Parking Reform LUCA: Five Fixes We Still Want in Bellevue's Parking Code

Bellevue Chamber of Commerce  |  July 21, 2026

Bellevue is rewriting the rules that decide how much off-street parking a development has to build. On July 21, ahead of the Planning Commission's public hearing the following evening, our PLUSH Committee submitted written comments on the Parking Reform land use code amendment, crediting what the strike draft got right and auditing it against our January 13 letter to City Council.

What the strike draft gets right

Two changes stand out. The draft replaces the district-by-district use tables with a single citywide commercial parking standard. It also retires outdated ratios, including the 14 to 16 stalls per 1,000 net square feet Bellevue has required of restaurants, a standard we flagged in January.

Five asks that did not make the draft

Scope of the minimum elimination. The draft exempts commercial uses under 3,000 gross square feet rather than the first 2,500 we proposed, plus accessory dwelling units, middle housing, and rooming houses within a half mile of a major transit stop. Standard commercial, industrial, and most residential minimums stay in place citywide. We asked for a broader removal in growth centers and frequent-transit areas.

Visitor parking. Subsection F.1.i keeps a requirement of one visitor stall per 20 units, minimum one stall, for developments of seven or more units in Downtown or the East Main TOD district. We argued this contradicts the Comprehensive Plan's goal of "reduc[ing] parking requirements in areas with good access to transit and active transportation facilities" (p. LU-17), and raises compliance concerns under SB 5184, which bars requiring more than 0.5 spaces per multifamily unit, and HB 1491, which bars requiring off-street parking within a half mile of a bus stop or train station.

Retrofit flexibility. Subsection B.1.b retains parking requirements for a change of use between residential uses, even as the draft exempts nonresidential conversions. We asked that the carve-out be revisited so buildings converting between residential uses are not required to backfill parking to current minimums.

Cooperative parking. The Alternative Parking Configurations section addresses shared and off-site parking but does not treat cooperative parking among multiple property owners as a distinct arrangement. We asked for it to be named explicitly.

Departures in all zones. A departure pathway for parking minimums exists, but only where Design Review is otherwise required.

"If Design Review is not required for a development, then no administrative departure may be granted." — Bellevue Land Use Code 20.30H.115, quoted in the Chamber's July 21 letter

We asked for a standalone administrative process that does not depend on Design Review.

What happens next

At the July 22 hearing, Nava Carlyle, our Public Policy Specialist, carried three of these asks into oral testimony: visitor parking, minimums in growth centers and frequent-transit areas, and the departure pathway. The Commission's recommendation goes to City Council next.