A nearly 60,000-square-foot proposed arts center in the heart of Reston Town Center could cost up to $81 million.

The proposed center comes out of a proffer from Boston Properties’ next phase of development at Reston Town Center. It would be located next to Sunset Hills Road in the southeastern corner of the proposed development site.

Architectural firm Grimm + Parker presented findings from a feasibility study on the project to the Reston Community Center’s Board of Governors on Monday (June 13). The meeting was part of the center’s annual public hearing for programs and budget.

Accounting for inflation, escalation, and an increase in construction costs, the project carries a cost estimate of $81 million if the center is built in 2030. In current dollars, it could cost around $58 million.

The cost estimate includes both hard costs, like construction, and soft costs, like furniture and other design elements.

Grimm + Parker launched a series of community meetings between February and April to court public feedback on the project. The firm then evaluated community needs and requirements for programming, conceptual design and an overall estimate of the project.

The center would accommodate roughly 500 seats, including 372 seats on the orchestra level and 165 on the first balcony, according to Sue Haines, a partner with the firm. Parking would also be shared with neighboring parcels.

The center would also have an open studio for arts, gallery with flexible display options, utility spaces, a catering kitchen, offices, storage, and a digital media studio.

“Life’s been tricky lately, building buildings,” Haines said.

She said that attempts to increase the size of the house — which was flagged as a concern in previous community meetings — are not feasible because of the site design.

Amy Upton, the firm’s director of environmental design, said it was important not to “duplicate facilities that are already around,” noting that other arts-related venues and activities are available in and near Reston.

“Obviously, when that gets designed, all that could get changed,” Haines said.

The Town of Herndon is also expected to welcome a new black box theatre as part of its delayed downtown redevelopment.

Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn and county staff will negotiate details of the proffer going forward to determine if and how the project will proceed. Funding is anticipated from a variety of sources, some of which has not yet been identified. Proffer-related deadlines are anticipated this summer.

It is unclear when design and construction could begin.

A popular outdoor entertainment series has been cancelled for the summer as some of Reston Town Center’s public spaces get a facelift.

Reston Concerts on the Town has been cancelled because RTC’s pavilion will not be available for events due to ongoing renovations.

“While this is disappointing, there’s a silver lining,” event organizers wrote in a statement. “The pavilion is going to be transformed into a more event-friendly space. It will be newly paved, with cool amphitheater-style seating by the fountain and other upgrades.”

Organizers say they attempted to locate an alternate site in the vicinity but were unable to find one that met the amenities and resources required for the concerts, which typically happen on Saturday nights.

“We look forward to bringing the Saturday night concerts back in 2023 in this refreshed space,” organizers said.

A spokesperson for Boston Properties said the upgrades are not expected to affect other events.

“We have been able to accommodate most of our events, with the exception of the Reston Concerts on the Town series,” wrote Sapna Yathiraj, Boston Properties’ marketing director, in a statement.

The work on the pavilion began at the end of March and is expected to wrap up in the early fall. The ice rink will continue to operate from November through March.

Upgrades will include the installation of two fire pits in front of the pavilion, which will be expanded through the service street next to the Hyatt. A wooden deck will be added to serve as a seating area, along with a stage for small events and more seating areas in the artificial-turf area.

The Fountain Plaza will also get stadium-style structures and tables and chairs, a renovation of the fountain’s lower base, and new landscaping. Work on the fountain area is scheduled to begin this month and wrap up later in the fall.

The renovations are one of the first major updates to the common areas, which were first built in the early 1990s. The design team for the project is led by Alan Ward, principal of Sasaki Associates.

Chico’s, a women’s clothing store, has officially shuttered its doors at Reston Town Center.

The business, which was located at 11910 Market Street, closed up shop last month.

It started off in 1983 as a small gallery and has since expanded across the country. There are several local locations, including McLean, Fairfax, and Leesburg.

There is no word yet on what will replace the store. The company did not return multiple requests for comment on why the store closed and when the last day of business was.

The closure comes amidst a flurry of recent changes in the town center, including the departure of Bow Ties Cinema and the addition of a new athletic facility from The St. James.

The center’s public spaces are slated for a facelift starting this spring, and tenants like Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse and Fogo de Chao — among others — are slated to open up their doors this year.

Just like that, Bow Tie Cinemas has left Reston Town Center, leaving Reston Association’s longest running program in limbo.

Reston Town Center owner Boston Properties confirmed last month that the movie theater chain hadn’t renewed its lease, but no firm closure date was given, beyond that it would be sometime in May.

The closure now appears to be official. No show times are listed on its website or the box office marquee, and the doors were locked today (Wednesday).

The company did not return multiple requests for comment on the last day of business. Boston Properties also did not respond to multiple requests for comment on when the company’s lease expired.

RA’s Senior Movie Day, which brings more than 100,000 patrons over the years, will be on pause, as the cinema changes theater companies.

The program begin in 1994 and is expected to resume later this year or in early 2023. RA says that roughly 315 people aged 55 and above attended the shows and enjoyed other Reston Town Center amenities after watching the movies.

Bow Tie Cinemas, which took over the theater in April 2011, will be replaced by LOOK Dine-in Cinemas, which plans to open its first location in Virginia in the last quarter of the year. The business declined to provide additional details about the theater beyond what was reported last month.

LOOK also declined to comment on whether or not it plans to continue the senior movie day tradition once the new theater opens.

(Updated at 9:15 a.m. to replace references to Reston Next with Reston Town Center expansion)

A rotating car station is a key element of Boston Properties’ massive Reston Town Center development.

