Key Reston Planning Task Force Meetings on Transit-Oriented Development

I wanted to bring to everyone’s attention that the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force is having two very important meetings next week on Transit-Oriented Development (TOD), transportation, and the first of the three Reston area TODs at Herndon-Monroe Metro Station.

The meeting is important because:

• The population growth in the three Reston area TODs could add anywhere from 20,000 to more than 60,000 people living in Reston depending on assumptions about family sizes and dwelling unit density.   Obviously, this kind of growth has implications for schools rolls, transportation, and a number of other factors.
• The number of jobs in high-rise office buildings could rise by some 80,000 to well over 100,000.  Again, this could have serious implications for traffic congestion.

It’s not all bad, this growth would support the moderate scale retail expected in these TOD areas plus more broadly add to and help Reston’s many businesses.

It is important to attend both meetings:

• Tuesday, February 23, 7PM, at the RCC-Lake Anne:  This will be an informational meeting on transportation, TOD, and the Herndon-Monroe Station area.  Speakers from the County as well as Montgomery and Arlington Counties and the Reston Metro Advisory Group (RMAG) will be making presentations.  For the full agenda, see http://reston2020.blogspot.com/2010/02/agenda-reston-master-plan-special-study.html
• Saturday, February 27, 9AM, location to be determined (probably SLHS or LHIS):  This will be a community meeting on the Herndon-Monroe Station according to the latest schedule.  In general, this will be an opportunity for people who are present to present their ideas, interests, and concerns through some mediated processes.  No agenda has been posted yet, but the meeting may also speak to general TOD and transportation issues.  I will update this post when the County provides additional information.

As always, I would encourage you to read the Reston 2020 blog where we try to post everything about the Reston planning effort as it becomes available.  An easy way to access information there on these topics is to look at the “Labels” section of the sidebar, basically a topical index of the items on the blog that links you to related posts on the blog.  You may also want to go to the County’s webpage on the Reston planning effort to check for information on these important topics.