still an opportunity to be heard about things like the HOMA impacts on our grocery stores.

 Consent Calendar: 

- Award Bellevue Fiber Infill to Always Active Services, LLC. for $447k plus tax; a complete fiber network is essential for traffic signal operations and monitoring of pump station and reservoir sites (Note: map in the agenda memo will be updated, and there will be minimal surface disruptions for the ~1.4km segment of NE 8th that's west of Downtown, lmk if you want more details)

- Authorize execution of a Predevelopment Agreement and future 99-year Ground Lease with Bellwether Housing for the redevelopment of a city-owned half-acre Wilburton TOD parcel for affordable housing (NE corner of 120th and BelRed Rd. and bounded on two sides by Brierwood Center, was formerly a Porsche dealership) Before the Ground lease is finalized, the permitting, financing, and affordable housing outcomes agreement will be in place. The RFP stated an expectation of 100 units at 80% AMI, and the Term Sheet states an expectation of 127 units and 3200 sf of Community Facility Space on the ground floor Background: There will be separate support from the city's Housing Stability Program ($2M), see Feb 24th meeting. An agreement with Su Housing was included in the Feb 3rd consent calendar, but it was quite different. 

Public Hearing on a Utility Easement Release where there is currently a John L. Scott real estate office on Main St in Downtown. The planned 350-unit residential building will have ~310k SF of market rate and affordable units, and approximately 117k SF of below grade parking and mechanical and 435 SF of ground floor retail. The multifamily tax exemption (MFTE) would increase their five planned affordable units to a total of 71 units at 80% of area median income (AMI). 

Study Session on 2026 Annual Comprehensive Plan Amendment Work Program - This would start the work to upzone Evans Plaza (approx 10 acres just north of 520 in Bridle Trails) to Lowrise 2 Mixed Use, as was discussed by the Planning Commission. This is something that Council could reject on the basis of a lack of significantly changed conditions, though the property owners are arguing that the vision of the past Comp Plan update included more density at their site. The Planning Commission vote was split on this CPA. Nine letters from the community, mostly opposed, were sent to the Planning Commission. 

Study Session on Pre-approved Plans for DADUs and Cottage Housing - The engagement phase will have a hackathon-style event conducted in partnership with Govstream.ai and subject matter experts. Potential focus areas for the hackathon include: Leveraging GIS mapping tools and zoning data to help customers assess site feasibility, Developing tools to guide applicants through the permitting process, and Providing early-stage resources to help property owners explore financing options, professional contacts, and other implementation considerations. Phase 2 will have a formal call for designs and volunteer review panel; in Phase 3, the Department will approve up to 10 plans. It will be created with the Washington State Building Code Update (May 2027) in mind, since we do not want the new plans to be outdated quickly.

Study Session on Square Footage Tax simplification efforts (revenue-neutral), proposed annual business license renewal, and outreach plans to make businesses aware of these changes. 

      Generally, the square footage tax applies to businesses that serve customers outside the city, but in Bellevue have administrative activities like accounting, payroll, human resources, legal, and other activities that only indirectly support the activity subject to gross receipts tax. It will simplify this tax to eliminate the separate categories for warehouse space, retail, gyms, cafeterias, administrative space, and other support space. The rate will be reduced and the threshold increased, and gross receipts revenue can still be deducted (no square footage tax is required if the gross receipts tax calculated exceeds the square footage tax).

     Bellevue is one of the few Washington cities that has not been requiring an annual business license renewal, which means our data is hard to keep updated. We will need to decide what to do with the annual fee money.

Written reports on Intergovernmental Affairs (link) In mid-March, councilmembers Nieuwenhuis and Briar will represent Bellevue at the National League of Cities (NLC) annual Congressional City Conference in DC. RWQC:  Ecology is no longer pursuing a general permit for nutrient control (Hamilton is our representative) TPB: Bellevue and Seattle have requested PSRC to create an autonomous vehicle working group (next meeting 3/12, Nieuwenhuis is our representative) 

Thursday, March 12th 

Last day of the state legislative session 

PSRC Transportation Policy Board, 9:30-11:30am (link)

Transportation Commission, 6:30pm (link) 

This seems likely to be a very short meeting

2026 Transportation Element Comprehensive Plan Amendments - If initiated by the City Council on March 10, the Transportation Commission will review the staff-recommended amendments to the Transportation Element on March 12, and will take action on the amendments on May 14 and will transmit a recommendation to the Planning Commission to be considered by PC in June. - Amend policy TR-96 and delete references to the Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation Plan (it has been merged into the MIP, which is already referenced in some places)- Update references to the timeframe of the TFP, which was extended from 12 to 20 years by the City Council in Nov. 2025. 

