An engineering company that helped build Metro’s Silver Line extension will continue calling Reston Town Center its home.
Bechtel announced yesterday (Wednesday) that it has signed a lease to expand its corporate headquarters at One Reston Overlook (12011 Sunset Hills Road). The engineering and construction firm will now occupy 11 floors in the 12-story, 320,000-square-foot office building with an additional 289,000 square feet of space.
“Bechtel is committed to our partnership in the D.C. Metropolitan area, particularly in Reston where we’ve been since 2012,” Bechtel Manager of Facilities Rick Tesman said in a press release. “Our recent lease extension and office expansion supports our growing global operations, fostering increased collaboration at our headquarters. As a 126-year-old-company, we’re proud to continue our legacy at Sunset Hills in Reston Town Center.”
The company didn’t comment on whether the expansion will bring new jobs to Reston. It also signed a lease last year for 23,525 square feet of space in D.C.’s Foggy Bottom neighborhood at 2200 Pennsylvania Avenue, which is owned by Reston Town Center owner and manager Boston Properties (BXP).
Founded in San Francisco, California, in 1898, Bechtel now employs 18,000 people in nearly 50 countries around the world. It works with both private and public partners in defense and aerospace, infrastructure, energy, and manufacturing and technology, among other sectors.
For its most notable work in the D.C. area, the company led the contractors that built the first phase of the Silver Line, which extended Metrorail into Tysons and Reston with five new stations. Bechtel also made a bid to design and build the second phase, but that project was awarded to Clark Construction Group and Kiewit Infrastructure South instead.
Bechtel relocated its global operations headquarters to Reston from Frederick, Maryland, in 2012. After a $10 million expansion in 2015 that was projected to add 700 jobs, the contractor officially made its Reston offices its corporate headquarters in 2018, consolidating operations previously based in San Francisco and Houston, Texas.
Bechtel’s decision to increase its footprint at Reston Overlook reinforces Reston Town Center’s appearance of imperviousness to the leasing challenges that have hit other office properties even in the Dulles corridor.
At the end of 2023, Boston Properties reported that 94% of the town center’s office space was leased, and it’s planning to add even more offices with the next phase of its Reston Next expansion south of the Washington & Old Dominion Trail.
“Bechtel’s renewal and expansion within Reston Town Center is a testament to Reston’s desirability amongst global firms and the strong partnership we’ve been able to foster,” Jake Stroman, co-head of BXP’s D.C. regional office, said. “With direct access to major transit hubs, dynamic shopping, dining and fitness experiences, and year-round community programming, Reston Town Center continues to provide clients with the accessible, best-in-class offerings that are most desired in today’s market.”
