A Stand on Density
Environmental committee has asked Reston Association to support the existing density cap.
By Jason Hartke - July 20, 2006 Reston Connection

See Environmental Advisory Committee letter to RA Board
Reston’s Density Cap
 Most of Reston, roughly 6,200 acres, was zoned more than 40 years ago as a planned residential community (PRC). The ordinance includes a density “cap” of 13 persons per acre, which county officials reported earlier this year is fast approaching.

After extensive analysis, the county reported last month that Reston has room for an additional 4,106 high-rise residential units. Development applications in the pipeline could cut that number to less than 1,000.  If the ordinance is not changed, additional residential development could soon come to a standstill.

Responding to the situation, the county initiated a process this summer to change the ordinance, re-defining how future development would take place. County officials will enter a second dialogue with the community later this year to gauge whether or not residents want to retain, eliminate or increase the cap.

To protect Reston’s open space and environmental resources, Reston Association’s Environmental Advisory Committee has taken a stand against changes to the community’s allowable maximum density.

Last month at the association’s board of directors meeting, the committee asked the board to oppose the county’s effort to change the zoning ordinance to permit more residential density in Reston (See “Reston’s Density Cap”).

The committee drafted a letter that listed its objections to density above what’s currently permitted given Reston’s “severely degraded” watersheds. “There doesn’t seem to be anything out there about environmental concerns,” said the committee’s chair, Carolyn Badila.
They strongly recommended that the association oppose an ordinance change to eliminate the density cap, said the committee’s letter.

At the board’s June 22 meeting, the committee asked the association to endorse its letter and then send it to Supervisor Catherine Hudgins (D-Hunter Mill).

The board, surprised it hadn’t been more informed about the proposed zoning change, deferred its decision indefinitely, but agreed it would begin talks with the county to secure a greater role in the ordinance change process.

“What’s Reston Association’s role in all this?” asked Director Doug Bushée (Northpoint). “Whatever we need to do to get a seat at that table would benefit members.”  Director Mark Watts (At-Large) suggested sending the county a letter from the board to request “a seat at the table.”

Learning from experience during talks to bring Metrorail to Reston, where the association has only been briefed for updates, Director Rick Beyer (At-Large) said the letter should ask for a “formal” seat at the table. “Something more than what we’ve always got in the past,” he added.  If the density restriction is lifted in the next several months, the environmental advisory committee urges the association to “act to minimize the negative impacts of further development on the environmental quality of Reston.”

Realistic about the possibility that more density may be allowed, the committee’s letter outlines specific suggestions to maintain Reston’s environmental integrity, including the adoption of low-impact development techniques, like rain gardens, green roofs, porous pavers and infiltration trenches.
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