Bellevue is widely recognized as a high-quality place to live and work, attracting highly educated individuals and high-wage jobs. The Economic Development Plan guides the city's continued efforts to strengthen and diversify the Bellevue economy for the good of existing and future residents and businesses. The current plan was adopted in 2026. Building directly on the City Council’s 2024 Vision & Priorities, which identified a Vibrant Economy as a Strategic Target Area (STA), this updated plan provides a strategic roadmap to achieve the STA objectives in alignment with Bellevue’s 2044 Comprehensive Plan: Building a Livable City for All.
Key Objectives
Below are the Vibrant Economy STA objectives, which serve as the strategic framework for this plan:
- Maintain and grow a diverse, thriving economy that can better withstand fluctuating regional, national and global conditions.
- Support large and small businesses, including women/veteran/minority-owned businesses, by providing the resources and regulations that businesses need to start, stay, grow and thrive in Bellevue.
- Identify and strategically implement financial mechanisms to spur/initiate growth in public and private investment.
- Identify and enhance workforce development partnerships and efforts and actively serve as a conduit to residents, businesses and resource partners to attract, retain and engage a talented workforce of various ages, skill sets and backgrounds to support a diverse, inclusive and growing economy.
- Strategically invest in services and systems that support residents, entrepreneurs, workers and learners from historically marginalized communities, ensuring they have access to resources and opportunities that enable them to achieve their economic potential.
- Build up Bellevue’s arts providers’ organizational capacity to increase the breadth and depth of artistic and entertainment offerings for Bellevue’s residents and visitors.
Plan Update Process
August 2024
Plan Update Launch
August - December 2024
Phase I: Visioning
Align the City's priorities and guiding principles for the plan update
January - March 2025
Phase II: Request for Proposals, Consultant Selection and Onboarding
March - June 2025
Phase III: Data Analysis and Community Engagement
June - December 2025
Phase IV: Plan Drafting and Development
- September 2025
Council received an update from staff on the Data Analysis and Community Engagement Report - October - December 2025
Developed strategies and actions; prepared the recommended plan
February 2026
Council reviewed the plan and directed staff to begin preparing legislation for adoption
April 2026
Council formally adopted the Economic Development Plan
Background Documents
Current Documents
Historical Documents
- Economic Development Plan (2014)
- Economic Development - Bellevue Comprehensive Plan (2015)
- Creative Edge Report (2018)
- Creative Edge Strategy (2018)
- Startup 425 Report (2019)
- Economic Development Plan (2020)
- Economic Development Plan - Appendix (2020)