Wall Street is doubling down on downtown Bellevue, with Newmark announcing it has arranged a $525 million refinancing for The Artise, the 25-story Class A+ office tower in the city’s core. The loan, provided by Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, refinances a building that opened in 2024 and is already nearly fully leased.
Deal details and advisers
Newmark’s financing team, led by Jonathan Firestone, Blake Thompson and Kevin Shannon, structured the transaction, according to a press release from PR Newswire. Firestone said, “Securing this refinancing for The Artise underscores lender confidence in Bellevue’s premier office market and the long-term durability of this tenancy.” The release notes that Newmark worked closely with co-owners Schnitzer West and The Baupost Group to tailor the financing package to the asset.
What the building contains
The Artise is a roughly 611,864-square-foot tower that Schnitzer West lists as delivered in January 2024, according to the developer’s project page. The property is LEED Gold certified and includes a public plaza with a water feature, a 3,000-square-foot terrace, self-tinting high-performance glazing, 196 vertical bike racks and 12 e-bike charging stations, as detailed by Schnitzer West. The tower also provides 927 below-grade parking stalls and street-level retail space.
Tenant status and build-out
Amazon signed a major lease for The Artise in 2021 as part of its plans to expand its Bellevue footprint, the company said on its corporate blog. City permit filings reviewed by Downtown Bellevue Network show Amazon moved to resume interior build-out in late 2025, indicating the tenant is advancing its plans to occupy the space. That long-term tenancy helps explain why institutional lenders were comfortable backing such a large refinancing for the property.
Market significance…