Reston couple seek to establish Free Little Library for 10-year anniversary

As they turn the page on 10 years of marriage, a local couple is looking to mark the milestone by giving back to the community.

Molly Bloudoff-Indelicato is seeking Reston Association‘s approval of a Free Little Library near the walking path between 12700 and 1652 Thunder Chase Drive. She pitched the idea as a gift to her husband, Greg.

“We are hoping to share our love of reading with the community,” said Greg. The couple has lived in Reston for two years.

The structure — which stands on a three-foot base — is mostly designed for children’s books and smaller young adult books. RA’s permission is required because the structure would be installed on an RA common area.

Neighbors and passersby can take and leave books in the collection. Reston already has several in cluster common areas like the Waterview, Whisperwood and Old Westbury clusters.

At a meeting on Dec. 15, RA’s Board of Directors voted to approve the project.

Due to concerns about the precedent that the approval could establish, the board moved to approve a covenant agreement that would require Bloudoff-Indelicato to take over responsibility for the maintenance and monitoring of the installation.

Attorney Anthony Champ cautioned that the approval could result in possible liabilities if inappropriate or offensive materials circulate in the library.

“You can only imagine how this community would come out if something inappropriate ended up in one of those,” Champ said.

Board member Laurie Dodd also noted that the standard to judge content as inappropriate or offensive is often subjective. She specifically referred to concerns about the repeated use of the n-word in Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”

“I’m not suggesting that there is a right or wrong answer,” Dodd said. She voted in favor of the project.

Molly said that parents would like be the “gatekeepers” of content and that the couple would take charge of ensuring appropriate content was available.

The proposal must now make its way through RA’s Design Review Board.