Update bylaws to extend the exclusion period and align term limits with the bylaws of the other city boards and commissions. 

If I were making the agenda for TC, I would want them to discuss: Upcoming Link Crosslake Connection start of service (March 28th) and celebrations, bus system service map changes, bus service realignments for BSD students and outreach to students/schools, Safe Speeds survey responses to date (survey closes 3/31), speed limit changes on local streets taking effect this year, transportation-related requests for BelRed (and interim streets) sidewalk/multiuse path upgrades that are in progress along both Main and 100th, bus service timeliness and ridership metrics, curb pricing, parking minimums changes and updated transportation impact fee projections, Vision Zero metrics, fiber network upgrades for traffic signals, the Bike Bellevue segments that were supposedly mostly designed a few months ago and which will be going out to bid very soon, the bike improvements along NE 2nd that we received the $1.6M in state climate funds for (was supposed to start design in 2026), FIFA World Cup and Visit Bellevue projections, and overall CIP/TFP project funding updates. 

Upcoming meetings:     

3/16 Sign Code Update virtual info session, 12-1:15pm (event / project info)

3/18 Lake Hills NEP kickoff meeting 

3/19 BSD School Board Meeting 

3/24 City Council: legislative session wrap up presentation 

3/25 Planning Commission: Great Neighborhoods Update, BelRed LUCA update 

4/2 School Board Meeting 

4/2 ESC: 2025 Financial Performance, review of CIP, and Solid Waste Contract Procurement

4/8 Planning Commission: Omnibus LUCA, High density residential LUCA, Affordable Housing Strategy post-adoption update

4/9 Transportation Commission will continue to discuss TIP if this time is needed 

4/22 Planning Commission: BelRed LUCA, MFTE Study Session 

5/7 ESC Rates forecast/Community Outreach, Water System Plan draft review 

5/13 Planning Commission: Public Hearing on the Omnibus LUCA and Introduction of Downtown Livability 2.0 

5/14 TC: Public Hearing on TIP, and Comp Plan Amendments 

Opportunities:

Engaging Bellevue has a map for residents to pin the kinds of community features they'd like to see in different parts of BelRed, as part of the BelRed Look Forward LUCA.   https://www.engagingbellevue.com/belred-luca There are 18 responses so far, about community and art space, bike connections, streams, traffic and parking, and small businesses. 

BSD Family Engagement Survey is open until March 20th. 

The Safe Speeds Bellevue Survey is open until March 31. The city wants to hear from you about the streets where speed limits were reduced and evaluated in 2025, streets where lower speed limits should be prioritized and how you would like to stay informed of the project. The survey will take approximately 5-10 minutes and your feedback will remain anonymous. All questions, including demographic questions, are optional. There are 10mph reductions proposed for W. Lake Sammamish Pkwy, part of Northrup and NE 20th, BelRed Rd, part of Kamber and SE 26th, Factoria Blvd, part of Newport Way, maybe others, and 5mph reductions in many places such as downtown, LWB, part of 114th,120th, 124th, 132nd, 148th, 140th, part of the Lake Hills Connector and many more. 

Shape the future of utility services in Bellevue by taking a quick 3-minute survey by April 30th. When it comes to drinking water, wastewater disposal, stormwater flood management, surface waterways protection, and garbage / recycling / composting management, what’s working and what can be done better? (link)

Medic One is offering a free program to introduce women to careers in EMS/FIRE, with a hands-on experience on April 25th and 26th; the application deadline is March 30th. bit.ly/PSRFAFWIEF

Energize - Community Spaces is taking applications for heat pump and weatherization upgrades that may be funded 100% by King County through April 20th (link) - places in Bellevue that are eligible include Crossroads, part of Lake Hills (Samena and south), and a chunk of Wilburton/Kelsey Creek south of Bel-Red, and community spaces that serve residents from those areas are also eligible. About 40 projects will be selected.  

PSRC is offering a Summer Planning Academy program for high school students that will meet on four days during the summer; apply through May 18th. After completion, students will be eligible for a $500 scholarship (link)

Fun and Educational Events  

See https://newbellevue.com/?page_id=82

Pedalheads Summer Camp Registration is now open (referral link $25 off)

3/5-3/8 Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle

3/6 Small Business Jam with OpenAI, 9am-4pm (link) - free in-person workshop

3/6 Board Game Bonanza at SBCC, 1-3pm, free, drop-in, recurs on Fridays until April 24th.

