For exactly a year, Reston Community Center Board of Governors members, consultants and residents have been discussing the idea of building a new recreation center with a 50-meter indoor pool.

At more than a dozen meetings, the board has heard testimony — sometimes emotional and angry — from residents. Some want the additional swim options. Others point out lack of need, expense and traffic as among potential problems.

Monday, the discussion, as well as talk about other RCC programs and issues, continues. The RCC Board will hold its annual Community Relations and Program/Policy Joint Committee Meeting at 6:30 p.m. at RCC Hunters Woods.

It was at that same meeting in February 2013 that the pool proposition was first delivered. RCC’s current indoor pool, at Hunters Woods, is 35 years old and need of modernization, RCC’s board of governors says. The board has proposed building an additional pool and rec center at Baron Cameron Park, where RCC would be given the land for free, or at the area known as Town Center North. Consultants Brailsford & Dunlavy say the facility would cost $35-40 million.

And while the issue is unlikely to go to referendum in 2014, according to RCC Executive Director Lelia Gordon, it is still very much on the table for the future. With tens of thousands of new residents expected to live and work in Reston after opening of the Metro’s Silver Line later this year, those people will need recreational facilities.

RCC had hoped to be able to present the idea to Small Tax District 5 voters this year. However, Gordon says there still needs to be three to six months of more discussion before the plan can move forward, which means if RCC decides to move forward it would not be put to a referendum vote by November. It also would not be cost-effective to hold a special ballot, she said.

“I think it will take the next several months to get an understanding of the best opportunity,” said Gordon. “Once we know roughly where it would be and who we would be partnering with, then we can talk about priorities.”

Also likely up for discussion Monday: the need to examine pricing and cost recovery scenarios. RCC’s usage fees have remained lower than most area facilities, and phasing in increases over the next several years would allow for less of a tax burden on residents if the project proceeds.

RCC raised its aquatics center fees Sept. 1 — only the second time in 34 years that drop-in fees have risen.

RCC has been running for the last several years at a 13-15 percent cost recovery level, Gordon said. An ideal level would be 25 percent, she added. With more money available at the start of building the new project, the quicker RCC could recoup its expense. B & D estimates after five years there cost recovery level would still only be 50 percent (Reston resident rate structure) to 71 percent (Fairfax County resident rate structure).

Cost recovery can make or break a plan. In Arlington County, a proposal to build a $79 million multi-pool aquatics facility ($42 million of it from an approved 2012 county bond) is re-evaluating costs after an original operating deficit estimate of  $1 million to $1.3 million was recently upped to $3.8 million after construction bids came in much higher than anticipated.

“The situation at Long Bridge Park in Arlington illustrates perfectly that the longer you are undertaking a project, there is a larger potential for the scope of planning to outstrip your resources,” said Gordon. “The cost of construction goes up.”

U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, Rep. Gerry Connolly and Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova were among the local dignitaries at Reston Community Center Monday for RCC’s Annual Martin Luther King Day celebration.

The events at RCC wrapped up three days of MLK Day events — including a commemorative march, a keynote concert with venerable a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock and community service projects — in Reston.

Each year, RCC asks the question “Are we keeping the promise?”

There still is a way to go in America, Warner said.

“It is a challenging time,” Warner said. “Dr. King would have been 85 this year, and we think of 50 years since his ‘I have a dream’ speech” about how far we have come, but also how far we have to go.”

Warner pointed out some of the challenges today, particularly for people of color: access to education, health care and racial intolerance.

“We need to rededicate ourselves to that dream not just on this Monday in January, but every day of our lives,” he said.

Connolly said Reston is a great example of a pioneering civil rights vision. Robert Simon, who was also at Monday’s MLK Day luncheon at RCC, founded Reston in 1964 with the idea that people of many races and economic circumstances could live alongside each other in one community.

“In many ways, the multicultural community Martin Luther King hoped for is right here in Reston,” he said. “It is a welcoming community that was willing to challenge conventional wisdom. The fact a community like this was built is really a beacon of hope. Reston is something special.”

Reston Now is off for Monday’s Martin Luther King Day. Whether you use the day off as a time to reflect,  give back or just a day off, enjoy.

There is a full slate of events at the Reston Community Center today:

Sweet Honey in the Rock Sing-a-long: 11 a.m.,  RCC Hunters Woods. Tickets:  $5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston. Visit RCC’s ticket site to purchase tickets.

Community Lunch & Sweet Honey in the Rock Keynote Address:  12:30 p.m., RCC Hunters Woods. $5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston. Visit RCC’s ticket site to purchase tickets. There will be a family-style community lunch followed by a specially prepared musical keynote address featuring the songs of the civil rights movement.

