The Story
Why is this place called Reston, Virginia and how did it come to be?
Reston was founded in 1964 by Robert E. Simon, as a planned community, during the era of white flight from Washington DC to its suburbs. Simon purchased almost 7,000 acres of land in Fairfax County after his family sold Carnegie Hall in New York City. The word Reston came from Simon’s initials “RES” and town, or “ton”.
Simon envisioned Reston as a model for conservation development, which valued the preservation of open space, landscapes, and wildlife habitats.
The town was planned to house 75,000 people and be a self-contained economic unit. The initial motto of the community was Live, Work, Play.
Lake Anne Plaza was the first of Reston's village centers. Unfortunately, sales were slow, due to Simon's high standards making the home prices expensive. Simon ran into financial difficulties and therefore accepted a loan from Gulf Oil. They eventually forced him out and managed the community. They retained Simon's employees and adhered largely to the spirit of the original Reston master plan.
