A nearly 48-acre redevelopment north of Reston Town Center moved closer to final approval after the Fairfax County Planning Commission voted 11-0 to recommend the project on July 22.

The Reston Town Center North plan would replace aging civic buildings with a mixed-use district spanning 11 blocks between Baron Cameron Avenue, Town Center Parkway, New Dominion Parkway and Fountain Drive. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to hold its public hearing and vote on Tuesday, Sept. 15.

Jointly submitted by Inova Health Care Services and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, the proposal calls for a new Reston Regional Library, a relocated Embry Rucker Community Shelter, a future elementary school, a recreation center, an athletic field, up to 1,000 residential units, commercial space and a 3.61-acre Central Green, according to Patch.

The project sits about one mile from the Reston Town Center Metrorail station and two miles from the Wiehle-Reston East station, according to county records.

County planning staff recommended approval, concluding the proposal conforms to the Comprehensive Plan and zoning requirements.

First phase targets library, shelter

The first phase would include the new library, the relocated shelter, portions of a new street network and the initial section of the Central Green. County officials said the library could open in early 2030 if approvals and site plans stay on schedule. The shelter would follow several months later.

Attorney Timothy Sampson, representing both applicants at the July 22 hearing, told commissioners the timeline is pressing. "The urgency that is on everybody to deliver that library and that shelter is acute," Sampson said at the hearing, as reported by the Reston Connection. If approved, land swaps would allow Phase 1 site preparation to begin in late 2026.

Later phases call for Inova to build up to 1,000 residential units across three blocks along Fountain Drive, up to 150,000 square feet of commercial space, a replacement human services building, an expanded Central Green and sites reserved for the school and recreation center.

Community voices

Reston Association CEO Peter Lusk voiced support at the hearing but asked the applicants for commitments beyond the minimum. His requests included more affordable and workforce housing, healthcare space, an assisted living facility, LEED Gold or higher sustainability standards, natural turf for the athletic field and completion of the full Central Green before the final residential occupancy.

The plan has been in the works for roughly 15 years. Retiring Hunter Mill District Planning Commissioner John Carter, who cast one of his final votes on the project, acknowledged the full buildout will stretch decades. "At the last CIP they delayed it a year, so now instead of 2049, it's 2050," Carter said at the hearing, according to the Reston Connection.

Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn said in a July 24 email to Patch that the rezoning "is a necessary precursor for consideration of future site-specific rezonings for a much-needed new Reston Regional library, a replacement of the Embry Rucker homeless shelter, and several other critical county facilities."

The board's vote is the project's final approval step. If supervisors say yes, the county intends to begin site plan and public improvement plan work in fall 2026.