A $3.14 million stream restoration and trail rebuild in Reston is finished after seven years of planning and construction.

Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn joined Westwood Village President Claudia Diamond, residents and county staff on Monday, Sept. 28, for a ribbon-cutting at the Old Courthouse Spring Branch and Ash Grove Trail. The project stabilized about 2,000 linear feet of stream channel, replaced a damaged crossing with a new concrete culvert and rebuilt the Ash Grove Trail with new hand railings, according to the county's stormwater project page.

The trail is now open.

The work sits on public land south of the Dulles Access Road, running through Old Courthouse Spring Branch Stream Valley Park to Ashgrove Lane. Before the restoration, the stream regularly overtopped the trail crossing and gouged out its own banks, causing significant erosion downstream, according to Fairfax County project manager Justin Pistore.

"It's hard to believe it's been seven years we've been doing this … I can speak for our community and say the end result is absolutely amazing," Diamond said at the ceremony.

The county planted several thousand native trees, shrubs and grasses to replace vegetation lost during construction, including fruit-bearing pawpaw and persimmon trees. The county planted more than double the required number of overstory, midstory and understory plantings, Pistore said. Alcorn said he worked with residents, neighboring homeowners associations, the Tysons Forest Community Task Force and county staff to maximize tree preservation.

The Fairfax County Stormwater Division estimates the restored stream will remove 66.79 pounds of phosphorus, 763.36 pounds of nitrogen and 21,448.25 tons of suspended sediment each year. Those reductions help the county meet federal clean water requirements under its Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit, which protects the Chesapeake Bay and local waterways.

Design was funded at $900,000 and the construction contract totaled $1,977,212. Design wrapped up in May 2024, and construction was completed in July 2026. The project was funded through the county's Stormwater Service District.

New planning commissioner takes seat

Separately, Alcorn appointed lifelong Reston resident Paul D. Thomas as the new Hunter Mill District planning commissioner. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors confirmed the appointment Aug. 25, and Thomas began his term Sept. 1.

Thomas replaces John A. Carter, who retired Aug. 31 after nine years on the commission. Carter chaired the Planning Commission's Placemaking Committee and helped shape the 2020–2023 Reston Comprehensive Plan, including parks and open space guidance calling for a connected network of green spaces and a Central Green for Reston Town Center North.

Alcorn honored Carter at a Sept. 8 reception at the North County Governmental Center, presenting him with a formal Board of Supervisors resolution. As FFXnow reported, Board Chair Jeff McKay credited Carter with improving individual projects and overall planning processes.

Thomas, a former math and computer science teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, now works as an education consultant. He served on the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force alongside Carter and has held seats on the Reston Community Center Board of Governors, the Reston Association Board and the Fairfax County Human Services Council.

When Alcorn announced the appointment in late July, he said Thomas "brings a community-first perspective to this important role that helps guide future development in the Hunter Mill District."