The train is coming! At last, the Silver Line will pull into Wiehle station within the next few months. And just in time, Fairfax County is finishing the revisions to our Comprehensive Plan to set the ground rules for development in the station areas. The draft Comp Plan goes before the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, with a vote likely within a few weeks.
The good news is that over four years of work by the Master Plan Task Force is about to come to fruition. Those long meeting nights and discussions about Floor-Area Ratio and Levels of Service are over. I’m happy to have my Tuesday nights back, and my family feels the same way.
The bad news is that the Comp Plan still falls short in several areas. The plan doesn’t do enough to protect Reston’s quality of life, or to ensure that the station areas will be well-integrated into the surrounding community. In this week’s column, I’ll update you on where the process stands, highlight the areas where RCA believes the plan can be better, and explain what we’re going to do about it.
The last time I talked in depth about the Comp Plan was in the wake of the Task Force’s final vote in September. In that column, I spelled out why RCA felt the plan needed improvement. Since then, the plan has gone to the County Planning Commission, which reviewed and approved it.
The Planning Commission spent several weeks reviewing the plan, but ultimately made only minor changes. We were particularly discouraged that the Planning Commission disregarded the changes suggested by Reston’s citizen representatives, while adopting several changes provided by individual landowners and/or their lawyers.
As a result, RCA’s concerns about the plan are the same today as they were back in September. To refresh your memory, I’ll touch on a few of the key areas.
Traffic has been a key issue for RCA throughout this process. The development around the stations won’t benefit Reston if clogged streets mean that we can’t get to the Silver Line, or that the Toll Road becomes a virtual wall during the rush.
The Rosslyn-Ballston corridor has been cited as a success story for transit-oriented development; traffic in that area has actually improved over time. Unfortunately, the County Department of Transportation’s modeling suggests that won’t be true for Reston; our traffic is projected to get worse — in some cases, much worse — if the Comp Plan goes forward as written.
That’s why RCA supports a goal of Level of Service E at Reston’s “gateway” intersections (where Wiehle Avenue, Reston Parkway, and Fairfax County Parkway intersect Sunset Hills and Sunrise Valley). Level of Service E means an average delay of 55 to 80 seconds at each of these intersections. Currently, the Comp Plan calls for a “network” Level of Service E, a fuzzy goal that allows for delays of up to four minutes at the gateway intersections, according to FCDOT models. That level of gridlock just isn’t acceptable. Read More
The draft master plan for Reston’s share of the Dulles Corridor and the Town Center area will be the subject of a public hearing by the Board of Supervisors next Tuesday, Jan. 28, 4:30 p.m., in the Government Center auditorium. It will be the last chance for Restonians to present its concerns, views, and suggestions on the draft plan before the Board considers amendments and approves the draft plan.
As it stands now, the draft plan overwhelmingly represents the views of developers and land use attorneys who numerically dominated the task force. Reston’s leading civic groups—RA, RCA, and ARCH—and a few other independent Restonian members of the task force have been active voices over the last four years, but their voices and votes have been drowned by the special interests of the majority developers, landowners, and attorneys. Their view is that the plan should stay out of the way as exemplified by the dozens of references to “flexibility” throughout the draft plan, attempts to limit commitments to open space, sustainable development, architectural review, controlling traffic congestion growth, and commercial vs. housing balance commitments throughout the process.
They are also dominating the preparation of the task force’s report to the Board of Supervisors. The draft task force report attempts to weaken further the language of the draft plan as it has been presented to the Board. RCA has taken the time to thoroughly review and comment on the draft task force report’s shortcomings including many more than described above. Ultimately, RCA voted “nay” on the draft task force report.
Even the Planning Commission has amended the draft Plan on its way to the Board by cutting out a proposed requirement that new construction be reviewed by RA’s Design Review Board. The likely result: A developer-dominated design review board (if any) that won’t care about architectural excellence—a key Reston planning principle. For example, see the results around Wiehle and Sunset Hills from the previous RCIG Architectural Review Board (ARB). Would you like to see a high-rise version of that asphalt and concrete mess?
The situation has not been helped by the fact that County property tax revenue coffers have been stagnant for years, and the Board has been criticized by national bond rating agencies (“outlook negative”) for its overspending in a tighter economic environment as Federal tax dollars for employees and contractors has declined with the recession, sequestration, and irresponsible government shutdowns. All of this has led the Board to focus on generating more taxable property growth in its urbanizing areas—Tysons, Reston, Springfield, and others—no matter what the community costs. That is a far easier course of action for the Board than cutting budgets or increasing tax rates.
