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The Vuecrest View June 2023 First Day of Summer is June 21st In This Issue: Report Back on City of Bellevue Meeting MyBellevue City Service App Keep Your Contact Information Current Calendar Items Vuecrest Book Club Meetings (Meeting in Person) Vuecrest Monthly Board Meeting (Remote Access Below) Thursday, June 1st, 6:00P SAVE the DATE Vuecrest Annual Picnic, Saturday, August 12th, 4:00-7P Vuecrest LIFE-Neighbor to Neighbor Report Back on the City of Bellevue May 8th Meeting The city is proposing some changes that will affect our neighborhood. There were four of us who attended the meeting from Vuecrest. Our main advocate was Jonathan Kagle who has submitted a letter to the city council from our board of directors. Here are some details on the City Council’s proposal: It would allow an additional 25 feet to buildings on the perimeter of downtown in exchange for increased Affordable Housing. In Perimeter A-1 (the half block east of 100th), that means that there could be 75’ of living space, plus another 25’ for mechanical, rooftop decks, architectural roof treatments, etc. This would add another couple of stories beyond the height of Lux apartments, for example. It would increase the Floor Area Ratio by 1.0, which would allow more square footage through additional stories, no “step back” on higher floors There would need to be a 4:1 ratio of “market rate” housing to “affordable” housing for the new space enabled by this extension. This requirement only applies to the area created by the new “bonus” FAR and height. As an example, consider a proposal for 100 apartments in a five-story building under the current land use code; the proposed rule would allow a developer to add two stories, yielding 140 apartments, of which 8 would need to be “affordable”. One of the two developers that are actively pushing for this change is Pinnacle, the group that owns the QFC/Bartells property, the parking lot directly north it (across 10th), the apartments beyond that, and the lot directly north of LUX apartments on 100th. So this would have a fairly immediate impact near Vuecrest. The Vuecrest board is advocating for this change not to include Perimeter Overlay A-1, B-1, and B-2, as shown below: Here is Jonathan’s summation of the meeting: After hearing concerns from Vuecrest residents and comments from other Bellevue residents in support of our position, the City Council agreed to exempt Perimeter Overlay A-1 from the proposed change. This means that the properties immediately across 100th from Vuecrest will keep the same height and other requirements as before. However B-1 and B-2 will be subject to the increased height and density limits if they include Affordable Housing units covering at least 20% of the newly-added area. More details will be posted regarding this action (ORD 6736) here: City of Bellevue - Meeting of City Council Regular Meeting on 5/8/2023 at 6:00 PM (legistar.com) <https://bellevue.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1070205&GUID=12A51C52-DA4B-41D0-8532-A0D4B56CE8FF> Many thanks to the Vuecrest neighbors who showed up in person and via Zoom to support our efforts. MyBellevue City Service App MyBellevue is a mobile app that makes it possible for people to request services and access city news, jobs and social media easily with their smart phones and other portable devices. Here’s a link to get you there… https://bellevuewa.gov/city-government/departments/finance/mybellevue <https://bellevuewa.gov/city-government/departments/finance/mybellevue> Keep your Vuecrest Contact Information UP-TO-DATE Please make sure that your homeowner contact information, tenant information, and/or property management information is always up to date. Your information is not shared or distributed to any third party and is only used for your informational and safety benefit. Here’s how to update your information…Go to http://www.vuecrest.net/communicate/update-us <http://www.vuecrest.net/communicate/update-us>, Input your information, and click Submit. CALENDAR ITEMS: Vuecrest Book Club (Meeting IN PERSON) Vuecrest has its own Book Club and all residents are welcome to attend. We meet once a month at 7PM, usually on the first Monday, at various members’ homes. The VC Book Club has an “open-read” format, that is, there is no “chosen” book. We all gather to discuss what we had read since our last meeting. And for those too busy to read, feel free to come and enjoy the friendship and share a little wine and conversation with your neighbors. And you just might hear about a book you’d like to read in the future! Email Mara Pitkethly dtpit@uw.edu <mailto:dtpit@uw.edu> for details. Monthly Board Meeting (Remote) Thursday, June 1st at 6:00P This month’s board meeting will be held remotely. To join the meeting use the link or dial-in information below. Everyone is welcome to join. Please let the Directors know at least three days in advance if you will be bringing any items for discussion so they may be included in the agenda. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85976761516?pwd=Qkp3L2pxMjMrclpjemJBTmNUQWFSdz09 <https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85976761516?pwd=Qkp3L2pxMjMrclpjemJBTmNUQWFSdz09> Meeting ID: 859 7676 1516 Passcode: 930976 One tap mobile +12532050468,,85976761516#,,,,*930976# US +12532158782,,85976761516#,,,,*930976# US (Tacoma) Dial by your location +1 253 205 0468 US +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) +1 360 209 5623 US Meeting ID: 859 7676 1516 Passcode: 930976 Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdXWwlk64 <https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdXWwlk64> Vuecrest LIFE (Neighbor to Neighbor Communication) This space is available for your contributions. Please send them to newsletter@vuecrest.net <mailto:newsletter@vuecrest.net>. Pictures encouraged.