Where do you buy a Glassybaby votive in Bellevue starting Thursday? Not at the corner of Main Street, where the store had been open since October 2009. It now sits at 1048 116th Avenue NE, inside the Design Market complex across from Overlake Hospital, between California Closets and Marci Jewelry. On opening day, October 1, Moonbee Matcha is running a pop-up matcha cafe in the store from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The new space is bigger than the old Main Street storefront.
Two weeks later, Veritables closes its doors at 10220 Main Street after 18 years. Both shops sit on the same block, and that block is where Old Bellevue's Main Street is changing. This summer the City Council passed rules meant to protect the district's character. Those rules cover the street's buildings and its scale. They don't cover the businesses inside those buildings, and they don't apply to this block at all.
One block, six businesses in the path
The block in question is the planned site of North of Main, a Vander Hoek Corporation project at Main Street and 103rd Avenue Northeast. Plans filed with the city call for 176 market-rate apartments, 10,363 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and 154 parking stalls on about 0.71 acres. Every existing building on the site is set to be removed.
Here is where the businesses on that block stand as of the end of September:
| Business | Main Street address | Status |
|---|---|---|
| La Ree Boutique | North of Main block | Closed Sept. 25, 2025, after 20 years |
| Glassybaby | 10230 Main St | Moved; reopens Oct. 1 at 1048 116th Ave NE |
| Veritables | 10220 Main St | Closes Oct. 15, 2026; no new location announced |
| Araya's Place, Lavender Spa, Matcha Magic | North of Main block | Named as in the project's path; plans not stated in the reports |
The timing is still open. The developer's project page lists North of Main as "currently permitting" and gives no construction start date. Earlier coverage mentioned a possible start in early 2026. That window has passed with no groundbreaking reported. So the block is emptying out before anyone knows when work begins.
Veritables owner Marie Harris said the building's owners decided to redevelop, and the decision was out of her hands. The closing sale started September 14, with everything marked down 50 percent or more. The shop is open seven days a week, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., through October 15. It has been a regular stop on the Old Bellevue wine walk, most recently in May. Harris plans to take some time off, go on buying trips for pop-ups and look for a new location. In her announcement she wrote:
"This is not the last chapter."
She hasn't named a location or a timeline for the pop-ups yet.
The rule written for Main Street, and the block it skips
Bellevue's response to this block applies everywhere on Main Street except this block. On February 10, the City Council voted 4-3 to adopt an interim official control for Main Street between 100th Avenue NE and Bellevue Way. Under it, new development has to be compatible with neighboring buildings and fit the area's established design. A facade more than 50 years old can come down only if the owner shows it has no historic or cultural value.
In July the council voted unanimously to extend those rules through February 2027. Property owners and developers had raised concerns about compliance costs and vague design requirements, so the council also revised the rules to spell out the standards more clearly and added incentives for developers who preserve existing facades.
North of Main is the proposal that partly prompted the rules. It had already vested under the earlier zoning, so it goes forward unaffected. The interim control applies only to Main Street properties that hadn't yet entered permitting. None of the buildings in the corridor has official historic landmark status at the state or national level.
The second limit matters more for anyone who shops on Main Street. Downtown Bellevue Network reports that the regulations don't require developers to keep existing businesses or tenants, and the city doesn't have the authority to make property owners keep specific commercial tenants through a redevelopment. Permanent rules may eventually shape building size, scale or design. Tenant retention stays outside what the city can regulate.
In practice, the rules protect the look of Main Street. A 50-year-old facade elsewhere on the street now needs a case made before it can come down. The shop behind that facade has the same protection it always had, which is whatever its lease says.
The second front at Bellevue Way
The North of Main block isn't the only spot changing. At the corridor's eastern end, the 12 Bellevue Way SE apartment project has already closed two businesses: Shri Krishna Bhavan at 13 Bellevue Way SE and the 7-Eleven at 100 Bellevue Way SE. Shri Krishna Bhavan was open by late January 2026 and shut by late August, which made it one of the shortest restaurant runs at that intersection.
SRM Development told Downtown Bellevue Network it aims to start construction late in the fourth quarter of 2026. That puts the eastern project on track to break ground first, even though North of Main is the one that prompted Bellevue's rules. The same report names Bella Cleaners and Premier Nails & Spa as tenants in the strip mall, without saying what happens to them. This is a different project from North of Main, at the southeast corner of Bellevue Way and Main.
What still anchors the street
Most of Main Street is open for business, including the places that tend to get mentioned in the same breath as Old Bellevue.
- Bis on Main, 10213 Main St, has been on the street since 1998. At Bellevue Crab Week in August, chef Bobby Moore won the "Crabbiest Dish" award.
- Monsoon Bellevue, 10245 Main St, ran a Crab Week special in August 2026 and is still drawing diner reviews this month.
- Gin & The Banker, the fine designer jewelry store from La Ree Boutique founder Rachael Nov, is still open on Main Street.
- The September wine walk hosts. The Old Bellevue merchants listed 520 Bar & Grill, Browne Family Vineyards, Fran's Chocolates, Green Lake Jewelry Works, Smith & Main and Title Nine among the hosts for the September 17 Fall Wine Walk.
The newest arrival is just around the corner. Goban Korean BBQ soft-opened August 12 at 1015 103rd Avenue NE, a short walk north of the Main Street intersection that North of Main will anchor. Its own site now lists hours and takes reservations. Bar Da Vila, a Brazilian restaurant, was announced in March for 10145 Main Street, but no opening date had been given.
The October calendar for Main Street
- Thursday, Oct. 1. Glassybaby opens at Design Market, 1048 116th Ave NE, with the Moonbee Matcha pop-up from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Through Thursday, Oct. 15. The Veritables closing sale runs daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 10220 Main St, ending with the store's last day.
- Saturday, Oct. 31. Little Monsters on Main Street, the Old Bellevue Merchants Association's free trick-or-treating event, runs from 1 to 3 p.m.
Halloween will be the first Main Street event since the street's mix of shops started to change. The facades along the trick-or-treat route are covered by the council's interim rules through February 2027. The storefronts on the North of Main block, whether empty or still open on October 31, aren't.
If you own a home near Main Street or anywhere else redevelopment is reshaping the blocks around you, and you're wondering what a vested project or an interim rule could mean for your property, First And Main follows these changes block by block. Book an Appointment and we'll go through what's filed, what's protected and what's still undecided near you.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