3/6 Baby Blanket Craft Night at Bellevue Library, 4:30-6pm (link) - will meet for six weeks as part of a senior project, snacks provided, please preregister

3/6 Korean Story Time at Newport Way Library, ages 0-8, 4:45-5:30pm (link) - recurs weekly

3/6 Frankie4 sneak peek and refreshments, RSVP required, 5-8pm

3/6 Japanese English Language Exchange at Meet Fresh, 6-8pm (link) - repeats on first Fridays

3/6 Date Night Oaxacan Night Market Cooking class at PCC, 6pm - repeats 3/7

3/6 Teen Art Studios by Gage Academy at HCC. Free drop-in class on Fridays with dinner and materials provided, and new mediums are taught each month. 6-9pm (link) - will not meet on 5/8

3/6 Fleur Studio pop-up in Kirkland, 6-9pm - there will be glass engraving, secondhand bags, jewelry, and macarons

3/6 Millennial Social Club Board Games and Boba at Lincoln Square South, 7-10pm (link), recurs Fridays

3/6 Grey's Anatomy trivia night at Tapster, free, 7pm

3/6 Family Chess Night at Crossroads Mall, 7-8:45pm (link)

3/6 Relax, Sip 'n Paint at Samena, 7-9:30pm

3/6 MVMT Late Night Vibes at Suite, 9pm-1am - guest DJ Dr. Fever

3/6 Brunch After Dark (B. A. D.) at Primo, 9pm, 10:30pm, 11pm, and 12:30pm seatings, reservations suggested (link)

3/6 Girl Power at Mirra, white and pink dress code, 21+ 10pm-2am

3/7 Lake Sammamish Half Marathon, 7:30am

3/7 Outdoors for All Spreefest fundraiser, 8:30-4pm - Tickets are $100, and there are also volunteer opportunities. Includes lift ticket, event shirt, racecourse access, lunch, raffle, demos, beer garden, music and afterparty

3/7-3/8 Penn Cove Musselfest on Whidbey Island (link) - note I-405 closures in Bothell

3/7 Eastgate Keep Bellevue Beautiful Cleanup, 9-11am (link)

3/7 Carinosa and Bulaklakan Filipino Dance Lessons at NBCC, ages 12+ free, 9-10am - meets Saturdays 3/7-4/25, please pre-register (link)

3/7 Journaling the Garden at BBG, free, 9-11am (link)

3/7 Kids Cook Tacos class at PCC, ages 8-12, 10am

3/7 Discovery Day at Bellevue College, 10am-2pm (link) - prospective students, their families, and community members can meet faculty and staff, tour the college, and learn about programs and services.

3/7 U-District Boardgames Social meets at Mox in BelRed, 10am-1pm (link) - repeats on first Saturdays

3/7 Meat and Greet at Carnation Farms in Carnation, free, 10am-noon (link) - see their pasture-raised sheep and cattle

3/7 Ranger-led Hike at Lewis Creek, 10:30-11:30am, please register on CivicRec

3/7 Winter Birds of Skagit, Bird Walk at Wiley Slough, 10:30am (link) - note I-405 closures in Bothell

3/7 Sensory exploration with Crazy Aaron's Putty at Lakeshore Learning, free, ages 3+, 11am-3pm (link)

3/7 Big Playdate at Newport Way Library for ages 0-5, 11:30am-1pm (link) - recurs 4/4 and 5/2

3/7 CRY Holi 2026 at Downtown Park This date was advertised in print, but the event is not listed on the CRY website

3/7 Youth Nature Journaling Club at BBG, free, for kids age 6-14, noon-1pm (link) - ages 6-12 must be accompanied by an adult

3/7 Bug Bonanza at BBG, 1-2:30pm (link) - best for ages 4-9 with adult, Class Full

3/7 Master Gardener class Go Native - Get to Know Native PNW Bulbs, 9:30-10:30am, online, $9 (link)

3/7 Cebiche and Pisco Workshops at La Mar, 3pm and 4pm (link)

3/7 Shooting with Purpose: Travel Photography with Steve Collins at Bellevue Leica, 4:30pm (link)

3/7 Kids Night Out at Samena, K-5, 5-8:30pm (link)

3/7 Literary Lions Gala at Bellevue Library to support the KCLS Foundation, 5-9pm (link)

3/7 Bourbon Bash at Daniel's Broiler, 5-8pm (link)

3/7 Drum Clinic with Matt Garstka at West Coast Drum Shop, 5:30-7pm - there will also be a masterclass on 3/8

3/7 Fashion is ART at Bellevue Art Museum, 6-11pm (link) - Event canceled

3/7 Aerial performances at Suite, 7:30, 8:15 and 9pm, then MVMT Late Night Vibes at Suite, 9pm-1am

3/7 Bellevue Healthcare Professionals meetup, 7pm (link)

3/8 Daylight Savings Time begins

3/8 Run the CKC/Eastrail in Kirkland with Seattle Slow Runs, 9-11am (link) - meetup at Zoka Coffee after

