Supervisor Hudgins to BP: Work With Reston Merchants

RESTON, VA — Reston's representative on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors says Reston Town Center manager Boston Properties needs to make a concerted effort to work merchants who are upset over the implementation of paid parking.

Supervisor Cathy Hudgins, who represents the Hunter Mill District, said during a Tuesday appearance on the Kojo Nnamdi Show that BP -- who declined to participate in the show -- has "some work to do" to make merchants happy, and she questioned why the developer was making the move toward paid parking so long before the RTC Metro station opens.

"The merchants are really what make the Center, and I think if you can't resolve your issue with the merchants, you're going to cause the Town Center not to be what we always looked for, which is a thriving and vibrant community," she said.

Hudgins said Reston Town Center is a private entity that has the right to make this move, but BP will need to "come up with something that is acceptable" to the merchants and customers. "There are ways of doing it," she said.

BP says they are reinvesting funds from paid parking back into Reston Town Center, but Hudgins questioned that claim during the interview, noting that a development planned for the upcoming Silver Line Metro station at RTC was always in the cards.

"I couldn't say that the parking is for their reinvestment," she said. "I believe they would be reinvesting in that site no matter what. It is part of the Town Center and it would be the completion of the Town Center.

"I think the question is, with rail still incomplete, why would you implement it now?" Hudgins continued. "At least let the people see where you are going with the Town Center. ... Why the parking now for [the merchants], and why not have a discussion with them in a way they could understand the impact on their businesses?"

Aaron Gordon, the owner of Red Velvet Cupcakery at RTC and one of the leaders of the anti-ParkRTC movement, said during the show that the paid parking rollout has been a "total disaster" for the merchants, and sales for his business alone are down 18.5 percent compared to last year.

"This will put many of us out of business, including myself, within a year," he said.

You can listen to the full episode of the Kojo Nnamdi Show on ParkRTC here.

Image: Patch file photo