It’s difficult to miss the incredible growth of Bellevue. Once overshadowed by its big-city neighbor across Lake Washington, Bellevue has become a world-class economic power all its own while weaving a rich tapestry of social, cultural and environmental benefits in which to live, play and work.
This exciting dynamic between people and place is more captivating now that the city has welcomed a new neighbor – Avenue Bellevue. Centered in the heart of the city, Avenue Bellevue features twin towers – named Residences and Estates – with a sparkling five-star InterContinental Hotel, bespoke shops promising a European flair and exceptional dining all within this community.
Rising 25 stories and comprising 224 luxury homes, Residences offers the best of amenities. They include an open kitchen and eating area, lounge with widescreen TV and game table – a great hub for socializing with neighbors or entertaining guests. An adjacent landscaped terrace offers areas to meet and eat that are surprisingly quiet for an urban setting. Sharing the second-floor amenity space, residents can get their workout in at the state-of-the-art fitness center, which includes separate areas for yoga and cycle training. There is also dedicated space for your four-legged family members.
Ranging from studio to two-bedroom plans, each residence offers internationally curated designs from Gaggenau, Caesarstone and Ernestomeda that marvelously blend steel, stone and wood. Interiors come in contemporary tones of either linen or suede – making the home feel warm and welcoming the moment you enter. Complemented by floor-to-ceiling windows and balcony, the level of craftsmanship inside and out is clear:
Fine art takes time to produce. Avenue Bellevue broke ground in 2019, having been the vision of Fortress Development since 2015. Like many construction projects in recent years, this one faced obstacles along the way, including pandemic-induced, supply-chain hiccups and a concrete workers strike.
Fortress founder and CEO Andy Lakha has an eclectic background that includes owning a famous Chicago nightclub and more recently dozens of shopping centers and gas stations. Born in India, the billionaire now calls Bellevue home, arriving in this corner of the country in the 1990s from Los Angeles.
Lakha understands the importance of making connections in business as well as allowing people to gather and create memories. The forward-looking design of Avenue Bellevue and the commercial/residential makeup of this blended footprint could be seen as a capstone on Lakha’s resume – club owner (which was in his dad’s name because he was too young), music promoter, talent booker, land mogul and now construction developer. All people-focused ventures.
Lakha has called this $1B+ mixed-use community at the intersection of Northeast 8th Street and Bellevue Way Northeast “the biggest and most important project of my life.” It is also at the intersection of success and status in an energized city.
People connect in their community through the convergence of home, life and work. Bellevue is the center of an explosion of these elements, with Amazon promising to attract 25,000 workers to this city, joining PACCAR, Eddie Bauer, Meta and T-Mobile nearby as stalwarts within this juggernaut of enterprise success.
Avenue Bellevue will become an integral part of this community’s connection. Spontaneous interactions within its welcoming town square-styled plaza – or “avenue” – delivering diverse food and shopping experiences, and common spaces within the condo will all help create a dynamic environment. The convergence of people, ideas and resources will help foster a culture of experimentation and creativity – one where the best and brightest will want to explore.
Looking beyond these grounds, Avenue Bellevue is within walking distance of countless shops, restaurants, bars and entertainment options. The city also offers a world-class art museum, a 21-acre downtown park with water feature, convention center and (quite soon) a public-transit connector to Seattle and the airport via Link light rail.
This dynamic interplay between people and their environment is what makes urban life so captivating and energizing. People are the measure of a city’s success and it’s a sure bet that Bellevue will be further enriched by the addition of this newest achievement – Avenue Bellevue.
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This blog post is not a paid endorsement of Avenue Bellevue. It is an opportunity to provide fresh insights into local real estate developments from the perspective of a real estate professional living and working in Seattle/King County. Contact me to learn more about Avenue Bellevue.