3/8 Cooking with Beer class at PCC, 21+, 10am (link) - repeats 3/26 at 6pm

3/8 Bellevue Classical Piano Meetup Group at Northwest Pianos in BelRed, 10am-noon (link) - listeners do not need to RSVP

3/8 Holi Hungama at Crossroads Park, $5, free for 12 and under noon-4pm - hourly color throws and Best Dance Crew Awards

3/8 Boardgames and Boba with Millennial Social Club at Lincoln Square, 1-5pm (link) - repeats on Sundays

2/8 Bellevue x SheBuilds on Lovable at City Center Bellevue, wait-list, 2-5pm (link) - AI buildathon

3/8 Holi Sh*t Bollywood Neon Affair at Mirra, 2pm-7pm (link) - nightclub energy and face painters, 21+

3/8 Dance Foundations Hip-hop class at Coffee Dance, 3-5pm - weekly, beginner-friendly

3/8 French Macarons class at PCC, 3pm (link) - repeats 3/22, 4/12, 4/15, and 5/2 at various times

3/9 Discover Parks free day at Washington State Parks

3/9 Toddler Story Time at the Bellevue Library, 10:15 and 11:15am (link)

3/9 The Sophia Way - Coffee with the Executive Director, featuring a discussion of 2025 impact and the strategic plan

3/9 Watercolor: Create a Wax Resist Painting at Newport Way Library, for adults, 2-3pm (link) - please pre-register

3/9 Rhetoracles Toastmasters at Bellevue City Hall, 6-7:30pm (link) - meets weekly

3/9 Monday Night Networking at 13 Coins, 6-8pm (link) - recurs monthly

3/9 US Army Field Band's Jazz Ambassadors will present a free concert at the Bellevue College Ballroom, 7-8:30pm (link)

3/10 Bold for the Blue breakfast to support BPF, 7-9am (link)

3/10 Baby Story Time at Newport Way Library, 1-2pm (link) - recurs weekly

3/10 Great Neighborhoods: Eastgate Public Space Workshop, 3:30-5pm (link) - Share your ideas on how to make public spaces in Eastgate more livable, walkable, and welcoming. Translation in Korean and Mandarin available

3/10 Catapult Accelerator Showcase Night at Venture Mechanics, 4:30-9pm (link)

3/10 Quiet Reading Pizza Party at Bellevue Library, 5:30-7:30pm (link)

3/10 Family Story Time (various ages) at Bellevue Library, 5:30-6:15pm (link), recurs weekly

3/10 Happy Hour & Hellos with United Way at Terry's Bellevue in Newport Hills, 5:45-8:30pm (link)

3/10 City Council meeting, 6pm (link) - Evans Plaza upzone in Bridle Trails, Pre-approved plans for cottages and DADUs, and Square Footage Tax simplification.

3/10 Top Rope and Bouldering at Edgeworks, 6:30-8:30pm (meetup) - repeats 3/17

3/11 Deadline to apply for a 2026 Project Grant from 4Culture

3/11 Connect Bellevue's Ride the Wave webinar: Maximizing the 2 Line for Your Business, 11am-noon

3/11 Cozy Bakes vegetarian cooking class at PCC, 10am-noon (link) - repeats 3/14, Cardamom Buns, Einkorn Pear Scones, and Leek Quiche

3/11 Eastside for All Community Table, noon-1pm (link)- virtual meeting for donors,

3/11 Eastside B2B Networking, 11:30am-1pm (link)

3/11 All Ages Boardgame Afternoon at the Newport Way Library, 3:30-5:30pm (link) - recurs 4/8, 5/13, and 6/10

3/11 Is My Startup Fundable? interactive workshop at Bellevue College, 3:30-7pm (link)

3/11 Seattle Climbing meets at Edgeworks Bellevue, 4:30-7:30pm (link) - repeats 3/18, 3/25, 4/1

3/11 Pajama Story Time at Lake Hills Library, ages 0-5, 6:15-7pm (link) - recurs weekly

3/11 Board Games at Applebee's in BelRed with the Millenial Social Club, 6:30-8:30pm (link), recurs on Wednesdays

3/11 Reading with Rover for elementary students at the Bellevue Library, 6:30-7:30pm (link) - kids read aloud to a certified therapy dog, recurs 4/8 and 5/13

3/11 Lake Hills Book Group meets at Lake Hills Library to discuss Midnight in Soap Lake by Matthew Sullivan, 6:30-8pm

3/12 Preschool (ages 3-5) Story Time at the Bellevue Library, 10:30-11:15am (link) - recurs weekly

3/12 Mending Circle at the Bellevue Library, 11-1pm (link)

