Sound Transit directors approved an agreement Thursday that is intended to resolve differences with the Bellevue City Council over the East Link light-rail route.

The board also granted the city's request to extend until Nov. 14 the deadline for Bellevue to sign the document. CEO Joni Earl was authorized to sign a legally binding agreement with Bellevue.

The City Council voted Monday in favor of a route that follows Bellevue Way Southeast and 112th Avenue Southeast, with an elevated crossing of 112th at Southeast 15th Street. The council will hold a public hearing at City Hall on Nov. 7.

The crossing is one of the last details to be written into an agreement that calls for a $320 million tunnel through downtown Bellevue. The city is expected to pay half the cost.

Bellevue Mayor Don Davidson told the Sound Transit board in a letter that "additional mitigation" is needed to minimize noise, vibrations and visual impacts from the elevated rail line. He wrote that the city will explore "all options" to make sure no single-family residents end up with a rail line in their backyards.

Keith Ervin: 206-464-2105 or kervin@seattletimes.com