The Sustainable Bellevue Plan

Create a program to support multifamily, commercial, and mixed-use buildings on waste management, retrofits, green leases, EV charging infrastructure, and other efficiency measures.

Develop outreach and education programming to support residents and businesses in taking action to reduce emissions and environmental impact, with a focus on engagement with Bellevue’s most vulnerable communities.

Expand and enhance emergency communication tools to improve preparedness and response to climate impacts.

Coordinate with community partners to improve planning, communications, and training to increase climate readiness.

Perform a gap analysis of emergency response infrastructure and services delivered through existing City facilities and community organizations, to inform development of a resilience hub network.

Review utility-caused wildfire risks and best management practices, and develop collaborative mitigation strategies.

Develop community-wide metrics for measuring climate resilience based on 2023 Climate Vulnerability Assessment.

Facilitate and support installation of low- or no-emissions backup power and energy storage systems in critical facilities (healthcare facilities, cooling centers, community organizations, etc.).

Support building updates that protect against wildfire smoke (e.g., HVAC updates and MERV 13 filters for air intake) for nonprofit and other community facilities that serve high-risk populations.

Identify targeted areas within Bellevue for air pollution mitigation and assess feasible solutions and implementation pathways.

Develop a long-term funding strategy for the program that enables sustained action to meet outcomes.

Accelerate market transformation of residential space heating away from natural gas to heat pumps.

Support low-and-moderate-income households in adoption of heat pumps through loans and financial incentives.

Support residents accessing existing weatherization programs through Puget Sound Energy and King County Housing Authority and offer bundled weatherization measures with low-income heat pump installs.

Lay groundwork to support future widespread adoption of heat pump water heaters through investment in contractor education and a pilot incentive program.

Identify funding opportunities, partners, and incentives to reduce energy use in affordable housing buildings.

Explore approaches to increasing market awareness to home energy efficiency during home sales or other opportunities.

Support solar installations and storage on parking lots and buildings and with community solar projects.

Partner with utility to pilot demand response, virtual power plant (such as vehicle to building and vehicle to grid), and battery storage at community-facing facilities.

Offer technical assistance to support the development of thermal energy networks in building designs.

Expand technical assistance and incentives to multi-family and small commercial buildings through the Clean Buildings Incentive Program.

Engage in planning and rule-making of the WA State Clean Buildings Act to streamline compliance processes and accelerate decarbonization.

Develop and implement program to support energy efficiency retrofits of priority nonprofit facilities, to support Clean Buildings Act compliance and increase resiliency of community-serving facilities.

Support building code enhancements to advance decarbonization and resilience against climate impacts.

Incentivize new construction energy efficiency and green building that exceeds the state building code.

Provide technical assistance to incorporate green building and electrification into affordable housing.

Evaluate options and develop a program to incentivize green building for middle housing.

Promote PSE’s programs to manage peak load, such as conservation, energy efficiency, distributed energy resources, and Demand Response.

Collaborate with PSE and others to streamline planning for and delivery of any local grid updates.

Assess the feasibility and develop recommendations for implementation pathways for policies for accelerating decarbonization of existing commercial and multi-family buildings larger than 20,000 square feet.

Assess the feasibility and develop recommendations for implementation pathways for policies for accelerating existing residential and commercial buildings decarbonization smaller than 20,000 square feet.

Provide resources to residents and local businesses to help them comply with the State’s Organics Management Law.

Equitably conduct outreach and education activities to encourage students, residents, employees, and visitors to properly compost and recycle.

Support implementation of Extended Producer Responsibility law for Bellevue residential solid waste customers.

Leverage the citywide solid waste services contract renewal as an opportunity to advance Zero Waste goals.

Evaluate feasibility for developing a Deconstruction Policy.

Continue to build and foster regional partnerships to provide the community with convenient access to waste reduction and reuse practices.

Implement trip reduction program for large multifamily buildings, providing similar services as required for large employers under Washington’s Commute Trip Reduction Law.

Expand access to e-bikes through pilot equitable e-bike incentive program and/or support the establishment and operation of a shared micromobility service in Bellevue.

Support expansion of first/last mile transit access solutions, such as BellHop and MetroFlex, to better connect neighborhoods to the frequent transit network, light rail, and Stride bus rapid transit (BRT).

Expand access to publicly available EV charging by implementing the approach outlined in Bellevue’s Electric Vehicle Roadmap.

Partner with local organizations and transit providers to identify funding sources and opportunities to electrify buses and heavy-duty vehicles.

Implement program to provide EV charging incentives and technical assistance for multifamily housing and commercial property owners.

Reintroduce EV Readiness requirements for EV charging infrastructure in new multifamily and/or commercial buildings above state minimums.

Explore new funding sources to fund and implement capital projects including bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, transit speed and reliability projects, transit access projects.

Complete study assessing VMT reductions from different transportation investments to better incorporate climate goals into transportation planning.

Consider land use or other incentives for high-performing certified green affordable housing development (e.g. a super bonus).

Evaluate opportunities to restart a Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program for sites within Bellevue, which could be paired with other incentives or requirements for green building.

Assess feasible pathways to further reduce parking requirements in transit rich areas.

Ensure the Comprehensive Plan complies with all the requirements of HB 1181 and consider submitting for compliance early to lead by example and to increase competitiveness for state funding opportunities.

Continue planning and implementation of the Wilburton Sustainable District, such as pursuing LEED for Communities.

Create a citywide list of recommended tree species for planting in the right-of-way and on public and private property that meets current climate conditions and is updated as the best available science evolves.

Prioritize tree planting on public and private property in areas with low tree cover and/or high heat vulnerability to ensure the benefits of tree canopy are equitably distributed throughout Bellevue.

Monitor impacts of updated tree code and explore need for city arborist or urban forester resource to support tree canopy management and tree code implementation.

Support private landowners in managing Native Growth Protection Areas (NGPAs) to support the health of Bellevue’s tree canopy and urban forest.

Continue targeted land acquisitions to support walkable access to parks and open spaces.

Pilot programs to mitigate pollution from gas-powered yard equipment such as buy-back programs, education, and demonstrations of city operations.

Evaluate options for phasing out gas-powered yard equipment, taking into consideration costs, benefits, technology trends, and operational impacts for residential and commercial uses.

Implement land use code requirements and/or incentives to increase low-impact development (LID) projects in new development and reduce impervious surfaces and stormwater runoff with redevelopment.

Evaluate strategies for incentivizing green stormwater infrastructure retrofits on existing properties, to support stormwater quality and stream health.

Implement retrofit projects identified in the Stormwater Capital Improvement Program to expand green infrastructure and stormwater management.

Create a community drought preparedness pilot public education program with Cascade Water Alliance to improve drought resilience.

Create a pilot program to accelerate the uptake of low-water and sustainable landscaping practices and green infrastructure among community members to reduce water use in community lawncare and landscaping.