When it became evident that the Bellevue High School renovation project was continuing forward with little consideration for the concerns from the nearly 600 families who reside to the south and east of the school, the Bellecrest Neighborhood Association, Surrey Downs Community Club and Westwood Neighborhood joined together and formed The Neighborhood Alliance for Community Planning (NACP). All three groups are impacted by the use of 108th Ave SE.
The plans for the new Bellevue High building have never been at issue for the NACP. If you haven’t seen what is being proposed by the school district, you should. The building and grounds are going to make you want to go back to school. It is gorgeous and we enthusiastically support it.
However, the communities surrounding the school should have been included in the “front-end” planning process that has been adopted by the Bellevue School District. Instead, when we asked for a seat at the planning table, high-level administrators at the high school determined that it was “inappropriate” for the neighborhoods impacted by the remodel to be involved.
The Bellevue High School Renovation Steering Committee has over 17 members, including PTSA and school district representatives, school administrators and high school staff – but no homeowners from the surrounding communities.
Ted Cox is both a science teacher at BHS as well as a member of the steering committee. It is unfortunate that he did not disclose this information when making comments and accusations in his recent letter to the editor in the Bellevue Reporter regarding this issue.
One issue has never been resolved and continues to be our main focus – the movement of school traffic from Bellevue Way, a four-lane major arterial, to 108th Avenue Southeast, a neighborhood two-lane street that is bordered by single family residence driveways.
The design that was chosen by the BHS Steering Committee includes major changes from the current configuration of the school. The majority of the student parking will be permanently moved from the west to the east side of the school site resulting in a design that includes a new second driveway off of 108th Avenue Southeast to accommodate the new parking lot. This is a purposeful introduction of a 57 percent increase in traffic on 108th Avenue Southeast, a street already modified by the city to discourage increased traffic by the addition of speed bumps requiring 15 mph speeds and traffic revisions at Main Street. This is a significant change in the long-standing land use of the school.
Bellevue residents have the responsibility to voice any concerns about city projects. Absent an inclusive process, groups will form to raise a strong and common voice. The maintenance of a successful and long-standing relationship between Bellevue High and surrounding neighborhoods is our aim as members of the NACP. Collaboration to address these concerns, seeking possible solutions and working toward a win-win solution is and has always been our number one goal.
John Chesemore lives in Bellevue.
