Celebrate 2 Line Opening on April 27: Here's What's Happening at Bellevue Downtown Station

Celebrate 2 Line Opening on April 27:
Here's What's Happening at Bellevue Downtown Station

The wait is almost over. On April 27, the 2 Line segment will officially open to the public with new eight stations at South Bellevue, East Main, Bellevue Downtown, Wilburton, Spring District/120th, BelRed/130th, Overlake Village, and Redmond Technology and will eventually connect to Seattle over I-90. 

Want to be the first few people to experience the 2 Line? We invite you to join us for the opening celebration to explore a day full of special events at each station! Make the Bellevue Downtown Station your first stop, featuring a ribbon-cutting event on Bellevue City Hall Plaza at 10 a.m. for speeches from community leaders. Stick around and explore the family-fun stations, carnival games, a 'Spin2Win' prize wheel, an interactive display of the future Grand Connection crossing project, and so much more. Plus, enjoy live performances, indulge in delicious offerings from food trucks, and explore engaging booths from local organizations throughout the day-- all made possible through partnership and collaboration with community businesses and organization, supported by Amazon and City of Bellevue. See our long list of partners and the activities featured at the Bellevue Downtown Station below: 

Bellevue Arts Museum

Get to know Bellevue Arts Museum at their on-site booth during opening day! Get information about their current/future exhibits, and learn more about "Keep Bellevue Alive", a fundraising and donation campaign created to help keep BAM open in Downtown Bellevue. 

Bellevue Downtown Association

As one of the sole organizers for the 2 Line opening, the Bellevue Downtown Association (BDA) will be tabling at the event with information about future community events and a "Spin2Win" wheel featuring prizes from local businesses and organizations in Downtown. The BDA are people behind the place, the business and civic leaders who champion a healthy Downtown community. Established in 1974, they support its members with best-in-class advocacy, major community events, and strategic programs to help the Downtown area thrive.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Bellevue

Boys & Girls Clubs of Bellevue is bringing the carnival to Downtown. Come play some games and get your face painted. For more than 70 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of Bellevue has been committed to providing safe places for Bellevue’s youth when they are not in school. Targeting the neighborhoods that need us most, Clubs ensure all Eastside's children and teens have equal access to life-enhancing programming focused on academics, health, and leadership.

Choose Your Way Bellevue

Looking to increase your non-drive-alone options? Check out Choose Your Way Bellevue on opening day to gain informational resources available for Bellevue residents and workers. Choose Your Way Bellevue is an outreach program and information resource provided by the City of Bellevue, Washington. It is part of the city's effort to improve mobility through transportation demand management (TDM).

Choose Your Way Bellevue staff can answer your questions about transportation options, provide resources to make it easier to avoid driving alone and keep you up-to-date with transportation news affecting Bellevue.

City of Bellevue

The Grand Connection is a decade-long private-public partnership, and the City of Bellevue has additional information on the 1.5 mile corridor. The Grand Connection is a place-making initiative designed to improve the pedestrian experience between Meydenbauer Bay Park through downtown Bellevue across I-405 to Eastrail.

Friends of the Grand Connection

Step into the future and visit the Friends of the Grand Connection table to view a visual and interactive representation of the future Grand Connection crossing project that will eventually be built from Downtown Bellevue over I-405 to Eastrail in the Wilburton neighborhood. 

The Friends of the Grand Connection (FOGC) is a group of stakeholders who rallied together in 2023 to advance the vision for an iconic Grand Connection crossing over I-405 to a 2028 completion. More specifically, FOGC will be the lead group in both advocating for the project and assisting with fundraising. This is a goal-focused group that will build and maintain the project’s momentum by serving as the primary stakeholder organization working alongside the City of Bellevue and project's cheerleader promoting excitement and awareness.

King County Library System

Visit the King County Library System's (KCLS) booth to discover a wide variety of library programs, services and resources for all ages. They serve approximately 1.6 million residents in King County (outside the city of Seattle) with 50 libraries, two Makerspaces — one of which is at the Bellevue Library — mobile Library2Go vans and more! Stop by to browse the collection, use computers, copiers and printers, and attend an event. Or access their digital collection, virtual events, databases and streaming services online.

KidsQuest Children’s Museum

Let the kiddos enjoy Big Bubbles, Alka Seltzer Rocket painting, Stomp Rockets, Wind Tubes, Sling shot painting, Sticker tent, Face Paint, and Sidewalk chalk. KidsQuest Children's Museum is located in the heart of Bellevue and encourages learning through play with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM).KidsQuest currently serves approximately 200,000 people per year, and has had over two million visitors since opening in 2005.

Wheel Lab

Love to bike? Wheel Lab is providing your very own buildable bike modular kit. Wheel Lab combines these two passions together to develop a comprehensive after school program that provides a creative hands-on building experience for at-risk youth. With a majority of the school day focused on subjects like math and literacy, there is little time left for hands on experiences with prototyping, engineering and activities that build fine motor skills. WheelLab is here to fill that void.

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Entertainment Stage + Food Trucks

Alongside the plethora of activities, we'll also have an entertainment stage with performances from community groups that will provide musical/dancing entertainment! Stick around for lunch, here's our list of featured food trucks: Dick's Drive-In (11am-2pm), Famous Dave's BBQ, and The Village Perk Coffee. 

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This blog is part of the Heart of Bellevue: our campaign to showcase local businesses while connecting you with stories of activity, creativity and recovery. Find out about our campaign and explore more of what’s happening around Downtown.