Especially for Youth: 2:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.; 6 – 12 Years Old • Free
Registration Required • 704750-4A
Register your school age child (Grades 1 to 6 to participate in activities at RCC. Children should be registered in advance. Limited on-site registration will be available on the day of the event. Children will rotate through a series of activities including a performance, an age-appropriate video, and arts and crafts. All activities will be based on the history of Dr. King and the civil rights movement.

Martin Luther King Day is Monday, Jan. 20, and the Reston Community Center has a full slate of events for the community to honor Dr. King. Special guests this year is Sweet Honey in the Rock, the award-winning women’s a cappella group. There will be several changes to catch the group during three days of events and service projects in Reston.

Here is the lineup and how you can get involved:

SATURDAY

Community service: RCC is partnering with Southgate Community Center, Reston Association, Cornerstones (formerly Reston Interfaith), and The Closet on projects including making bag lunches for the Embry Rucker Community Shelter;  sorting and organizing items from The Closet and several other projects at Southgate Community Center. There will also be several outdoor projects such as cleaning up the natural areas, pathways, and hardscape surrounding the area, weather permitting.

Volunteer hours conclude around noon, at which point volunteers will gather to share a lunch that will be provided. Sorting donations is for ages 13 and up. Children 12 and younger are welcome to participate in the other projects, but they must be accompanied by an adult age 18 or older. To volunteer, please contact Ha Brock, Reston Association Community Outreach Specialist, at 703-435-7986 or [email protected].

Reston Community Orchestra Concert: 8th Annual Memorial Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 4 p.m. RCC Hunters Woods.

Maestro Dingwall Fleary will lead the Reston Community Orchestra in musical salute to Dr. King. An integral part of Reston’s weekend of celebration and remembrance, the concert will feature the works of African-American composers, as well as works inspired by the civil rights movement for which Dr. King gave his life. Joining the RCO is vocalist Beverly Cosham. Free.

SUNDAY

Art by Reston Schools Reception: 1:30 p.m., RCC Hunters Woods, Free
The creativity of Reston students will be celebrated at this reception. Students have created works based on Dr. King and the civil rights movement. The works will be on display though the end of January.

Commemorative March: 3 p.m., Lake Anne Plaza, all ages
Community members will assemble at Lake Anne Plaza. Rev. David North will teach a brief history of songs used in the civil rights movement and then lead everyone marching and singing songs to the Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation. A shuttle bus will run between the two sites from 2:30 p.m. until after the Voices of Inspiration program concludes.

Voices of Inspiration Concert: 4 p.m., Northern Virginia Hebrew Congregation, 1441 Wiehle Avenue, Reston. Free.
Voices of Inspiration is the 24th Anniversary program honoring Dr. King. This event is sponsored by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Christian Church and includes many Reston faith communities.

Sweet Honey in the Rock Concert: 8 p.m., RCC Hunters Woods; SOLD OUT
As part of the 2013/2014 Professional Touring Artist Series, the musical group  will perform in the CenterStage.

MONDAY

Sweet Honey in the Rock Sing-a-long: 11 a.m.,  RCC Hunters Woods. Tickets:  $5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston. Visit RCC’s ticket site to purchase tickets.

Community Lunch & Sweet Honey in the Rock Keynote Address:  12:30 p.m., RCC Hunters Woods. $5 Reston/$10 Non-Reston. Visit RCC’s ticket site to purchase tickets. There will be a family-style community lunch followed by a specially prepared musical keynote address featuring the songs of the civil rights movement.

Especially for Youth: 2:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.; 6 – 12 Years Old • Free
Registration Required • 704750-4A
Register your school age child (Grades 1 to 6 to participate in activities at RCC. Children should be registered in advance. Limited on-site registration will be available on the day of the event. Children will rotate through a series of activities including a performance, an age-appropriate video, and arts and crafts. All activities will be based on the history of Dr. King and the civil rights movement.

Photo of Sweet Honey in the Rock by Sharon Farmer/sfphotoworks

A referendum on whether to build a new Reston Community Center facility is unlikely to happen in 2014, RCC Executive Director Leila Gordon says.

The board has been discussing the idea of adding a new recreation center with a 50-meter indoor pool with residents and consultants with Brailsford & Dunlavey since February of 2013. RCC’s current indoor pool, at Hunters Woods, is 35 years old and need of modernization, RCC’s board of governors says. The board has proposed building an additional pool and rec center at Baron Cameron Park or at the area known as Town Center North.