RCA’s Reston 2020 Committee has written extensively about the issues and opportunities a new Reston master plan needs to address. It has produced more than a dozen major papers, many approved by the RCA Board of Directors, available from links on its website detailing these issues and opportunities. As the task force process began steamrolling toward its conclusion last autumn, RCA’s representative called up on the task force to produce a draft plan that befit this planned community. It has not.
It is now up to you, Reston residents, to make your voice heard unless you want to see a Dulles Corridor that:
- Reminds you of Crystal City in its property line to property line, concrete and glass, cubist architecture;
- Makes it virtually impossible to drive from one side of Reston to the other—or even to/from the toll road—during rush hours with 5-6 minute delays at each key intersection the norm;
- Guarantees next-to-no new open and recreational space, including only three athletic fields for the area’s expected 40,000 new residents; and
- Fails absolutely in describing how any of its plans might be implemented;
- And other shortcomings as detailed in RCA’s Reston Master Plan Report Card.
I would ask that you each consider whether it is worth your time to attend the hearing next Tuesday to hear what your community representatives (and developers) have to say and, if you are willing, to present a short statement (three minutes is the limit) to the Board about your concerns and ideas for building a better urban Reston area. To sign up to speak at the hearing, please go to this webpage on the County website.
It is our community’s last chance to make a difference in a plan that will guide the urbanization of Reston’s core for two or more decades. We need your help. Please attend next week’s hearing and testify if you are willing.
Terry Maynard
RCA Board of Directors
RCA Representative to the Reston Task Force
Co-Chair, RCA Reston 2020 Committee
Where people will live and work in the Reston of the future has been spelled out in changes to the Reston Master Plan, which the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will discuss on Jan. 28.
But where will they play?
Athletic fields have continued to be a sore spot for development watchers. Reston 2020, for instance, says that with tens of thousands of additional residents likely to move into high-density areas around Reston’s three transit stations there will also be an increased need for more athletic fields.
There already is an existing field deficit, the master plan points out, especially in the area lining the Dulles Toll Road, which was formerly designated as commercial only. Growth and development planned for that area, as well as in the one-quarter mile area closest to the transit stations, “will exacerbate the existing deficits,” the Master Plan draft amendment says.
The draft formulated by the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force originally called for 12 additional athletic field to be added in Reston based on projected population growth of about 44,000. The final version that passed the county planning commission last week asks for at a minimum, three fields to be built — one near each of the transit stations.
“The provision of new athletic fields that require larger land areas within Reston TSAs (Transit Station Areas) is especially important and challenging,” the report states. “Creative approaches to providing for sports needs in Reston will be necessary, including integrating facilities within development areas, on rooftops, over stormwater detention facilities, in utility corridors and other alternative locations.”
The Fairfax County Planning Commission on Thursday unanimously agreed to send proposed changes in the Reston Master Plan on to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for approval .
The plan — which was formulated after nearby four years of discussion and numerous draft changes by the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force — was sent on with a few line item changes and last-minute motions. Read the entire revised document here.
Citizen development watchers Reston 2020 gave the final draft of the document — which will guide density, land use and future development around Reston’s three future Silver Line Metro stations — a letter grade of “D” when the plan was finalized last fall.
Reston 2020 was also not pleased with several changes marked up by Hunter Mill Planning Commission representative Frank de la Fe. Among them:
- Allows additional “bonus” density for contributions to Corridor crossings above the already generous proposed development standards and “bonus” density.
- Adds monetary contributions in addition to in kind contributions for vitally needed infrastructure improvements.
- Eliminates the approval of Reston Association Design Review Board for new construction.
- Says new institutional and government development uses should not be counted toward the development of workforce housing requirements to contribute $3 per square foot for new non-residential development.
- Deletes plans for a parking study as needed to justify expansion of parking beyond parking space maximums laid out in the draft plan, relying instead on the phrase “suitable justification.” The result will be excessive parking and greater traffic congestion, says Reston 2020.
However, at Thursday’s meeting, de le Fe verbally added these conditions, which were also unanimously passed:
- A recommendation to direct planning staff to review with Reston stakeholders how to incorporate Reston design specifics into future planning. “Special attention to design has been a hallmark of Reston from beginning,” said de le Fe.
- A recommendation to the Board of Supervisors to develop an inclusive process to prepare a funding plan for transportation improvements. “The planning commission strongly believes public and private investment in Reston is crucial,” he said.
- A recommendation to conduct a detailed valuation and analysis of an enhanced street network, prioritize improvements and develop an implementation strategy for it.
The Fairfax County Planning Commission is slated to revisit on Thursday the amendments to the county master plan that will affect development around Reston’s transit stations.
