Why Not Both?

In his letter in your Feb. 21-27 issue, Robert E. Simon refers to “dialecticians” who would “tie [Reston’s] future up in knots.” These “dialecticians” seem to be the Boards of Directors of all three of our community organizations: RCA, RA and ARCH.

The boards of all three organizations have agreed that Reston needs comprehensive review of the ordinance (PRC, Planned Residential Community Ordinance) written 40 years ago, which controls planning in Reston. I can say, as one of the board members who participated in this inter-organization agreement, that the intent of the boards was not to tie us up in knots, but to stop redevelopment from occurring in inappropriate locations.

Mr. Simon lists places appropriate for increased density: the village centers and future Metro sites. Unfortunately our outdated ordinance does not. This is because Metro did not exist when the ordinance was written, and the ordinance assumed the village centers would thrive. We all agree that development and redevelopment should indeed occur in these places, and not in stable residential neighborhoods. However, there is nothing in our ordinance to prevent a cluster from selling out to re-developers.

As far as Lake Anne is concerned, my own organization, RCA (Reston Citizens Association) shares Mr. Simon’s view that revitalization there must take priority. RCA remains hopeful that by working purposefully with the county, our community can have the best of both worlds: timely revitalization of Lake Anne and speedy, comprehensive review of the ordinance.

Marion Stillson
Vice-President, RCA

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Letter to the Editor - February 21, 2007

Comprehensive Review Needed

Reston roads are congested, even though we have fewer residents than our founders projected. How can this be? In part it’s because miles driven per person have risen 54 percent and cars per person have risen 70 percent, between 1975 and 2004. These changes of driving habit mean Reston currently has the equivalent of 99,000 residents, in terms of the impact on the roads.

Fairfax County is moving to permit higher density in Reston. This may or may not be a good thing. It is not a good thing to count only the number of residents while ignoring our driving habits and ignoring the traffic impact of being a major job center.
Reston needs to get back on track as a properly planned community. The 40-year-old law which controls us, the Planned Residential Community (PRC) ordinance, needs comprehensive review. This review would take transportation changes into account. This review would take account of our stable neighborhoods, now built, to ensure their stability. It would address environmental and infrastructure impacts. Above all, it would direct any increased density to the parts of town where it makes sense, such as Town Center, the Village Centers, and the Metro corridor.

Reston should be grateful to the county for its plan to change the PRC so that Reston re-development (as opposed to original development) comes under public scrutiny. But that is not the only change in the PRC that we need. We need a comprehensive review.

Please let our esteemed elected and appointed officials know. The Fairfax County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on changes to the PRC on Feb. 22 and the Board of Supervisors will on March 26. Both hearings will be at the Fairfax County Government Center.

Marion Stillson
Reston

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