I grew up in Bellevue, went to school in Seattle for 5 years during that time. Plenty of people do the same, not just for education but for work and recreation. In the sense that the two cities' are closely integrated in Seattle's metro area, yes Bellevue is the next Williamsburg and already had been for a while.
I don't think the rail connection will make a profound impact, as commuting across Lake Washington (in both directions) is very common already. But hopefully it will make those commutes more resilient to traffic, and make living on the Eastside without a car more feasible.
I'm more interested in what will happen to the Spring District. I moved away back when it was mostly an industrial area, dominated by the Pepsi plant. Central Bellevue is getting very expensive already, hopefully the development of the Spring District can take some of that pressure off.
I don't think the rail connection will make a profound impact, as commuting across Lake Washington (in both directions) is very common already. But hopefully it will make those commutes more resilient to traffic, and make living on the Eastside without a car more feasible.
I'm more interested in what will happen to the Spring District. I moved away back when it was mostly an industrial area, dominated by the Pepsi plant. Central Bellevue is getting very expensive already, hopefully the development of the Spring District can take some of that pressure off.