BXP recognized by Fairfax County Green Business Partners for sustainability work at Reston Town Center

Fairfax County’s Green Business Partners program recognized BXP for sustainability work at Reston Town Center, spotlighting a 1.3-megawatt solar canopy and on-site water and waste systems meant to reduce emissions and operating costs.

Speaker 1, Presenter, said the county program “recognizes businesses leading in sustainability,” and identified BXP as a standout, noting the company owns and manages Reston Town Center’s roughly 4,900,000 square feet of workplaces, 50 retailers, 30 restaurants and more than 2,000 residential homes and asserting it is the first developer-owned community in the U.S. with LEED Platinum for cities and communities.

Why it matters: county and private-sector sustainability investments can cut operating costs, reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and provide visible amenities. Speaker 2, Presenter, described the new solar canopy as a concrete example: “For planet, it reduces greenhouse gas emissions over 400 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent a year,” and said the installation also lowers energy costs.

Speaker 3, Presenter, described the site’s operational and water-management technologies, saying the company uses a third-party online platform to monitor electricity usage and detect anomalies so staff can make timely repairs and reduce consumption. He also outlined an underground stormwater-storage and filtration system that releases water gradually to avoid overloading county infrastructure and rooftop capture systems that filter and reuse rainwater to supply cooling towers for HVAC systems.

The presentation also covered transportation and waste-diversion measures. Speaker 1 said EV charging is available in all BXP parking garages and that a shuttle runs continuously between the Metro Silver Line station and the town center; the site also includes Capital Bikeshare stations, bike racks and storage. Speaker 3 said the site supports a rooftop garden and beehives and reported diversion totals including 700 pairs of glasses, 2.7 tons of paint, 14 tons of home electronics and 20 tons of shredded paper that were kept out of landfills.

There was no formal vote or policy action recorded in the presentation. Speakers framed the recognition as both a program milestone and an example intended to encourage other businesses to adopt similar measures. As Speaker 1 put it, as a Green Business Partners leader BXP “sets the standard for environmental stewardship, inspiring greener practices and a more resilient business community.”