The planning commission held a public hearing in November, in which it heard testimony from dozens of Reston residents, developers and business owners on the future of Reston. It also, of course, has had nearly two months to go over the 183-page comprehensive plan amendment.
At its Thursday evening meeting, the planners will decide whether to recommend sending the plan to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for final approval or advise more changes. The plan is tentatively scheduled to go before the Board of Supervisors on Jan. 23.
Meanwhile, Development-watchers Reston2020 point out that county planners have made changes to the language throughout the plan amendment. Some of the the biggest criticisms from the citizens’ group is that the changes say bonus density would be allowed more than one-quarter of a mile from Metro stations and no limits on building heights.
After four years of work, the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force recently completed the comprehensive plan amendment — a massive document outlining everything from density around three Metro Silver Line station’s to street patterns to recreational facilities. Dozens of citizens spoke at the public hearing with a variety of opinions on the plans.
One of the main points of the plan: where to put the people. The plan calls for ratios of 50 percent commercial/residential within one-quarter mile of the Metro stations at Wiehle-Reston East, Reston Parkway and Herndon-Monroe. In the half-mile range, the ratio should be 75 percent residential, 25 commercial.
The concept of implementation — just how the plan will be executed, who will pay and other details — came up often in citizen testimony at the public hearing.
“Planning without implementation is empty,” said Reston Citizens Association President Colin Mills. “It is not just a planning issue, it is a political issue. We support having a single entity responsible for implementation issues.”
Planning commission member James Hart reminded Mills, and the people assembled a the public hearing on Nov. 13, that implementation specifics don’t need to be in place as the new Reston will evolve over 30 years and planning will get more specific when variables such as developer proffers, population growth and economic climate are known.
“The comprehensive plan regulates nothing, ” he said. “In Virginia, we are under the Dillon Rule. It is probably inappropriate to put things in the plan like specifics if they have no force of law. The plan is intended to be a general guide. If we bear that in mind a lot of what is in this plan looks a lot better.”
Read more from the public hearing here.
More:
Comprehensive Plan Goes to Planning Commission, With Caveats and Complaints
The construction crews are hard at work on Fairfax County’s new, $18 million Reston District Police Station. The building, expected to be completed later this year, towers over the outdated current building, which will be torn down after the move.
Nearby, Cameron Glen Rehabilitation Center is preparing to close the 173-bed facility later this year. Most patients will move to a new facility, Potomac Falls Health and Rehabilitation in Loudoun. Both care facilities are owned by Commonwealth Care of Roanoke, but Inova owns the land parcel on which the Cameron Glen sits.
Meanwhile, voters in 2012 approved a $25 million Fairfax County Public Library Bond , $10 million of which will be allocated to building a new Reston Regional Library.
All of this could add up to an area near Reston Town Center that looks even more urban than the Reston Town Center itself.
Even with these developments already underway, the longterm plan for what developers call the Town Center North area is still a work in progress. The 47-acre area is bounded by Baron Cameron Avenue, Fountain Drive, and Town Center Parkway and Reston Parkway. The land is owned by two parties: Fairfax County and Inova.
The area currently sees a variety of uses — from Embry Rucker Community Shelter (and a few people living in the woods across the street) to open space to the soon-to-be empty nursing home — planners will take the next steps to determine what the best use is as Reston moves forward as a dense, transit-oriented community.
But at more than one-quarter mile from the future Reston Parkway Metrorail Station, how urban should it be?
“Town Center North is an appealing area for redevelopment, since it’s a fairly large area with two major landholders, Inova and and the County, which makes the process easier,” said Reston Citizens Association president Colin Mills. “Supervisor [Cathy] Hudgins supports expanding Reston’s urban core, and Town Center North is a prime location for that.” Read More
The new residential building under construction on Reston Parkway now has a name and a pre-leasing website.
Meet The Harrison Apartments, two 14-story towers under construction at the site where 82 Parc Reston units in three low-rise buildings used to stand at Reston Parkway and Temporary Road.
The building has been under construction since the summer of 2012. The building is expected to be completed in summer 2014.
When it is complete, The Harrison will have 360 luxury one-, two- and three-bedroom rental units. It is located just across Reston Parkway from Reston Town Center and The Spectrum, which is expected to undergo massive redevelopment in the next few years. The Reston Parkway Metro stop, expected to open in 2018, is also nearby.
Amenities will include an outdoor rooftop pool, an indoor lap pool, fitness center, an indoor spa, a yoga/Pilates room, a rooftop clubroom, onsite concierge service and an executive business and conference center, said developer Renaissance Centro.
Renaissance Centro also built Stratford House and Carlton House on Reston Parkway.
