By Meghan Hall
As tech expansion continued rapidly into Bellevue over the course of 2019, development opportunities became increasingly rare. However, heading into 2020, new investment opportunities continue to emerge. A high-rise development opportunity development at 88 Bellevue has been brought to market according to an offering brochure obtained by The Registry. The property, called 88 Bellevue, totals 3.3-acres. Guidance pricing was not immediately available.
According to public records, the property is composed of two parcels owned by Lakeside Holdings LTD. Lakeside acquired the assets via a transfer into a wholly-owned partnership back in 1998. Previously, the property sold for $2.35 million at the end of 1993.
Located at 44/102 Bellevue Way NE, the lot size totals about 144,146 square feet and could accommodate several different development options: all residential, all office or mixed-use. The all-residential scheme could accommodate a 24-story high-rise with 753 housing units averaging 720 square feet, 100,000 square feet of retail and 950 parking stalls. The all office option would include the same amount of retail, but 722,756 square feet of office and 2,106 parking stalls. The mixed-use option could include not just residential and office, but also hotel and retail. Plans could include 166 residential units, roughly 185,000 square feet of office, 125,000 square feet of retail and a 200-key hotel, all spread across two towers. 1,200 parking stalls could also be included.
The parcel has a walk score of 88, and is just outside Bellevue’s central business district, where in recent months, developers and major firms alike have been queuing up for space. Within walking distance of the property is the Bellevue Collection, a 5.5 million square foot shopping mall, Old Bellevue and downtown’s multi-block park. The project is also adjacent to one of Amazon’s several projects within Bellevue.
“88 Bellevue presents a rare development opportunity of scale in the heart of downtown Bellevue,” states CBRE in offering documents. “Walkability, coupled with proximity to major employers, will demand top-of-market rents or condo pricing, attracting Bellevue’s most affluent tenants.”
At the end of 2019, the Bellevue CBD had the highest asking rents of any submarket in the Puget Sound when it came to office space, according to a fourth quarter office report issued by CBRE. Downtown Bellevue also had roughly 9.5 million square feet of net rentable office area and a direct vacancy rate of 3.3 percent. And, as employers have taken space near downtown, thousands of new employees will continue to fuel a need for housing.
As of this writing, CBRE has not yet returned The Registry’s request for comment.
