Anyone live in Reston?

[Anonymous]

We are considering moving to a townhouse there. What do you like/dislike about it? Any secret negatives we need to know about?
Are there children in most of the townhouse communities? We'd like to find a family-friendly neighborhood but the single family homes are out of
our price range. We rent in Arlington now and the playgrounds are fantastic--are there a lot of nice public play areas?
Thanks for any info.

[Anonymous]

I live in Reston. I like it for the most part. There are tons of nice walking trails, a selection of pools (kid friendly, and adult friendly). We live in a great neighborhood on a golf course. The curse/blessing is the reston assocation. You have to be prepared to play by their rules - houses have to be painted a specific color, outdoor light fixtures must be approved, etc. The good thing is you won't live next to a pink house with cars up on blocks.

[Anonymous]

we live in a small TH in reston. We like this area a lot. It is very family friendly. There are plenty of playgrounds and pools and walking trails. There is also the community center for classes for your children and/or you - we have utilized both the Reston CC and the Herndon CC for swim, gymnastics and dance classes.

The downside for us is how far it is from the city, but I did take public transport to a job in Arlington for several years and that was not too bad. But I couldn't commute downtown every day - that would be soul sucking. My husband currently works in Ashburn, so that is very convenient, and I work PT for a friend and work from home part of that.

Honestly? During the snowstorms, I was SOOOO glad we lived walking distance to a grocery store and a liquor store Made the whole ordeal more bearable.

I only WISH we could afford a larger TH or a SFH in this area. There are some nice ones.

But, yes, Reston is great as long as you are prepared to live much of your life from Tysons Corner west.

[Anonymous]

When is the metro stop coming to Reston, and when it does, will there be neighborhoods walkable to it?

[Anonymous]

The metro will be walkable from 20190 area, Reston Town Center, Whilie Ave.

I live in Reston and I just love it! I wish I could afford a SFH as well.

[Anonymous]

Have been in Reston 9 years, and grew up in Montgomery County. I LOVE the woodsiness if that's a word. I am a runner and am so grateful for the wooded running paths. Reston Association isn't what folks crack it up to be - we love our 9+ pools to choose from (and tennis courts which we should use more) included with our annual fee. There indeed are tons of classes etc. available to us through the RA as well as the community center. Yes my commute downtown isn't fun but I work from home once a week, leave at 5 sharp and have a commuting buddy that also lives in Reston which is nice for HOV as well as conversation. Everyone has their tradeoffs here. I have friends in Alexandria, Petworth, you name it and sometimes they'll throw a cheap shot at me for geography but at the end of my day I'm thrilled to look at the deer off our deck etc. I love it here.

[Anonymous]

NP here. How is South Lakes High School? I was under the impression that the schools in Reston aren't as good as the other schools in Fairfax County. Can anyone let me know what the good elem/middle schools are in Reston and which ones I should try to avoid?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have been in Reston 9 years, and grew up in Montgomery County. I LOVE the woodsiness if that's a word. I am a runner and am so grateful for the wooded running paths. Reston Association isn't what folks crack it up to be - we love our 9+ pools to choose from (and tennis courts which we should use more) included with our annual fee. There indeed are tons of classes etc. available to us through the RA as well as the community center. Yes my commute downtown isn't fun but I work from home once a week, leave at 5 sharp and have a commuting buddy that also lives in Reston which is nice for HOV as well as conversation. Everyone has their tradeoffs here. I have friends in Alexandria, Petworth, you name it and sometimes they'll throw a cheap shot at me for geography but at the end of my day I'm thrilled to look at the deer off our deck etc. I love it here.

Well...I live off the King St Exit on 395 and saw three deer there just last week...plenty of deer in the area.

You are right it is a trade off - and one I would never make again. Did it for several years and hated the commute and the time I wasted. Even in reasonable traffice it was upwards of an hour wasted on driving each way