Rescue Reston is continuing its effort to ensure any future action at Reston National Golf Course maintains its status as nearly 170 acres of open space.
The grassroots organization has been working for more than five years to preserve the golf course. Its efforts to block a sale of the property for residential development resulted in a temporary victory in 2016. However, the property’s owners continue to show interest in what they view as “by-right residential development” on the site.
In a letter emailed today to representatives of property owners Northwestern Mutual and investment advisory firm ARA Newmark, as well as delivered by hand to RN Golf Management LLC, Rescue Reston urges them to remember the desires of the community.
Rumor has it that you are encouraging speculative development of the Reston National Golf Course property, including that, through litigation, one might be able to build upwards of 4,000 units on this land.
Northwestern Mutual and ARA Newmark personnel responsible for this should be ashamed to be willing to put Fairfax County taxpayers through years of litigation to defend the very definite land use designation of Open Space at the property located at 11875 Sunrise Valley Drive and 2018 Soapstone Drive, Reston, Virginia.
We direct your attention to your PR statement regarding strengthening local communities at northwesternmutual.com/about-us/what-we-believe. If Northwestern Mutual, the majority partner of RN Golf Management LLC, which is the owner of the property at Reston National Golf Course, truly believes its own statement, then NWM must stop.
Reston is a Planned Residential Community. You can read the short version of what that means at http://bit.ly/PRC-Districts.
We request that NWM consider a tax efficient strategy which will preserve the golf course as open space involving the donation of the land to the Reston Association or a conservation group, or the creation of a perpetual conservation easement. Andrea Reese, Sr. Land Conservation Specialist at the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust stands ready to explore this option with you. She can be reached at 703-354-5093.
Rescue Reston’s correspondence also refers back to a letter it penned in May reminding ARA Newmark of the group’s commitment to defending the property and of the property’s approved zoning uses and land use limitations.
Earlier this year, ARA Landmark sent out information indicating that by-right residential development would soon be available at the golf course. The price was designated as “TBD by Market.” A report by real-estate news website GlobeSt.com estimated its selling price might be more than $25 million — and that a developer could make up to $200 million from the property.
In April, Fairfax County Superintendent Cathy Hudgins reminded constituents that any attempt to redevelop the property would require a lengthy list of rulings, including “an amendment to the Reston Master Plan which is part of the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan, as well as obtaining both Development Plan Amendment approval and Planned Residential Community Plan approval from the Board of Supervisors.”
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