By Jack Stubbs
On Thursday, November 29th, a one-acre property on the northeast corner of Bellevue Square—at the site of Kemper Development Company’s planned expansion of the Bellevue Square Shopping complex—sold for $17.5 million, King County records show. The buyer was Bellevue-based Kemper Development Company and the seller was Ditty Properties, a real estate company based in Kirkland. The transaction was recorded on December 3rd.
According to a representative from Kemper Development Company, the recent transaction reflects the company’s exercise of a ground-lease on the site.
The recent sale was for a one-acre parcel, located at 421 Bellevue Way NE, that currently contains a parking lot, according to public documents. The property is located at the corner of NE 4th Street and Bellevue Way NE and is adjacent to Bellevue Downtown Park.
Downtown Bellevue is set to be transformed in the coming months by the multi-phase, 1.2 billion Bellevue Collection project—consisting of Bellevue Square, Bellevue Place and Lincoln Square—which is set to expand its overall footprint by 41 acres. The in-the-works Bellevue Square Expansion follows Kemper Development Company’s expansion of 1.5 million square foot expansion of Lincoln Square, which included 700,000 square feet of Class A office space, 180,000 square feet of retail and a 245-room hotel, which opened in Spring 2017.
According to the property description of the Bellevue Square Expansion on Bellevue Downtown Association’s web site, the 500,000 square foot revamp project will ultimately include 175,000 square feet of luxury retail space, a 140-room hotel, a 250-unit high-rise tower, and 1,500 parking spaces.
Kemper Development Company regards Bellevue Square as one of the foremost shopping destinations in the area and the focal point of the Bellevue Collection. “Bellevue Square is one of the best-performing shopping destinations in the country,” the company’s web site states. “As The Collection’s major retail driver, Bellevue Square is anchored by a top performing Nordstrom in the U.S. and enjoys a legacy of more than 60 years of continued sales growth.”
Elsewhere in downtown Bellevue, Vulcan Real Estate is planning a three-phase office project that could total up to one million square feet in three 16-story towers. The development, which is currently home to the 60,000 square foot Bellevue Plaz retail complex located at 117 106th Ave NE, will ultimately include between 25,000 and 30,000 square feet of retail space.
The project team—which also includes Graphite Design Group, Compton Design Office and GLY Construction—will not break ground on the development until at least third quarter 2020, and while the developer has not yet submitted full project plans to the city of Bellevue, it has applied for a Master Development Permit and has submitted for administrative design review for the first phase of the project.