3/12 Baby Story Time at the Bellevue Library, 11:30am-12:15pm (link) - recurs weekly

3/12 Bellevue South Asian Women Entrepreneurs Coffee Meet, noon (link) - recurs 4/9

3/12 Preschool (ages 3-5) Art Cart at the Newport Way Library, 4-5:30pm (link) - recurs 4/9 and 5/14

3/12 Seattle Data, AI & Security meetup: Autonomous AI Agents — Zero to Build in 3 Hours at Bellevue City Hall, 4:30-8pm (link) - speakers from AWS and Salesforce

3/12 Thursday Evening Climb at Edgeworks, 5:30-7:30pm (link) - repeats weekly until 4/26

3/12 Beginner Hiking Workshop at NBCC, free, 6-7:30pm, recurs 3/19 and 3/26 - what to wear, how to stay dry, and gear to bring

3/12 Transportation Commission meets at City Hall, 6:30pm

3/12 In-person Paint Night with Maxine Jung at Tapster, 21+, 7-9pm (link)

3/13 Lichen Walk at BBG, 10am-noon (link)

3/13 Seattle Synchro's artistic swimming Sharks and Mermaids class at Bellevue Aquatic Center starts - continues into June, final show June 7th

3/13 Intro to the Cricut at Bellevue Library Makerspace, 4:30-5:30pm (link), registration starts 3/6

3/13 Marbling on the Wheel at Eastside Pottery, 6:30-8pm

3/13 HRMVMT Mingle and Martinis at Suite, 6:30-9pm (link)

3/13-3/14 Free BYT PlayLab staged readings, 7pm

3/14 Pi Day

3/14 Art Commons Creative Summit: the fallow season at Lake Sammamish State Park - live conversation, bring art to share, group meditation, 9am-noon (link)

3/14 Thicket pop-up at Title Nine - a women-owned Vermont brand that makes clothes built for movement for sizes 14-30, 11am-3pm (link)

3/14 Holi: The Colors Festival 2026 - United at Crossroads Park by Beats of WA, 11-4pm (link)

3/14 Jr. Makers Explore 3D Printing at the Bellevue Library Makerspace, 11:30am-1pm (link) - recurs 4/11, 5/9, and 6/13 - drop-in event, 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult

3/14 Seattle Code and Coffee meetup at Lincoln Square in Downtown Bellevue, noon-2pm, please RSVP (link) - repeats 4/11

3/14 Intro to Improv 4 week course at Studio33 starts this week, $200, 18+, 1-4pm (link)

3/14 Yuan Ru Surge of the Horses opening reception, 2-4pm - exhibition will run February 21-March 22nd. Featured performer ZJE

3/14 Bellevue Youth Symphony Winter Concert Series at the Meydenbauer Center Theatre, 3pm and 7pm (link) - performances through 3/16.

3/14-3/15 Bellevue Youth Choir performs in Seattle and Kirkland (link)

3/14 Eastside FIRE sharing goals and budgets at Capitol One Cafe, 4-6pm (link)

3/14 The Premier Event dinner and auction at W Bellevue to support Bellevue School Foundation, 5:30-10pm

3/14 Sing for a Cause at Theatre33 karaoke, $45, 7-9pm

3/14 Bellevue Chamber Chorus: Plus One - A Generation of Young Artists at First Congressional Church, 7:30pm (link) - including solo clarinet, oboe, violin, cello, upright bass and percussion, and the winner of the composer competition

3/14 Cascadian Chorale "Pick a Mass" audience selected program, 7:30pm and 3pm on 3/15 (Mercer Island and Redmond)

3/15 Summer Camps Fair at Bellevue College, 10am-2pm (link)

3/15 Bellevue Science Olympiad for ages 6-15, noon-4pm (link)

3/15 Ranger-led Hike at Mercer Slough, 2-3:30pm - please register on CivicRec

3/15 Bellevue Youth Symphony Winter Concert Series, 3pm and 7pm (link)

3/16 Registration opens for BSD Elementary Schools' before- ($175/$150 monthly for PreK/K-5) and after-school care ($595 monthly) for the 2026-2027 school year provided by BGC (link)

3/16 Bellevue Youth Symphony Winter Concert Series, 7pm (link)

3/17 St. Patrick's Day macaron cooking class at Whisk, $130, 11am-1:30pm (link)

3/18 Bellevue Library Book Group, Book and Dagger by Elyse Graham, 11am-1pm (link)

3/18 HRMVMT Coworking and networking at Bellden Cafe, noon-2pm (link)

3/18 Stem Exploration: Robotic Hand activity at Newport Way Library for ages 6-12, 2-3:30pm (link) - registration not required, but space is limited.

