Reston Real Estate: Architect Bonner Made Mark in Townhomes Too

Eve Thompson October 27, 2015 at 12:00pm

This is a sponsored post by Eve Thompson of Reston Real Estate. It does not reflect the opinion of Reston Now.

Reston architectural aficionados know that Reston architect Ken Bonner built the first house in Reston — a detached single-family house on Stirrup Road in South Reston. In a Fairfax Times article, Bonner recalled having to transport a portable generator to the building site because there were no power lines yet. This was back in 1964.

Integrating a human living space into nature in an environmentally sensitive way was Bonner’s passion, and a trademark of any Bonner home is using natural sunlight and preserving trees.

Ken built about 65 homes, including my first home in Reston on Buttermilk Lane in the Uplands neighborhood. It backed up to beautiful, treed lot with a creek at the bottom of the backyard. It was a fantastic place to raise our family.

What is lesser known in Reston is that Ken also designed townhome communities. Among them, Colts Neck Cluster. This community is comprised of 60 townhouses in South Reston, near the intersection of Colts Neck Road and South Lakes Drive. Escalante Court is off South Lakes Drive and next to the South Lakes Drive Park. Greywing Court is off Colts Neck Road.

Built in 1972-1973, these contemporary townhomes are three levels with cedar siding exteriors. The 1,600 to 2,000 square feet homes feel much larger because of Ken’s attention to every detail.

The Colts Neck community is close to the Reston National Golf Course and the Hunters Woods Village Center Shopping Center. It is also within two miles of the Reston East Metro station.

These lovely homes are not only perfect for anyone looking for well-designed, contemporary architecture in a close-knit, townhome community; they represent a piece of what makes Reston such a great place to live.