PLUSH Recap: MFTE Cap Pushback, Permit Progress, and Downtown Livability 2.0

Bellevue Chamber of Commerce  |  April 29, 2026

The PLUSH Committee met April 28 to set its agenda for a busy two weeks ahead: a coordinated push against a proposed 1,500-unit cap on Bellevue's MFTE catalyst program before the May 5 City Council study session, a permit-volume update from Bellevue Development Services Director Jake Hesselgesser showing first-review timeliness climbing from 72 percent to 83 percent, and a Bel-Red zoning overlay debate over public-versus-private streets ahead of the May 27 Planning Commission meeting.

Permit Volumes Are Climbing, and So Is the City's Pace

Hesselgesser walked the Committee through Q1 2026 numbers and the Development Services continuous-improvement program built around the city's "building the best Bellevue together" vision. The department crossed 18,000 development permit applications in 2025 for the first time, and his team rolled out a new middle housing permit aligned with HB 1110, deployed two AI assistants for staff researching code and tracking permits, and launched a Small Business Concierge Program with dedicated program manager handling pre-lease due diligence, feasibility intake, and a permitting playbook for member businesses.

Members also heard a clear measurable result: the share of permits meeting their first-review target jumped from 72 percent in 2025 to 83 percent in Q1 2026, with new zoning unlocked in Wilburton, Bel-Red, and Downtown Livability 2.0 expected to push volumes higher.

"This is an existential rethinking of the way they do business, and it is really permeating everything that they're doing." — Joe Fain, Bellevue Chamber

Bel-Red Zoning: Public Streets, with Flexibility

Also on the agenda, Committee Chair Jessica Clawson briefed members on the April 22 Planning Commission discussion of the Bel-Red Land Use Code Amendment. The Chamber's letter, drafted with PLUSH input, argued for a more flexible public-street network over the staff-preferred private-street option, and the commission ultimately leaned toward more public streets with design flexibility for difficult sites. The next study session is May 27, with a public hearing targeted for July.

The MFTE Catalyst Cap and the Road to May 5

Lastly, Clawson laid out the city's preferred MFTE proposal heading into the May 5 Council study session: a six-year catalyst supercharger paired with a 1,500-unit cap. PLUSH aligned formally to oppose the unit cap and to support a six-year supercharger without limits, arguing that the cap makes the program too small to actually catalyze the housing the Bel-Red, Wilburton, and Downtown Livability districts were rezoned to deliver.

CEO Joe Fain told the Committee the Chamber is prepared to take the fight further if the Council adopts an MFTE structure that does not pencil:

On the same May 5 agenda, the Council will initiate the Downtown Livability 2.0 update. Clawson urged members to send code-cleanup priorities to her or Diana Leo before the meeting. 

PLUSH committee members can submit Downtown Livability 2.0 input through May 4. The next PLUSH Committee meeting will be on May 28th.