RCC had hoped to be able to present the idea to Small Tax District 5 voters this year. However, Gordon says there still needs to be three-to-six months of more discussion before the plan can move forward, which means if RCC decides to move forward it would not be put to a referendum vote by November. It also would not be cost-effective to hold a special ballot, she said.

“I think it will take the next several months to get an understanding of the best opportunity,” said Gordon. “Once we know roughly where it would be and who we would be partnering with, then we can talk about priorities.”

The Brailsford & Dunlavy analysis last June estimated a new pool facility would cost about $35-40 million if built at Baron Cameron Park on land provided at no cost from the Fairfax County Park Authority.  That plan was met with mixed reaction from the community. Many residents near Baron Cameron Park are against the facility nearby and many residents throughout Small Tax District 5, which supports RCC, are against building a facility for the public with Reston taxpayer money.

Gordon said one of the ideas coming out of a two-day RCC Board of Governors retreat last week was the need to examine pricing and cost recovery scenarios. RCC’s usage fees have remained lower than most area facilities, and phasing in increases over the next several years would allow for less of a tax burden on residents if the project proceeds.

RCC raised its aquatics center fees Sept. 1 — only the second time in 34 years that drop-in fees have risen.

RCC has been running for the last several years at a 13-15 percent cost recovery level, Gordon said. An ideal level would be 25 percent, she added. With more money available at the start of building the new project, the quicker RCC could recoup its expense. B & D estimates after five years there cost recovery level would still only be 50 percent (Reston resident rate structure) to 71 percent (Fairfax County resident rate structure).

Cost recovery can make or break a plan. In Arlington County, a proposal to build a $79 million multi-pool aquatics facility ($42 million of it from an approved 2012 county bond) is re-evaluating costs after an original operating deficit estimate of  $1 million to $1.3 million was recently upped to $3.8 million after construction bids came in much higher than anticipated.

“The situation at Long Bridge Park in Arlington illustrates perfectly that the longer you are undertaking a project, there is a larger potential for the scope of planning to outstrip your resources,” said Gordon. “The cost of construction goes up.”

Another unknown variable: FCPA’s Master Plan for Baron Cameron Park, which should be released later this month. The Park Authority said last spring it is ready for improvements and additions of many recreational amenities at the 68-acre park at Wiehle Avenue and Baron Cameron Avenue.

Cleaning out your closets? Reston Community Center may be the place for your old formal wear.

RCC kicked off its 12th annual Diva Central prom dress drive last week. The organization is collecting dresses, shoes, jewelry, handbags, shawls and other accessories for students in Reston and nearby.

Since 2003, Diva Central’s mission has been to promote confidence and self-esteem by providing free prom dresses to area high school girls, RCC says. RCC collects gently-used and dry-cleaned dresses and local sponsors donate gift certificates and other prom-related services to help the students create a truly memorable night.

“Prom is an event that many teens look forward to all year, but it is also an event that can burden families with expenses for formal wear, accessories, a meal, transportation and more,” said RCC Teen Program Director Kenny Burrowes. “Through Diva Central, RCC helps teens look forward to the prom night of their dreams, complete with the perfect dress and accessories, but without those costs.”

Donations are tax deductible and may be dropped off daily, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at at the Reston Community Center Hunters Woods facility through Friday, Feb. 7. All donations are appreciated but should be in good condition, no older than five-years-old (circa 2009), and should be dry cleaned before donation.

If dry cleaning is not possible, please indicate at the time of drop-off. Dress donations will benefit students in Fairfax County and other surrounding areas.

This year’s prom dress giveaway will take place on Saturday, March 8, from noon to 6:00 p.m. at RCC Lake Anne, 1609-A Washington Plaza in Reston.

Photo of Diva Central shopper courtesy of Reston Community Center

Reston Community Center will try — again — to use a new online registration system beginning Dec. 1.

RCC was set to begin using the new system last December, but the online registration server experienced technical challenges that forced the community center to return to mail and walk-in sign ups.

“We believe those issues have been resolved and that an independent load test of our system supports re-launching online registration for RCC patrons,” RCC executive director Leila Gordon wrote in a letter to residents.

Online sign-up for winter/spring programs for those who live or work in Reston begins at 9 a.m. on Dec. 1. Non-residents can register for programs beginning Dec. 8. To register, visit Reston Community Center’s website.

An online registration tutorial is available online or at the RCC Hunters Woods and Lake Anne locations. To register online you will need to know your user name and password. If you are a new user, you will need to complete the online household profile, and then your user name and password will be emailed to you within 48 hours. Not sure if you have an existing login? Email [email protected] or call 703-476-4500.

