Public library · Downtown
Bellevue Library
The 80,000-square-foot Bellevue Library is the largest branch in the King County Library System.
The Bellevue Library is the flagship branch of the King County Library System (KCLS) and, at roughly 80,000 square feet, the largest library in the system. It serves downtown Bellevue and the broader Eastside with extensive collections, study and meeting spaces, and community programming.
Designed by the Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership, the current building opened on July 1, 1993, following groundbreaking in April 1992. Its architecture emphasizes natural light through large windows and skylights. The branch celebrated its centennial in 2025, tracing library service in Bellevue back roughly a century.
The library underwent a window-replacement and maintenance project in 2024 that temporarily closed the building. It anchors downtown Bellevue's civic and cultural core alongside KidsQuest Children's Museum and Bellevue Arts Museum.
More in Downtown
See all →2 Line (East Link Light Rail)
Downtown
Sound Transit's 33-mile light rail line linking Seattle to the Eastside, with eight stations in and near Bellevue.
- Length
- 33 miles
- Operator
- Sound Transit
- Bellevue stations
- 6
Bellevue Arts Museum
Downtown
Steven Holl-designed art, craft and design museum in downtown Bellevue, a landmark of the city's pedestrian corridor.
- Type
- Art, craft and design museum
- Building opened
- 2001
- Architect
- Steven Holl
Bellevue City Hall
Downtown
Bellevue's nine-story city hall, a former telephone-company building reopened as municipal headquarters in 2006.
- Type
- City hall / government
- Building completed
- 1983 (as Pacific NW Bell)
- City reopened as City Hall
- 2006
Bellevue Downtown Station
Downtown
The 2 Line's downtown station in a retained cut beside Bellevue City Hall, at the east end of a tunnel under the city.
- Opened
- April 27, 2024
- Line
- 2 Line
- Type
- Retained cut