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! SUPER IMPORTANT ↓ ! 

Send an e-mail to Liz Stead, Bellevue's Land Use Director

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The City of Bellevue's Land Use Director, Liz Stead, is currently considering a proposal that would see retail space at Sunset Village demolished to make way for yet another auto dealership by Lithia in Eastgate.

Eastgate definitely doesn't need five dealerships, and nor do car dealerships need to become the defining characteristic of Eastgate more than they are already at the expense of the very little retail we have left for small independent businesses.

An additional dealership on this site entails the City signing off on a "non-conforming use." 

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Sunset Village’s retail space is currently home to well-frequented local small businesses that serve neighborhoods on both sides of I-90 and beyond. It is conveniently situated and easily accessed by Bellevue residents traveling on the 148th/150th N-S conduit, a primary North-South arterial for neighborhoods in South and East Bellevue. This sunny, south-facing retail center, within a walking distance of Bellevue College and numerous corporate offices, provides highly in-demand spaces for a number of small businesses, and its long-standing tenants have done well, serving the local community in various ways. Moreover, it is also easily accessible for travelers on I-90. 

The current retail mix at Sunset Village is the type that the City of Bellevue heavily promotes and advocates for and wants to preserve in its planning — it is community-friendly and accessible to motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists alike. In fact, the pedestrian/cyclist bridge adjacent to this property serves just this purpose. 

The current zoning has created a Sunset Village retail center with businesses where you can get a haircut, pick up lunch, order takeout dinner for the family, celebrate a soccer win with ice cream, stop by for coffee on a weekend afternoon, get a flu shot, and more. This use of the location enriches the daily lives of nearby residents. Can you say that about yet another auto dealership in Eastgate? Not at all!

Further, this proposal is inconsistent with the purpose of a Community Business (CB) Zone: Community Business zones are intended as an alternative to downtown retail areas. Auto sales are not a permitted outright use in CB zones. Expanding auto sales in Eastgate, already dense with such businesses, contradicts the purpose of a Community Business zone as part of Bellevue's Comprehensive Plan for the Eastgate Subarea.

The new auto dealership would replace the following long-standing neighborhood small businesses that are nearly all locally-owned and operated:

• Dairy Queen
• India Gate
• Subway
• Cypress Coffee
• Teriyaki & More
• Desert Book
• Overlake Family Medicine
• Salon Monette

What's further ironic here is according to Statista data from 2020, online car sales are projected to grow by 50% by 2035 worldwide – suggesting traditional car dealerships may become less relevant over time. In other words, Lithia's project is entirely short sighted. 

While the tenants may change over the years, it is virtually a guarantee that any small business located at the Sunset Village site will find success and relevance in the community. Just as the current businesses serve as local gathering spots now, any version of Sunset Village as a retail center will continue to fill this important community purpose for nearby neighborhoods of Bellevue. 

Finally, we are concerned that the approval of the Land Use Amendment sets the wrong precedent in the City of Bellevue — that neighborhood-oriented retail space and local gathering spots can be torn down overnight, years of City Planning and Zoning quietly amended, only to be replaced with something that doesn’t serve the local community.  

Given these points, we strongly urge the City’s Development Services to deny the Land Use Amendment. It is vital that development in Bellevue reflects the needs and values of its neighborhoods’ residents.

Sign this petition today to stand up against this proposal and protect our neighborhood's unique identity and economic vitality. Let's show City of Bellevue Land Use that we value our local retailers more than another auto dealership in Eastgate.