Smart Growth
Reston Town Center, VA

The area of Reston, VA was eyed for development since at least the 1890's. It was not until the early 1960's, however, that Robert E. Simon began building Reston - the Town Center itself only beginning in the early 1990's.

The first phase of the Town Center created over 500,000 square feet of office space, a movie theatre, retail shops, and a 500 room hotel. The Reston Town Center has continued to develop since then and when completed, office space is is expected to reach 2 million square feet, retail to exceed 300,000, hotel rooms to double and residential units to number in the hundreds.

According to the National Resources Defense Council, the mixture and concentraion of uses in Reston Town Center generates roughly 50 percent fewer automobile trips than would be expected in a standard suburban development.

Basic statistics:
Construction started: 1990
Total acreage: 85
County: Fairfax, Va

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