City of Bellevue Offers Assistance for Reopening Businesses

City of Bellevue Offers Assistance for Reopening Businesses

The City of Bellevue’s economic development team has rolled out new support options to help business and organizations reopen safely. City staff are available to advise businesses in adapting operations in line with public health requirements, clarify regulations and answer reopening questions.

The City has also sped up the permitting process to allow for more flexible options, including expanded outdoor seating for restaurants and curbside pickup space for retailers. Examples of those who will benefit from streamlined permitting include:

• Restaurant owners who wish to expand their patio dining space onto a sidewalk or into a parking area to add more tables while maintaining social distance between customers.
• Arts and cultural nonprofits interested in using a parking lot for a drive-in event to continue serving residents.
• Retail businesses in need of some space for curbside pickup of online orders.

Economic development experts at the City have seen growing interest in new resources and expect to continue to pivot resources and create new flexibility as they can. City staff encourage businesses to share feedback with the City to help inform areas needing change and additional opportunities to assist.

“We can’t underestimate the importance of hearing from our business and nonprofit community as we navigate this unprecedented time together and work to support each other through recovery,” said Bellevue Chief Economic Development Officer Jesse Canedo. “Their input helps us assess, plan and evolve our range of support actions to best capitalize on the opportunities offered at each stage of reopening.”

Reopening businesses, organizations and sole proprietors can also take advantage of existing resources, including free one-on-one business technical advising from (re)Startup425 – a collaborative between the City of Bellevue and partner organizations, including the Bellevue Downtown Association. For more information on current resources, visit our COVID-19 Resources page.