3/18 After School Story Hour at Newport Way Library with games, crafts, and a read-along for ages 5 and older, 4:30-6pm (link) - recurs 4/15 and 5/20

3/18 KC Conservation District All about Pollinators virtual talk, 6-7:30pm (link)

3/18 Lake Hills NEP kickoff meeting 

3/18 Big Data Bellevue Meetup at Bellevue Library, 6:30-7:30pm (link)

3/19 Discover Parks free day at Washington State Parks

3/19 Eastside Audubon Bird Walk at BBG, 9-10:30am

3/19 Leadership Eastside Class of 2026 will present their adaptive campaigns at Bellevue College, 9-11am

3/19 BSD School Board meeting, 4:30pm

3/19 Electronics Mending Circle at the Bellevue Library Makerspace, 4:30-5:30pm (link)

3/19 Title Nine Spring it on Event - open late until 8pm

3/19 Seattle Rust User Group meets at Bellevue City Hall, 6-8pm (link) - topic: Building a minimal, rootless container in Rust

3/19 Thursday Thriller Book Club at Mercury Coffee about Butter by Asako Yuzuki, waitlist, 6:30-8:30pm (link)

3/20 & 3/21 Dahlia Tuber Sale at BBG, 10am-2pm

3/20 Greener Living Class: How to get rid of almost anything - recycle, compost, trash, and hazardous waste, virtual class, free, pre-register, noon-1pm (link)

3/20 Seattle AI Startup Showcase at Coffee Dance Studio in Bellevue, 1-3:30pm (link)

3/20 Ikebana Floral Arrangement Class with Zen Flower Studio in BelRed, $60, 3:30-5pm

3/21 Eastside Runners meeting at Juanita Beach Park in Kirkland, 8:30am (they come to Bellevue less than once a month)

3/21 Master Gardener class Introduction to Pruning with Plant Amnesty, 9:30-10:30am, online, $9 (link)

3/21 Lake Hills Keep Bellevue Beautiful Cleanup, 9-11am (link)

3/21 BelRed Run/Walk Club with visit to La Bean, 10am

3/21 Thread Together Community Sewing and Upcycle Event at Bellevue City Hall, 10am-4pm

3/21 Explore! Family Fair at Seattle Center, hosted by Cascade PBS, 10am-6pm (link) - meet-and-greet Daniel Tiger is full, but the rest of the event is still free with RSVP

3/21 Seattle Children's Museum 46th Birthday Bash celebration in Seattle - mural creation, sensory play, and crown decorating, 10am-5pm - early entry for members

3/21 Gooey mashups creature creation at Lakeshore Learning, free, ages 3+, 11am-3pm (link)

3/21 Travel Workshop - know your options by Choose Your Way Bellevue, must pre-register, 11:30-12:30pm (link) - includes talk at Bellevue Library and a ride to Bel-Red Station on the Link

3/21 Rainbow Elder Play and Connect at Crossroads Community Center, noon-2pm (link)

3/21 Spring Flowers in Ink and Watercolor Class at BBG, 1-3pm

3/21 Lego Block Party at Newport Way Library, ages 4+, 2-4pm (link) - recurs 4/18 and 5/16

3/21 Bellevue Youth Choir performs in Renton, 3pm (link)

3/21 Bingo Night at Crossroads Community Center, 6-8pm

3/21-3/22 Best of IBT Gala at Meydenbauer Center, 7pm and 2pm (link) - ballet in two acts

3/21 Neon Nights 2026 at Mirra with FetchNW, 21+, 9:30pm-2am (link)

3/22 NPA March Mania Plant Sale at BBG, 10am-1pm (link)

3/22 Bloom Basket Workshop with Monica Hart at Bellevue Square, $50, 9:30-11am (link) - create a centerpiece and enjoy sips and bites

3/22 Boys and Girls Club Flag Football for K-8th grade starts, season runs through May 17th

3/22 Bellevue Princess Day at Meydenbauer Center 10-4:30pm (link)

3/22 Artvana Paint and Sip at Redd Dog : Lighthouse, 1pm (link)

3/22 Browne U: Washington Bordeaux Grapes, 1-3pm, $46 (link)

3/24 Community chat with Bellevue College's VP of Administrative Services, room U208, 5-6pm

3/24 Intro to 3D printing at the Bellevue Library Makerspace, 6-7pm (link) - registration opens 3/17

3/24 Corks and Canvas napkin painting at Suite, 6-8pm (link)

3/25 PuPPy & WiDS Python talk night at GitHub Bellevue, 5:30-8pm (link) - first talk will be about open source maintainers and contributors, food provided, afterparty will be at Lucky Strike

3/25 Greener Living Class: How to reorganize and declutter, virtual class, free, pre-register, 6-7pm (link)

