About

Meet Jennifer Robertson

Jennifer Robertson believes that public service and giving back to your community is an essential part of life. She learned about public service at an early age while growing up on the Eastside seeing her father give medical care to his needy patients while her mother became a dentist serving low income and indigent patients. Jennifer has committed herself to this philosophy and used her skills as a municipal attorney to continuously serve the City of Bellevue and the community since 2002.

Jennifer was first elected to the Council in 2009. She has distinguished herself by using her extensive background and thoughtful approach to serve the public. She was a leader during the difficult budget in 2010 when she successfully initiated the top priorities of the Transportation Commission for neighborhood "Any woman who understands the problems of running a home will be nearer to understanding the problems of running a country."
~ Margaret Thatcher projects including Phase I of the West Lake Sammamish Parkway, the 108th Ped/Bike Project (near Enatai Elementary) and the 145th Ped/Bike project (near Bellevue College). She also worked to make the NE 4th St. extension and 120th Avenue NE expansion project more successful by funding the expansion of 120th from NE 8th to NE 12th, thereby maximizing the efficiency and effectiveness of traffic movement through this important corridor. Jennifer also was instrumental in preserving funding for the popular Neighborhood Enhancement Program. As Parks Board liaison, Jennifer was actively involved in bringing the various stakeholders together to support the Meydenbauer Bay Waterfront Park Master Plan.

In addition to being liaison to the Bellevue Parks Board, Jennifer is the Council Liaison to the Library Board, Bellevue School Board and to the I-90/Eastgate Citizen's Advisory Committee. She also serves on the Puget Sound Regional Council Growth Management Planning Board and the King County Growth Management Planning Council Executive Committee and Board.

"My creed is that public service must be more than doing a job efficiently and honestly. It must be a complete dedication to the people and to the nation with full recognition that every human being is entitled to courtesy and consideration." ~ Margaret Chase Smith, US Senator (1953)

Prior to being elected to the City Council, Jennifer Robertson served Bellevue as a Planning Commissioner and Co-Chair of the Bellevue Light Rail Best Practices Committee. She was appointed to the Bellevue Planning Commission by then-Mayor Connie Marshall in 2003 and re-appointed by Mayor Grant Degginger in 2007. She has listened to the public and has helped craft Bellevue's comprehensive plan and land use code during her tenure. In 2007, her fellow commissioners elected her chair. She chaired the commission from 2007-2008 during the time the planning commission evaluated and worked through the major update of the Bel-Red Plan. The Bel-Red Plan created a new vision on a 50-year timeline for the 900-acre area known as Bel-Red. This plan is one of the largest transit-oriented development plans in the nation and the area of Bellevue's future business and residential growth. The City's work on this Plan was so significant that it received national recognition.

In 2007, Jennifer was appointed by Mayor Degginger to Co-Chair the Bellevue Light Rail Best Practices Committee. The Light Rail Best Practices Committee was tasked with finding the "best practices" for making light rail fit with Bellevue. As part of the Committee's work, Jennifer spent close to a year studying light rail around North America - including travelling to Portland, San Jose and San Diego - listening to the public and reviewing planning policies for existing light rail. This work culminated in the creation of a comprehensive report to the City Council on the "best practices" for light rail identifying the best fit for Bellevue. These recommendations on light rail became the backbone of our City's plan for high capacity transit, one of the most important decisions facing Bellevue and the region for the future.

In addition to her work for the City of Bellevue, Jennifer has served her community in a variety of ways. She is an active member of St. Margaret's Episcopal Church where she and her husband spearheaded the establishment of an affordable housing project for homeless veterans on church property that is scheduled for opening this year. She is a Board Member for the Bellevue Philharmonic Orchestra. She is an active Girl Scout volunteer and a Bellevue Schools Volunteer.

Jennifer is a land use and municipal attorney who represents small cities and towns. Scott, her husband of 15 years, is a small business owner in Bellevue. They live in the Somerset neighborhood with their three daughters: Katherine, Madeline, and Abigail, who range in age from 6 - 13.

Testimonials

Dear Bellevue City Council Member Jennifer Robertson:
Your excellent job to solve speedily an open access hole repair in the road near the I-405 North exit at 116 Ave S.E. is commendable. The Bellevue Street Department promised many times a repair but nothing was accomplished. After I contacted you what could not be done for a long time was fixed in less than a week.

In my more than three decades at Boeing, as a Structural Airplane Design Engineer, I learned to recognize "Doers". You belong to that group. I certainly hope that you will be on the Bellevue City Council in the future.

Best Wishes,
Sincerely,
Arthur P. Mahler