Residents Discuss Baron Cameron Priorities, Reston Connection, May 14, 2013

By Alex McVeigh

The Fairfax County Park Authority has started the master planning process for Baron Cameron Park, a 60-acre park at the northwest corner of the intersection of Wiehle Avenue and Baron Cameron Avenue.

The park currently features nine rectangular fields, one lighted diamond field, a picnic area, playground, 32 community garden plots and an off-leash dog area. It also includes 430 parking spaces, many of which are used as a park and ride for commuters. . .

“This park is not a Reston park. It’s a district park that serves people in the communities of Reston, Herndon, Vienna, Great Falls and other surrounding areas,” said Bill Bouie, Park Authority board chair and a member of the RCC’s governing board. “The field conditions there are fair, and I’m being nice." . . 

At the heart of the current master plan revision is the Reston Community Center’s interest in adding an indoor recreation facility. The RCC Board of Governors recently sent a letter of interest to the Park Authority about a possible partnership for a facility that would provide aquatic, gymnasium and other fitness facilities. . . 

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Virtually all the public comments that evening regarding the proposed Baron Cameron Park master plan concerned whether to build a recreation center at the park.  Most of those who spoke--largely residents of nearby neighborhoods--were opposed to placing the recreation center at the park for a variety of reasons.  Included in the reasons were concerns about preserving the dog park (which FCPA indicates it intends to do anyway), the loss of well-used playing fields, the use of Reston tax dollars to fund a County district park, intractable traffic congestion issues recreation center would cause, etc.  Other suggestions regarding the park focused on improving the poor condition of the fields and increasing parking to prevent spillover into area neighborhoods.