Mayor Lynne Robinson joined the City Council in 2014, and she has a long history of civic involvement. She is a champion for startups and small business, and has encouraged startup and equity crowdfunding workshops at City Hall. Her colleagues voted her deputy mayor in January 2018 and mayor in January 2020, 2022 and 2024.
Lynne also advocates for the environment, parks and open spaces, human services and affordable housing in Bellevue. She proposed a property tax exemption adopted by the council for multifamily complexes that include affordable housing.
She represents the council on the Sound Cities Association Large City Mayors, the King County Affordable Housing Committee and the Puget Sound Regional Council Executive Board, among other assignments.
Before her election to the council, Lynne served on and chaired the Bellevue Network on Aging and the Parks & Community Services Board.
A retired physical therapist who ran her own business for 20 years, Lynne holds a doctorate in physical therapy from Regis University and bachelor’s degrees in physical therapy from Northwestern University Medical School and community services from California State University Chico. Lynne developed an interest in computer science while in college, and she is on the Washington Technology Industry Association Cascadia Blockchain Council.
Lynne and husband Dan Watson live downtown after moving from the Woodridge neighborhood, where they had resided since 1997. Their two children graduated from Bellevue public schools and are successful professionals.
