County Board to Consider Roland Clarke Project in Reston

Columns

by Fatimah Waseem October 24, 2018 at 10:15 am 12 Comments

Roland Clarke Place (Photo via handout/Fairfax County Government)

Plans to replace a vacant office building at 1941 Roland Clarke Place with a 308-unit apartment building are headed to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for approval next week.

Woodfield Investments wants to demolish a two-story office building and replace it with a 291,650-square-foot multifamily building across around 6 acres of land north of Sunrise Valley Drive, south of the Dulles Toll Road and east of Reston Parkway.

A hearing on the project is set for Oct. 30 at 3:30 p.m.

The property would be developed in two phases. Phase one will include the construction of the apartment building, which has 37 workforce dwelling units. The second phase will retain an 80,000-square-foot office building and the addition of a pocket park. The second phase leaves the option of redevelopment sometime in the future, according to the proposal.

The existing cul-de-sac at Roland Clarke Place will be reconstructed and extended further north to connect two private roads and provide access to the parking garage on the property.

Staff from the Fairfax County Department of Planning and Zoning recommended approval of the project.

Photos via handout/Fairfax County Government

30yearsinreston

37 free houses ?
APPROVED!
- tom mccauley
  
  why I figure that is about 101 new school aged children!
The Original Drive By Critic

Well, living in a modified Texas Donut situated hard up against the toll road isn’t exactly my definition of good living, but the developers’ lackeys at the Planning & Zoning Department and the BOS seem intent on shoehorning this stuff in anyway. Good luck Reston, meet your new future.
Why do you bother?

And how are all these new residents – and the rest of us – going to get to grocery stores, etc. in the additional gridlock that will ensue with that many more cars and no road improvements????
- Greg
  
  The deeply discounted rental bikes using all the empty bike lanes.
Greg

Are the white things mausolea? At long last somewhere for the dead to rest?
Tammi Petrine

Will this be THE project that our Supervisor rejects ? At what point will designs that break numerous rules be declared inadequate for Reston standards? Sadly, over and over our Hunter Mill Supervisor is approving projects that are lacking in basic zoning requirements. Developers are building lot line to lot line to maximize profit while caring not how the new project impacts the surrounding neighbors or our town as a whole. How many giant buildings with majority studio and 1BR units can our community absorb???

This one has grossly insufficient park or open space yet promises to be home to hundreds of new residents. There is NO shopping or external recreation except Reston National Golf Course within walking distance. Each of the flanking Metro stations is a mile away. The design of the parking garage is flawed. It is not the required minimum distance from the toll way for Residential units. The site noise (from toll road) is egregious but no sound walls are required.

The new Sekas $1M adjacent townhouses that were built on the former Marcel Breuer API site will be dwarfed by this monster complex. Are new owners of that new townhouse cluster aware of what awaits them if this project is approved?

The zoning is for mixed use but only residential is planned. Future promises for the adjoining lot are nebulous at best but still the plan moves forward in the county process. Perhaps the owner should donate that 2nd lot for one of the three full size playing fields required IN the corridor (and parking). One is required for each TSA station area. NONE have been located yet. NONE. One mini field is slated for the API site for children but nothing for adults anywhere in the corridor. Lots and lots and lots of small apt units and not one full size playing field? Walkable recreation? Where? At what point will staff and our supervisor draw a line in the sand for these requirement for any project requiring numerous rule exceptions and/or zoning changes???

When will some standards of excellence be required as mandated in our Reston Master Plan? When will actual residents, existing and new, receive consideration vs. supplication to developer profit? How long do we need to wait for common sense? Over and over citizens take the time to protest projects but always the benefit is given to developers. Why is this and what do we do about it?
- Guest
  
  I agree, that space is not adequate for an over 300 unit apartment complex. It is also going to impose upon the Sunrise Square townhome owners that you stated by drastically increasing traffic on Roland Clarke Place. Is there anything that can be done as a resident to get this project disapproved?
  - Tammi Petrine
    
    Lobby Supervisor Hudgins. The ball is in her court now. Other supervisors usually follow the wishes of the home district supervisor on project approvals.
  - Drakar2007
    
    Show up at planning and zoning meetings, and bring other residents with you.
Greendayer

Consider it done. I assume they will not be part of the RA.
Melanie Erler

Do any of the county supervisors ACTUALLY drive on Sunrise Valley dr???? I have been here 20 years, and the traffic to go 2 miles to the high school is UNBEARABLE!!! We do NOT have the road infrastructure to accommodate this! ALSO the schools are at max capacity– we need to add more kids to the classes? increase class size to 40, 50 . or even 60 children? When will this stop!?!?! This is not Live, work, play. This is MAKE MONEY FOR DEVELOPERS!!!!!

Subscribe to our mailing list