The opening of Metro’s Silver Line will transform the Tysons Corner and Reston areas into transit-oriented edge cities in the decades to come, says a report from real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield.
The report, “The Silver Line: Envisioning a New Tysons Corner” explores the Silver Line’s impact on the demographics, development and the overall real estate market. While it mainly concentrates on Tysons Corner, the Reston is expected to see a similar transformation.
“It’s an exciting time to be in Tysons – while the transformation of a suburban, automobile-centric office market into a more urban, walkable ‘urban’ center will take some time, it will happen,” said Paula Munger, C&W’s research managing director in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. “The trend towards 24/7 live-work-play environments is playing out in office markets globally, and the Silver Line will stimulate it in our region.”
Phase I of the $3.2 billion Silver Line will run from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue. While originally estimated to open this month, there have been several testing delays and the project will open sometime in early 2014. Metro officials have not given a firm date. Phase 2 will run from Wiehle-Reston East to Dulles International Airport and into Ashburn. Phase 2 stations are not yet under construction will not open until at least 2018.
Cushman & Wakefield says the opening of Northern Virginia’s first new Metro stations in more than 15 years will make Tysons — and in essence Reston — a more attractive place for Washington’s workforce, who can now more easily commute (or reverse-commute) from Washington, D.C., or Arlington.
The report uses the Rosslyn-Ballston area of Arlington as a hint of what might be to come.
Prior to the Metro’s arrival in Arlington in 1977, the R-B Corridor had 26 office buildings with more than 25,000 square feet; a total of just over 4.1 million square feet of space. Today, the Corridor boasts 101 properties totaling 20.2 million square feet.
The R-B Corridor also experienced a significant boom in residential housing units after the introduction of the Metro. Prior to the Metro’s opening, the entire RB Corridor contained 23 multi-family projects with over 100 units. Combined, these developments totaled about 6,000 units. Today, there are 74 such projects totaling just under 200,000 units.
That’s what groups like Reston Citizens Association’s Reston 2020 are envisioning too. But where commercial real estate firms see a gold rush, Reston 2020 sees frustrated residents and traffic jams. The group estimates the Wiehle station alone will bring 13,000 additional jobs and 5,500 new residential households by 2030-2040, causing clogged streets unless some big changes are made.
Reston 2020 recently gave the proposed changes to the Reston Master Plan — which will be voted on by the Fairfax County Planning Commission in January — an overall letter grade of D when it comes to planning for the changes in population and workers.
Meanwhile, Cushman & Wakefield says that despite an overall slowdown in investment sales for Northern Virginia, the Silver Line expansion has drawn high notice from investors. Since 2010, $1.2 billion in investor office transactions have been in the vicinity of Phase I stations.
The report also says that investors recognize he future population increase’s effect on high-end multifamily apartments.
“The proposed apartments should be able to command top dollar as a result of their proximity to the stations, retail centers, luxury amenities and the overall higher income of the area,” the report says. “This may spur investors to upgrade recently purchased properties to match the offerings of future new construction.”
One of those new buildings, The Avant at Reston Town Center, which will be in walking distance to the Phase 2 Reston Parkway Silver Line station, recently opened with high-end amenities and high-end prices. Rents for a one bedroom start at more than $2,000 a month.
Reston Association has asked Republic Land Development for several conditions in order to make a proposed land swap deal happen.
Republic, which has been selected by the county to redevelop Crescent Apartments and areas around Lake Anne, needs 1.1 acre of RA land located near the existing parking lot at Lake Anne Village Center in order to build a parking garage for the revitalized retail area it is planning. Republic will give Reston Association a similar-sized but less useful plot of land near Baron Cameron, as well as about $500,000 to fund improvements to RA facilities.
Meanwhile, there has been pushback from the community over the existing trees located on the RA-owned land. Many citizens, as well as groups such as Sustainable Reston and the Reston Citizens Association, are against the swap because it would remove many large trees.
That’s why RA’s additional requests involve care of the trees as part of the agreement. Republic president and CEO David Peter has preliminarily agreed to the conditions in a revised letter of intent.
Among the additional conditions, according to RA documents:
- At the time of the land swap, Republic will escrow the sum of $100,000 with RA, to be used either for tree canopy enhancement and reforestation in Reston or to fund the acquisition by Republic of title to or easements over privately owned property of interest that will be conveyed to RA as additional exchange consideration.
- Republic will coordinate with RA arborists to undertake a comprehensive, multiyear pruning exercise to ensure the health of the trees that remain on the property.
