First Look: Amazon's Office Tower Expansion

Amazon shared design renderings for the second phase of its expanded office space in Bellevue, WA.

In order accommodate its growing workforce, the company is expanding its Northwest footprint with a series of leases and new spaces in Bellevue, including signing a lease for a 600,000-square-foot building, known as The Artise, last month.

Containing two office buildings for more than 7,000 employees, meanwhile, the Bellevue 600 location sits on 3.5 acres, and Amazon has already begun construction on the first tower.

The 31-story second tower will include mixed-use office space, meeting rooms and informal gathering areas. It will also have an 8,000-square-foot retail and exhibition space on the ground floor, as well as 14,000 square feet of street-level retail space and a new daycare center, all featuring public access.  

Other construction plans include an ADA-accessible, 16-foot-wide walking path; an elevated bike path with about 1,000 on-site bike storage stalls; and more than 1,700 underground parking spaces.

Amazon said it’s working closely with city and local agencies to ensure the project uses low-maintenance native landscaping and appropriate construction materials, noting that the new buildings will be electric and will leverage graywater capture to reduce water use.

It’s also established a $2 billion Housing Equity Fund to create and preserve housing for moderate- to low-income families. The first $185.5 million investment was dedicated to below-market loans and grants to King County Housing Authority to preserve up to 1,000 affordable homes in the area Bellevue.