3/25 Community Dinner to raise money for the Big Picture prom, $15 suggested donation, 6-7:30pm

3/25 Planning Commission meets at City Hall, 6:30pm - Great Neighborhoods Update, BelRed LUCA update 

3/26 Founders Monster Meetup Day at Venture Mechanics Launchpad, 9am-6pm (link)

3/26 Nowruz celebration at First Fed Bank, 3-6pm

3/26-3/27 Title Nine annual bra fit fest, reserve a time in advance

3/26 Studio Wax Esthetics HydraFacial Happy Hour event, 4-7pm

3/26 Cultural Conversations: Loneliness and Belonging at BBG, 6:30-8pm - RSVP, light refreshments provided

3/26 Bellevue Womens' Book Club discusses Original Daughter by Jemimah Wei, 6:30-8pm (link)

3/26 A Garden of Useful Spaces talk with BBG, 7pm (link)

3/27 Bellefield Office Park Open House, 9-10am (link)

3/27 Pilates for Gardeners, 2-3pm (link)

3/27 Intro to Sergers at Bellevue Library Makerspace, 3:30-5:30pm (link) - registration opens 3/20

3/27-4/19 Ханума at Theatre33

3/27 Open Mic Night at Third Culture Coffee, 7pm

3/27 Paint and Sip at NWAC: Cherry Blossom Breeze, 7-9pm (link)

3/28 Eastside Runners meets at Medina Park, 8:30am - their weekly runs are often in Redmond, Kirkland, etc. See event on Strava

3/28 Summer Camp Open House for Bellevue Parks programs at Crossroads Community Center, 9am-1pm - help with registration and financial assistance is available

3/28 Dave and Busters Bunny Bash, 9-11am (link) - breakfast buffet, photo op, egg hunt, and game play packages

3/28 Link light rail Crosslake Connection opens, connecting Bellevue to Mercer Island and Seattle. BelRed's celebration will be noon-4pm (art, drumming, pottery painting, etc). Spring District will have a petting zoo, food trucks and vendor booths from 10am-3pm. Bellevue Downtown Station will have live music, food trucks and community booths (10am-2pm). South Bellevue's celebration (10am-2pm) will include live entertainment, food, children’s activities, community booths and a firetruck.  Mercer Island's new station has an opening celebration from 10am-2pm, and there are shuttles starting at 7am from South Bellevue that can get you to the ribbon cutting and street fair at Judkins Park in Seattle, and there will also be celebrations at International District/Chinatown in Seattle. There will be live music at Symphony and a library-hosted stop in Lynwood. In Redmond, there will be food provided by Microsoft and a cricket demonstration and chai truck at Marymoor. There will be a bucket hat prize for the first 1000 people who collect stamps at four new stations along the line. (link)

3/28 Seed Starting Tips and Techniques from BBG, 10-11:30am (link)

3/28 Future Aviator Pilots one-day camp for 3rd-12th grade at Museum of Flight in Seattle, $49 (Eventbrite)

3/28 Youth Workshop at BBG: Fairy Gardens, 1:30-3pm (link)

3/28 The Wedding Edit 2026: South Asian Wedding Showcase at Embassy Suites, 2-10pm (link) - floral mandaps, fashion show, cuisine, and DJ

3/28 For The Birds Concert at Eastshore Unitarian, 7-8:30pm, $20 (link)- Nelda Swigget Quintet performs original music and spoken words, with images

3/28 Newcastle Arts Council screening of All is Lost at Aegis Gardens in Newcastle, featuring Robert Redford, 7pm

3/28 Story Coffee Open Mic hosted by XAMA

3/29 Bellevue Book Club discusses The Housemaid by Freida McFadden, at Bellevue Library 11am-1pm (link)

3/30 Bellevue College Golf Scramble and Athletics Fundraiser, noon (link)

3/30 City of Bellevue Summer Camps Registration opens at noon (link) - see guide here

3/31 Deadline for responding to The Safe Speeds Bellevue Survey There are 10mph reductions proposed for W. Lake Sammamish Pkwy, part of Northrup and NE 20th, BelRed Rd, part of Kamber and SE 26th, Factoria Blvd, part of Newport Way, maybe others, and 5mph reductions in many places such as downtown, LWB, part of 114th,120th, 124th, 132nd, 148th, 140th, part of the Lake Hills Connector and many more. 

