Tysons & Reston TOD Areas: A Quantitative Comparison, Reston 2020 Committee, March 9, 2011

UPDATE:  The following is the text of the e-mail transmittal of the Reston 2020 analysis to the Reston Task Force via the Task Force Chairman and County planning staff on March 9, 2011. 

Dear Task Force Members--

Attached please find a comparison of density, mix of uses, and intensity among the current Reston Task Force sub-committee reports, GMU's high and intermediate forecasts for 2030, DPZ's "Scenario A" for 2030, and allowable values in the Tysons "Phase I" Comprehensive Plan for 2030.  It intends to be an aid for the Steering Committee's and Task Force's upcoming discussions about intensity in the TOD areas.

• At the minimum, it highlights the need to trim densities from the longer view sub-committee proposals to serve as a realistic plan guiding Reston TOD area development through 2030. 
• It also suggests that the sub-committee proposals are largely on track to achieve a 1:1 interim office:residential space ratio, but compressing those values into 20 years will be difficult.  Reston 2020 continues to believe that a 1:1 population ratio should be the long-term goal for TOD area development to minimize traffic congestion, maximize use of Metrorail, and reduce the cost of transportation infrastructure development. 
• It offers Tysons planning effort's apparent use of GMU's high forecasts for 2030 as an overall guide to future allowable Reston development, although the imbalance in workforce and residential populations in GMU's forecasts needs to be addressed to achieve Reston's population "balance" goals. 
• Finally, it questions the value of a Task Force proposal that does not plan for the diverse public infrastructure needed to support a doubling or so of density and a 60-70%% increase in Reston TOD area intensity in the next 20 years.

The data used for the sub-committee reports does not include any bonus density, largely to make it comparable to the other data sources.  Nonetheless, we believe that bonus density keyed to achieving Reston's vision and planning principles can be an important element of Reston's new Plan if base plan levels are appropriate and bonus criteria are both specific and stringent enough to meaningfully advance achievement of Reston's goals. 

The attachment was driven by a Reston 2020 Committee resolution last month to quantify the entirety of what is being proposed by the several Task Force sub-committees.  Reston 2020 will be discussing this analysis at its meeting on March 10, 2011, and may generate suggestions for the Task Force on how to proceed with shaping a reasonable Reston TOD area Comprehensive Plan proposal over the next twenty years.

We would appreciate it if this e-mail and the attachment were shared with all Task Force members and posted on the County Task Force website.  We thank you in advance for your consideration. 


Sincerely,
John Bowman
Terry Maynard
Tammi Petrine
Co-chairs
RCA Reston 2020 Committee


cc:  FC Board of Supervisors
      FC Planning Commission

bcc:  RCA Reston 2020 Committee
        RCA Board of Directors

Tysons & Reston TOD Areas--A Quantitative Comparison