As you know if you’ve been
reading me
regularly, RCA has been a leading voice for our citizens on the
Silver Line and the development
around the stations.
Our advocacy paid off in a unique way last Friday, when RCA had a rare
and exciting opportunity to show Reston to a delegation of international
visitors.
This adventure began in January, when we received an email from a representative of the
Mississippi Consortium for International Development (MCID).
MCID was arranging a visit to the US for a delegation of government and
business leaders from Central and Eastern Europe. The visit was part
of the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program
(IVLP), cultural and business exchange program designed to bring current
and emerging international leaders to the US, where they visit 4 cities
in a 3-week period, arranged around a common theme.
The theme of this visit was public-private partnerships, and how they
can help local economies redevelop. The delegation was visiting
Washington to look at the Silver Line and the public-private partnership
to build the
Reston Station
development. MCID was looking for a citizen’s perspective on these
partnerships, someone to discuss some of their downsides as a
counterpoint to the enthusiasm of the business and government leaders
behind these partnerships. MCID heard about us, and they asked us to
provide a presentation. Our local and national reputation was becoming
an international reputation! We were delighted to particpate.
A crack RCA team of Terry Maynard, Tammi Petrine, Dick Rogers, Rob
Bonham, and myself set to work planning the visit. We knew what a
tremendous opportunity this was; to my knowledge, this is the first time
in decades that RCA had hosted an international delegation. We put
together an agenda that would spotlight the public-private partnership
issue, but would also provide a taste of Reston and what makes our
community special.
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| Maggie Parker provided a thorough look at the evolution of the Reston Station project. |
Our visit began at the offices of Comstock, the developer of the
Reston Station development. Over
lunch, Maggie Parker of Comstock
talked about the history of the project, the huge quantity of raw
materials going into the construction, and how the project represents
the mixed-use, transit-oriented development that Fairfax County wants to
see around the stations. Maggie noted that the footprint of the
project was about the size of 22 football fields, which led a visitor
from Austria to quip, “Your football, not ours.” After fielding
questions, Maggie led us over to the project site, where we got to tour
around and view the construction in progress.
 |
| The IVLP visitors toured the Reston Station site, including the just-added new bridge to the Wiehle station. |
The project superintendent led us around the future site of the
pedestrian plaza, and then took us down into the parking garage. Maggie
showed us where the bus drop-offs and kiss-and-ride will take place
(the second story below grade), and then pointed out the “elephant
stand,” which is the construction team’s term for the concrete-and-steel
structure designed to support the weight of the garage and the
high-rise buildings that will rest atop it.
 |
| The fifth level of the Reston Station garage is virtually complete, including painted walls, striping, and LED lighting. |
We then went down to the fifth level of the garage, which is all but
complete. We got to see the structure that will host street-level
retail when Reston Station opens, and will eventually be converted into
the lobby of the hotel to be built on the site. We saw the pedestrian
bridge connecting the development to the Wiehle station; the last span
had just been laid the night before. Kudos to Dick, who arranged with
Comstock to allow the delegation to visit the site and see the
construction in progress.
 |
| The interim retail center--which will become the hotel lobby someday--rises from the plaza level. |
After we left the site, seeking something quieter and more peaceful, we took the delegation to the
Nature House.
This served two purposes: first, we wanted to demonstrate the
importance of nature and the environment to Reston; and second, the
Nature House is a sort of public-private partnership, between the Reston
Association and private donors to the Friends of Reston, which allowed
the Nature House to be built.
 |
| Katie Shaw, Nature House Direcdtor, describes the origins of the Nature House, including the many funding sources. |
Nature House director Katie Shaw provided a tour of the building,
describing the history of the project and the decades it took to come to
fruition, and also explaining the many eco-friendly components that
went into the project, allowing it to earn LEED Gold certification. (I
had no idea that the floors of the Nature House are made from reclaimed
woods from old barns.)
After that, Katie led us on a short nature walk. For the visitors,
who have spent much of their visit on construction sites and in meeting
rooms, the fresh air and the trees were a welcome change of pace. I was
delighted that the weather allowed us to show our visitors a bit of
Reston’s natural beauty. Thanks to Tammi for arranging the Nature
House’s participation.
Colin Mills, RCA President, and the members of the IVLP delegation and their hosts.
From there, we drove past the
Reston National Golf Course and up to
Lake Anne,
where our visitors posed for a picture with Bob Simon’s statue. (Told
that Bob himself lives at Lake Anne, one of the visitors commented that
it was strange to see a statue built for a person who is still alive.)
At RCC Lake Anne, we treated the delegation to coffee, cookies, and
fruit while we presented our citizen’s view of the Silver Line and its
challenges. I presented a brief history of Reston and of RCA. Terry
gave a good analytical presentation of RCA’s views on public-private
partnerships and some of the downsides, including excessive secrecy,
potential political blowback, and high costs. Terry also explained the
Master Plan Special Study
process, and the challenges of balancing the desire to allow new growth
and transit-oriented development in Reston without imperiling our
quality of life.
Tammi followed with an emotional counterpoint to Terry’s fact-based
presentation, walking the visitors through the history of the Metro
project and the impact that
higher Dulles Toll Road tolls
might have on our community. By the time we were through, the
delegation had a thorough understanding of both the advantages and
concerns of the Silver Line and the development it will bring.
Thanks to Terry, Tammi, Dick, and Rob for your help and hard work in
making this visit a success. It was highly educational and enjoyable
for our visitors, and another success for RCA. Thanks to Comstock for
hosting our visitors and showing them the construction, and thanks to
Katie Shaw and RA for a great visit at Nature House. As a fellow native
Restonian, Katie has a great love of our community, and that shone
through in her presentation.
If you’d like to see some highlights of our trip, check out the
pictures accompanying this piece. I was delighted that RCA had the
chance to be a voice of Reston’s citizens not only here at home, but
internationally as well.