3/31 BDA Downtown Talks, 8am-9:30am

3/31 Leica Connect SL Experience with Gajan Balan, 5:30-6:30pm (link)

3/31 Bedtime Stories at the Newport Way Library for ages 0-5, 6:30-7pm (link) - recurs 4/28, and 5/26

4/1 Small Frye Storytime and Art at the Frye Museum in Seattle, 10:15am - repeats on first Wednesdays

4/1 Art Cart at Newport Way Library for ages 6+ to teens, 3-5pm (link) - recurs 5/6

4/2 Bellevue Network on Aging meeting at NBCC and virtual, 8:30-10:30am

4/2 Bellevue Chamber's Eastside Real Estate Symposium

4/4 New to Bellevue sustainability tour, 10am-noon (link) - visit Bellden Cafe, ride the 2 Line, and see BelRed Artist Studios, coffee and snacks provided

4/4 Eggstravaganza at Aldergate United Methodist Church, 10:30am-noon - event will have cookies, crafts, and more (allergen-friendly)

4/4 Spring Family Festival at Samena, with toddler and underwater egg hunts, noon-2:30pm (link)

4/4 HOP to Bellevue Old Bellevue Merchants family event, 1-3pm

4/4 Integirls Math Competition, virtual, 3pm (link)

4/4 Symphonic Fantasia performed by the Redmond Tech Orchestra at Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, some free tickets are available, 4-6pm (link)

4/6 Startup425 Startup and Small Business Coworking at Bellevue City Hall, 10:30am-2pm (link)

4/6 Build your own superhero art series at Samena, ages 10-14, 1-2pm, also on Wednesday and Friday, (link)

4/6-4/10 Spring Break Camp at Bellevue Youth Theatre (link)

4/6-4/17 Kidsquest has additional activities for Spring Break included with admission - active painting, games and gadgets, stories and Simon Says, circuits and tinkering, and clay creations. See website for schedule.

4/7 Dienstag Bier German Language Meetup at Applebees in BelRed, 7pm (link) - repeats 5/5

4/9 Packing with Sarah Murdoch event at Title Nine, 6:30-8pm

4/11 Black Girl Scout Magic Volunteer and Caregiver meetup, 11:30-1pm (link)

4/14 Bellevue Fiber Arts Club meets at NBCC

4/15 Networking After Hours with the Chamber and Akopyan Group, 5-6:30pm (link)

4/15 Greener Living Class: Repair and renew everyday items at the Lake Hills Library, free, pre-register, 6-7pm (link)

4/16 Chamber Lunch, 11:30-1pm (link)

4/18 Volunteer with the City of Bellevue to do an Earth Day cleanup at Wilburton Hill Park

4/18 EarthFest 2026 at Bellevue Botanical Garden, 11am-3pm (link)

4/18 Woodinville Spring Market Fair, 10am-4pm

4/18 Bellevue College Diamond Jubilee 60th Anniversary Gala, 5:30pm (link)

4/19-5/2 Seattle Restaurant Week includes many Bellevue restaurants

4/21 Quiet Reading Party at Bellevue Library, 5:30-7:30pm (link) - pizza will be provided

4/21 Greener Living Class: 3D printing replacement parts with the Bellevue Library Makerspace, free, pre-register, 6-7pm (link)

4/23 Seattle/Bellevue Apache DataFusion meetup at Databricks, 5:30-8pm (link)

4/23 Bellevue Womens' Book Club discusses  I Hope This Finds You Welll by Natalie Sue, 6:30-8:30pm (link)

4/24 Paint and Sip at NWAC: Hearts and Roses, 7-9pm

4/25 Master Gardener Foundation class: Fire Prevention for Your Yard at the Lake Hills Greenbelt, free, 10-11:30am (link)

4/25 Native Plant Sale at BBG, 10am-2pm

4/25 Sheep Shearing at Kelsey Creek Farm, 11am-4pm (link)

4/26 All In For Autism 5k at Downtown Park, family friendly, dogs welcome (link)

4/26 Spring Plant Vendor Sale at BBG, 10am-1pm

4/28 Bellevue LifeSpring's Step Up to the Plate benefit luncheon, 11am-1pm (link)

4/30 Greener Living Class: Swap Single Use Plastics, virtual class, free, pre-register, 6-7pm (link)

5/1-5/3 The Little Mermaid Jr at Theatre 33, performances at 6:30pm, 12pm, and 4pm (link)

5/1 Teen Lifeguard Skills Clinic with SPLASHForward, 8-9pm (link) do an endurance test and learn basic rescues, followed by a pizza social

5/2 Fuchsia and Daylily sale at BBG, 9am-2pm

5/2 Carnation Farms Spring Market in Carnation, 10am-3pm (link) - over 20 local artisan vendors, hourly crop and livestock tours, pizza oven, live music

5/5 PEPS Benefit Luncheon at Seattle Center, 11am-1pm (link)

5/6 Seattle Adult Casual Baseball starts season at Wilburton Hill Park, $99 for the 16 game season - every Wednesday from 6-8:30pm, registration is open now