There is a development quietly working its way through approvals on the south side of the toll road, and most people in Reston have not heard much about it. This week we dig into Comstock's plan for the Commerce Metro Center, and we get into the e-bikes that have taken over the W&OD Trail. We watch stories like these closely because, as local agents, we see how they shape the way people think about neighborhoods, convenience, and where they want to live next.

You can watch the full episode or jump straight to any section using the links below.

The vegan cookie shop moved from a low-traffic spot behind Plaza America to the pavilion at Reston Town Center, right where the summer concerts and winter ice skating happen. The cookies are enormous, lower in sugar than the big chains', and somehow tastier than we expected from a meat-eater's point of view. It is a local family business with a handful of locations, and Reston is the newest.

Watch the Midnight Treats segment.

We had been tracking three new breweries coming to Herndon, and NH44 quietly opened first. Named after India's National Highway 44, it leans more Indian-fusion restaurant than traditional taproom, with a light lager carrying a hint of spice, chicken tikka pizza, and spicy fries. The early video we made on it is closing in on 40,000 views, which tells you people are paying attention.

Watch the NH44 segment.

Now that school is out, we are seeing a sharp rise in kids riding what are essentially electric dirt bikes, some hitting 30 miles an hour, on roads and on the W&OD Trail. Many are not e-bikes at all in the legal sense. We break down the difference between class one, two, and three e-bikes, where each is actually allowed, and why police are starting to pull riders over and post warnings. If you walk, run, or ride that trail, this one is worth your time.

Watch the e-bike segment.

Most of Reston Station has been built on the north side of the toll road, where the JW Marriott and Google buildings have gone up. Now Comstock has its eye on roughly sixteen acres of aging office buildings and parking lots near Wiehle Avenue and Sunrise Valley Drive, a project called the Commerce Metro Center.

The plan is large: a 2.4 million-square-foot mixed-use district along the Wiehle corridor with three new office towers, a 240-room hotel, up to 540 residential units, ground-floor retail, and an optional grocery store. Seven named parks and plazas are part of it, with more public open space than the county requires. The tallest building would be a signature tower by the late Helmut Jahn, the same firm behind the tower across the toll road at Reston Metro Plaza. A new Metro Plaza would connect directly at ground level to the station walkway, and some of the existing offices would remain and be revitalized rather than demolished.

The piece we found most interesting is a proposed tunnel under Wiehle Avenue, built to link this district to future development across the street and finally make the area walkable. Anyone who has tried to cross Wiehle near the toll road ramps has taken their life in their hands.

Watch the Commerce Metro Center segment.

Individually, a cookie shop, a brewery, and an office redevelopment do not seem connected. Together, they sketch the same story: Reston's urban core is filling in. Stack the Commerce Metro Center next to the ongoing build-out of Reston Station and Isaac Newton Square, and you start to see a center of activity that could rival the town center by the 2030s. Bob Simon planned Reston for around 75,000 people, and the area is home to around 68,000 today. There is room to grow, and the growth is concentrated in one place.

Follow along each week to keep up with the stories, debates, and local changes shaping Reston and Herndon. New episodes drop weekly.

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If you are thinking about a move, trying to make sense of how these changes affect a particular neighborhood, or just figuring out where in Reston or Herndon fits you best, reply to this email. We are happy to talk it through, no pressure either way.