Reston Association adopts facility-renaming policy and adds requirement to disclose anticipated costs

The Reston Association board on May 28 adopted a formal facility-renaming policy and amended the proposal to require that engagement materials include an estimated summary of anticipated costs.

Staff presented a draft procedure that follows the capital-project engagement framework — initiate, staff review, community engagement, committee review, board approval and implementation — and said it would apply to open spaces, pools, fields, playgrounds and community buildings. The draft was prepared after recent renaming requests and examples staff had handled in prior years.

During discussion a director said members need to understand anticipated costs for renaming projects (for example, whether renaming a lake would trigger new pool signage or broader changes). The board amended the motion by unanimous consent to add language specifying that engagement should always include a summary of anticipated costs so members can see the likely financial implications before a final decision.

Directors also asked staff to expand the SOP so it covers initial naming requests for assets that currently have no formal name — benches, unnamed fields or memorial plaques — and to document existing bench-dedication programs such as those run by Friends of Reston.

The board approved the amended renaming policy by unanimous consent and directed staff to include the adopted language in the meeting minutes so members can review it.