As always, registration will also be accepted:

• In person
• Via mail to RCC, 2310 Colts Neck Rd., Reston VA 20191
• Via fax to 703-476-2488

Reston Community Center’s Board of Governors, examining the feasibility of building a new recreation center featuring a 50-meter indoor pool, said on Monday only three locations in Reston would be viable options for the center: Reston Town Center North, Baron Cameron Park or renovating the existing pool at Hunters Woods.

The board has been discussing the idea with residents and with consultants with Brailsford & Dunlavey since February. The idea, which would have to be put to a public referendum with voters in Small Tax District 5 in order to move forward, has been met with mixed reaction. Many swimmers are in favor. Residents near Baron Cameron Park — where RCC could build on Fairfax County Park Authority land for no cost — are not. There is also concern from many residents that Small Tax District 5 should not be burdened with the cost of the $35 million facility.

The RCC Board building committee toured 10 sites in Reston over the summer and has now sent a letter to Deputy County Executive Rob Stalzer asking the county to consider planning for a rec facility in the area known as Reston Town Center North. Building there would also be a partnership with the Fairfax County Park Authority.

Over the summer, the committee toured sites and determined this:

Baron Cameron Park — Pros: Available; no land cost; central location; no changes to tree canopy. Cons: neighborhood opposition; some prefer retaining open space. Recommended.

Isaac Newton Square — Pros: Close to Metro; Cons: not available; not zoned for active recreation; car accessibility issues. Not recommended.

Lake Fairfax Park — Only option is in south end of the park, which takes five minutes to reach through the park’s only entrance. Pros: No land cost, rezoning cost, central location. Cons: not available; neighborhood impact; reduction in tree canopy; one park entrance problematic. Not recommended.

North Reston Park (behind Home Depot) — Pros: Central location. Cons: No water and sewer lines; not available; too close to residential and commercial properties; loss of trees; poor traffic egress. Not recommended.

RCC Hunters Woods — RCC owns the property of current community center and shopping center owner Edens says it would be open to discussing expansion. Pros: Buildable land; good traffic flow; no land costs. Cons: Zoning challenges related to parking; significant impact to residential and commercial properties; current RCC would have to close for at least a year. Possibly recommended.

Reston Heights Phase II — Not available and mixed-use development already planned. Not recommended.

Reston National Golf Course — Owners not interested in providing land. Not recommended.

Reston Town Center North — Twenty-two acres near Reston Town Center (current site of library, police station, unused land and Inova buildings. Site is currently being master planned by county. Pros: Not yet master planned; located close to other public facilities; center of Reston growth; accesible. Cons: Difficult construction due to challenging topography; lengthy planning time. Recommended.

Tall Oaks Village Center — Management company not interested in selling the land. Significant accessibility issues. Not recommended.

U.S. Geological Survey — USGS unavailable for discussion. Not recommended.

See the Brailsford & Dunlavy Analysis here.

Read project FAQs here.
 

It was a quiet summer for Reston Community Center’s quest to build a new indoor recreation center, possibly at Baron Cameron Park.  But the RCC Board of Governors — along with Craig Levin of consultants Brailsford & Dunlavy — will revisit the topic at its long range planning committee meeting (6 p.m.) building committee meetings (7:30 p.m.) Monday at RCC Hunters Woods.

The meetings are open to the public, so stop by if you want to share your opinion on this ongoing topic.

The RCC Board of Governors has been discussing since last February the feasibility of building a $35 million rec center to supplement the aging pool at RCC Hunters Woods and serve what is sure to be an expanding population in Reston the next 20 years.

The proposal has met with mixed reaction. Avid swimmers are in favor of the facility. Neighbors near Baron Cameron Park are against it, as are those who think the costs should be borne by the rest of the county or developer proffers and not just Small Tax District 5 residents.

RCC Board members said in June they would continue to revisit the idea through 2013. Six candidates ran in the 2013 Preference Poll for a spot on the board. Incumbent Beverly Cosham and newcomer Michelle Moyer, both in favor of putting the pool issue to referendum, were appointed to the board, along with John Mendonça, who says he is concerned that RCC has lost focus as to what role it wants to serve.

Meanwhile, RCC executive director Leila Gordon says the board is looking at alternative sites for the potential facility, even though the land at Baron Cameron Park, owned by the Fairfax County Park Authority, would be given to RCC for free.

See the Brailsford & Dunlavy Analysis here.

Read project FAQs here.