Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) is preparing to leave Reston.
The community college will phase out its Reston Technology Center at 1821 Michael Faraday Drive, relocating classes to other campuses before vacating the premises by December 2027, NOVA spokesperson Kathy Parkinson says.
Opened at its current location in early 2018, the Reston Center serves as an extension of NOVA’s Loudoun County campus, hosting classes in subjects from information technology to English and business. The facility has 11 classrooms, three computer labs, a library and a multi-purpose room.
According to Parkinson, NOVA has decided not to renew its lease for the Reston facility, because it has enough space to support in-person classes on campuses that it owns.
“NOVA is committed to keeping costs down for students,” Parkinson told FFXnow. “When space is available in college-owned campus facilities, the goal is to utilize those before paying for a lease.”
While many of the Reston classes will likely move to the campus in Sterling (21200 Campus Drive), the final locations could vary depending “on student demand and scheduling preferences,” NOVA says.
The community college also hasn’t determined an exact timeline yet for when it will start relocating classes from Reston.
Though no figures were available for the number of students taking classes at the Reston Center, NOVA overall has more than 75,000 enrolled students across six campuses and offers over 160 associate degree and certificate programs, according to its website.
The four-story, 54,000-square-foot office building that houses the Reston Center at 1821 Michael Faraday Drive sits in a rapidly developing area, just north of the Lofts at Reston Station and northeast of the Reston Midline neighborhood.
According to Fairfax County records, the property was originally built in 1988 and acquired in November 2014 for $10.5 million by JB Properties, an affiliate of the Tysons-based company Bognet Construction.
Verity Commercial, which has its headquarters in the building at Suite 208, says on its website that it partnered with JB Properties to purchase the property after the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors amended the Reston Comprehensive Plan in 2014 to allow increased density near Metro’s forthcoming Silver Line stations.
“Understanding the potential value, Verity solicited existing property owners and learned of the owner’s willingness to sell,” Verity’s website says. “Verity quickly mobilized an investment team and by leveraging existing relationships, was able to get the property under control before it was formally put on the market. At purchase, the property was 78 percent leased. Within six months, Verity was able to raise occupancy to 95 percent.”
Under the county’s current comprehensive plan for Reston, which was updated in September 2023, the building is in part of the Wiehle Transit Station Area planned for residential mixed-use development. That could include office, retail and hotel uses, but the mix is intended to be 75% residential and 25% non-residential uses.
However, there don’t appear to be any immediate plans to redevelop 1821 Michael Faraday Drive, as the site hasn’t been included in any approved or pending rezoning applications.
In addition to NOVA and Verity Commercial, current office occupants include the insurance agency Key Title, a LinkBank branch and Security University, which provides computer skills training.
