NBBJ was the lead urban design and planning consultant for the City of Bellevue, WA to define a long-range vision and development plan for the 310-acre Wilburton Commercial Area located adjacent to the city’s downtown central busi­ness district. The study is part of the Wilburton-Grand Connection study area and is positioned between Bellevue’s two growth areas of Downtown and the BelRed light rail transit corridor. Influenced by a number of infrastructure and transportation improvements, such as the East Link light rail, Eastside Rail Corridor and the proposed Grand Connection, the area is positioned as Bellevue’s next urban neighborhood.

The study purpose involves a review of the existing land use patterns of the Wilburton Commercial Area, and the analysis of potential changes to the City’s land use policies, zoning strategies, and design guidelines. A series of development scenarios were created and tested to determine acceptable levels of change in the area while addressing circulation and access, affordable housing and civic public space as a strat­egy to create a new downtown neighborhood in Bellevue. The study culminated with a set of development and design guidelines oriented toward improving public realm and infra­structure systems along with reinvestment strategies for opportunity properties within the Wilburton Commercial Area in Bellevue.