To the Editor:
Bob Simon has more company than he may expect in supporting the 23-story office building at Bowman Drive and Reston Parkway ["Supporting 23-story Building," Reston Connection, Aug. 29-Sept. 4, 2012]. I support this project as, in 1978, I did for the five-story building it will replace. Now, deemed acceptable, it then elicited objections as a "high rise," unsuitable to its location. The new building will share a skyline with comparable structures as the western parts of the Town Center are redeveloped.
Mr. Simon correctly views the project as a logical step in the evolution of Reston. He used the bulk of his letter to remind us of the basic elements vital to the new town he envisioned. The master plan has undergone over 20 amendments in response to market conditions since it was adopted without sacrificing the land use structuring that makes Reston unique.
The economic success of Reston to date is evidenced in the Town Center and commercial offices along the Dulles corridor and is expanding. Our Village Centers, taken as a unit, have not kept pace. I share Mr. Simon’s concern for their future should the planned but unrealized residential densities established in the master plan be appreciably changed. That proximate population is necessary for the economic viability of the centers. The master plan provides for that need.
Mr. Simon has said several times in my hearing that if there is any "genius" in his plan, it was reflected in its flexibility. My sincere hope is that this is not used to abort that future Restonians deserve.
Kurt N. Pronske
Reston