Published February 24 2025
As part of the 2025 Affordable Housing Strategy Update, the City of Bellevue’s newly launched Office of Housing has partnered with the Better Cities Film Festival to present a night of short films showcasing the world’s most inspiring stories about making better cities, towns and neighborhoods for all.
The event will take place Thursday, March 6, at City Hall, in the council chamber. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and the screening will start at 6. The city will host small group discussions immediately after the films, during which attendees can share their takeaways.
“Bellevue is not alone in its efforts to ensure affordable housing exists for a range of income levels,” said Mayor Lynne Robinson. “This unique event will highlight places across the world that are finding innovative solutions to create accessible, affordable communities, and allow us all to learn about potential possibilities for our city.”
Registration for Bellevue’s Better Cities Film Festival is required. The collection of short films will be screened in English, with options for captions in English, Spanish, Mandarin or Korean. For interpretation, please contact Brooke Brod at least 48 hours in advance at 425-452-6930 or bbrod@bellevuewa.gov.
The city recently combined housing and homelessness outreach staff into the citywide Office of Housing to tackle the City Council’s priorities of increased housing affordability, availability and options. Near-term areas of focus include accelerating affordable housing opportunities on city-owned properties, streamlining city processes to support the creation and preservation of affordable housing and leveraging resources to invest in developing additional affordable housing units.
Along with leading the update of the Affordable Housing Strategy, the centralized housing team has already begun working on action items to advance affordable housing initiatives and will be holding multiple public engagement events like this film screening to share information with the community and city partners.
To learn more about this event or the 2025 Affordable Housing Strategy, visit EngagingBellevue.com or contact Hannah Bahnmiller at hbahnmille@bellevuewa.gov.