- Republic will install light fixtures on the new pathways within the Crescent property, and 10 that otherwise adjoin the development parcels (particularly in the Brown’s Chapel and Lake Anne Elementary locations) as determined mutually by Republic and RA.
- Republic will agree to subsidize 25 percent of the cost of the Lake Anne dredge sometime before the occupancy permit for the new high rise tower is issued but not later than Dec. 31, 2025.
The RA board will vote on the land swap at its meeting on Thursday at 6 p.m. at RA Headquarters. Public comment is welcome.
(Map of proposed land swap area courtesy of Reston Association)
Here is a status update from Fairfax County about development projects in the approval process for Reston.
Oakcrest School — The private school has filed a special exception plat and development conditions for a traffic signal at Crowell Road and Hunter Mill Road. The Fairfax County Planning Commission voted in July to recommend approval for the project. Board of Supervisors hearing: Jan. 28.
JBG Reston Retail — Has filed a proposed development plan amendment, proffer conditions and and a planned residential community plan for a bank at 11810 Sunrise Valley Drive. Board of Supervisors hearing: Jan. 9.
JBG/Reston Executive Center — Has filed a special exception to allow for 65,000 square feet of development to include retail, fast food and other restaurants at 12000-12120 Sunset Hills Rd. JBG is asking to convert 27,850 square feet of office space and build an additional 37,150 square feet onto existing office space. Planning Commission hearing: Feb. 19.
Reston Comprehensive Plan Amendment — The County Planning Commission finally has the Comprehensive Plan Amendment to guide the future of Reston development around the three Metro stations. Public hearing was held Nov. 14. Planning Commission will decide whether or not to recommend to supervisors on Dec. 5.
T-Mobile and Milestone Communications — Have filed an application for a wireless communications facility (cell phone tower) at Crossfield Elementary School. The proposal is for a 130-foot tall pole to be disguised as a tree. These poles exist at several area schools, including South Lakes High School. The equipment needs to operate the tower would be behind a locked, fenced-in area and be camouflaged with trees. Planning Commission hearing: Postponed.
Block 4 LLC and Reston Town Center Property (Boston Properties) — Have filed a development plan amendment, proffered conditions, and a PRC plan to develop what currently is the surface parking lot at Reston Town Center. The lot would be mixed-use development. Planning Commission hearing: April 24.
Reston Hospital Center — Has filed a comprehensive sign amendment. Planning Commission hearing: Feb. 6.
After years of discussion and 10 drafts, the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force‘s comprehensive plan amendment will finally go before the Fairfax County Planning Commission Wednesday at 8:15 p.m.
The comprehensive plan amendment will guide Reston’s planning through the next 20-30 years, as it prepares for huge growth as a transit oriented community. The Planning Commission will decide whether to recommend the plan to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
The plan allows for a variety of densities, with the greatest densities close to the upcoming Metro Silver Line stations at Wiehle-Reston East, Reston Parkway and Herndon-Monroe. But does it allow for enough green space, traffic flow and other areas of concern? Reston 2020, the Reston Citizens Association group that examines development, recently gave the plan amendments a grade of “D.”
“We felt that the plan was seriously lacking in many areas, most notably parks and recreation, transportation, and implementation,” RCA President Colin Mills wrote in an opinion piece on Reston Now two weeks ago.
Want to peruse the complex, 183-page document yourself? Visit the Department of Planning and Zoning website.
Do you have an interest in the future of Reston at this crucial time in its development as a transit-oriented community?
Then apply for a seat on the Reston Planning and Zoning Committee, which will have eight openings in 2014. The 15-member Reston Planning and Zoning Committee has five vacancies for three-year terms and three vacancies for one-year terms beginning on Jan 1.
Meetings are held the third Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m. in the Community Room, North County Government Center, 12000 Bowman Towne Dr.
The P & Z committee’s primary focus is the appropriate development of land use in Reston’s Planned Residential Community, and Reston Town Center, as well as county and state ordinances . The P&Z Committee is an advisory body without statutory authority; however, it is looked to and listened to by local government authorities for its opinions and advice on land use matters.
From a P & Z news release:
There is a vital need for community input into the continuing development andredevelopment of Reston. There is an equally important need to ensure that developmentorganizations be treated with consideration given to their resources and rights. While theinitial residential development activity is fairly complete, future actions will moreprobably focus on redevelopment activity.Community awareness and interest, plus accurate and timely information, arenecessary for the orderly development, and now, redevelopment of Reston.
Applications may be downloaded from the P&Z page located in the Explore Reston Section of www.Reston.org or from the P&Z website: http://RPZ.myreston.org.
Questions? Contact Michael Romeo ([email protected]) or Jared Willcox ([email protected]).
