Huge Meeting On Controversial Reston Zoning Measure Monday Night

RESTON, VA — Fireworks are possible at a major meeting Monday night over a zoning ordinance amendment proposal that has many local Restonians worried about the future of Reston. Officials want to boost the density limit of the Reston Planned Residential Community (PRC) district to allow for more residential development, but many in the community are up in arms over the proposal.

A major meeting will be held Monday night, Sept. 25, at Lake Anne Elementary School Cafeteria at 7 p.m. The meeting could lead to the county putting the amendment before the Board in November and then the Planning Commission in January, followed by a Board of Supervisors Public Hearing in February.

The zoning ordinance amendment would propose increasing the overall persons per acre maximum to 16, a 23 percent increase in population density over the original limit. More specifically, it would allow individual developments in excess of 50 dwelling units per acre. It would allow Reston to become a lot more crowded, adding 18,737 more people to a community that currently has a population of around 58,000, county officials state. Locals believe the population increase would be far greater than that.

Critics argue that Reston's streets aren't capable of handling such a boom in population, and the growth could negatively impact local schools and parks, and lead to under-staffing of police and fire stations. Many Restonians believe that infrastructure needs should be addressed first before any development increase is allowed.

For more information, read Reston PRC Zoning Ordinance: 5 Things You Need To Know.

Image via Fairfax County