Anchored by Fannie Mae and also home to Volkswagen Group of America, the $715 million expansion of Reston Town Center will include a jewel box — a 1,500-square-foot box that will let the vehicle manufacturer display vehicles on platforms attached to the eighth story of a planned parking garage.

Mark Looney, Boston Properties’ legal representative, said the jewel box is a “marketing tool” for Volkswagen. RTC Next is a planned four-million-square-foot extension of RTC. Volkswagen signed a lease at the development in 2020.

“The jewel box is a pretty significant element of Volkswagen’s willingness to come to this location and to come to this project,” Looney told the Fairfax County Planning Commission at a meeting on April 20.

While Volkswagen does not plan to sell cars directly from its Reston offices, the company hopes to use the jewel box to display cars on a rotating basis. A 225-square-foot digital display is also part of the design.

The Virginia Department of Transportation approved the design of the jewel box, including the level of lighting proposed.

Development conditions also restrict flashing light and video streaming from the digital display. Only static images are permitted — specifically one per day — and no sound is allowed, according to Mary Ann Tsai of the county’s Zoning Evaluation Division.

“The jewel box functions a sign itself,” Tsai noted.

Looney said the developer also plans to reduce the visibility of the sign at night, noting that the height of the jewel box targets Metro-goers directly.

The commission voted unanimously to approved the overall sign and way-finding plan for RTC expansion at the meeting.

The internal planning name of the project is Reston Next, but the project is formally characterized as Reston Town Center’s expansion, a company representative clarified.

A number of public spaces in Reston Town Center will get a facelift.

As reported last month, work on Fountain Plaza and the pavilion will begin this spring. Now, Boston Properties is offering a first look at the planned upgrades.

The renovations will be the first major updates to the town center’s public spaces in roughly 30 years.

Alan Ward, a principle at Sasaki Associates, is leading the design team of the project. He deferred comment to Boston Properties on the overall project, but said in a statement that the spaces will meet the needs “of today and into future.”

“I am thrilled to work on these updates, which respect the spirit and vision of the original designs while enhancing access, activating the spaces, and providing years of enjoyment and to come.” Ward said.

Per Boston Properties, the enhancements will include:

The Pavilion

• Two fire pits in front of the Pavilion adjacent to Market Street will add to the holiday and cooler months’ experience
• Large fans will help cool the space during warmer months for both formal and informal gatherings
• An expansion through the service street adjacent to the Hyatt will create more flexibility and space for programming, events, and daily activations
• A wooden deck that will serve as a seating area and a stage for smaller events and performances
• Additional seating areas in the artificial turf area during warm months

Other

• The fountain: Renovation of the lower base area, with new tiling, expanded seating, and tiered landscaping, and replacement of the entire outdated mechanical system. The original design of the upper base and Mercury statue will remain unchanged.
• New trees and plantings to replace aged greenery and damaged root systems
• Expansion of outdoor seating, including stadium-style structures and traditional tables and chairs

The town center’s ice rink will operate from November through March, but some events will be relocated or rescheduled during construction. Some areas might be temporarily unavailable, according to Boston Properties spokesperson Sapna Yathiraj.

“We are working with our event partners to providing alternate locations in 22 for our annual events, which will provide the dynamic, community focused atmphosphere RTC is known for even while some areas are temporarily unavailable.” Yathiraj wrote in a statement.

The lights are about to go dark at Reston Town Center’s longtime movie theater.

Bow Tie Cinemas did not renew its lease for this year, according to a representative for Boston Properties.

The movie theater did not return multiple requests for comment, although a source who chose to remain anonymous says the theater is expected to close some time in May.

But moviegoers have no reason to fear: Boston Properties says that another theater is coming to the town center.

“We completed a lease with a new theater operator late last year,” said Sapna Yathraj, a spokesperson for BP.

The company did not immediately release any other information and declined to comment on the name of the new theater.

Moviegoers have reported that the longtime tenant has struggled with delayed showings and maintenance issues for the past year or so.

Reston Town Center’s common areas will get their first major upgrades in more than 30 years, according to a report.

Boston Properties is preparing to launch a multi-million-dollar renovation of Fountain Plaza and areas near the pavilion, the Washington Business Journal reports.

The company plans to install tiered seating, landscaping, new plants, and trees near the fountain area. The upper base of the fountain and the Mercury statue will remain, according to the report. More outdoor seating in that area will also be available.

Alan Ward, a principal at Sasaki Associates, a Massachusetts-based company, has been hired to complete the project.

At the pavilion area, two fire pits will be added close to Market Street, along with two overhead fans, activity zones like an oversized chess board, and artificial turf.

The work will begin later this month through early fall, the report states.

Here’s what the project team told WBJ about the renovation:

“From a structural perspective, there really hasn’t been any sign improvements to that space since —  it’s been 30-plus years,” said Jake Stroman, executive vice president and co-head of Boston Properties’ D.C. region. “What we’re doing is we’re updating that fountain area, putting in tiered seating, landscaping, new plants and trees. It will just be a more enjoyable space.”
….
“People use space differently these days, so we’re really future-proofing the space,” Stroman said. “So many successful town centers are town centers where people can park their car and stay for hours. We believe we have that environment already, but we wanted to make it better.”

Several tenants are turning over in the mixed-use center. Clyde’s — which as called RTC home for 31 years — is closing in May. A DC-based Peruvian restaurant is taking over space vacated by Vapiano, and a new steakhouse will join the ranks of another steakhouse in the town center.