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Doug
Carter is the go-to architect for developers in
suburban Washington, especially Northern Virginia.
Originally from Yorkshire, England, he came to
Reston 39 years ago because he had been working as
an architect in Germany and won a competition to
design the Cologne Medical Center. He came to the
U.S. to look at comparable buildings, and learned
that the leading hospital design consultant,
Gordon Friesen, was based in Washington, DC.
"Gordon kept beating on me to work in the U.S.,
and so I came here for what I said would be a
maximum of two years."
But
In Friesen's office he met Bob Davis, with whom he
partnered in June 1968 to create what became Davis
Carter Scott. Davis retired 12 years ago and
meanwhile Lena Scott, who arrived in 1980, has
taken charge of interior work. Based in Tysons
Corner, Davis Carter Scott now has 104 employees
and currently does a breathtaking range of
suburban master planning, base building and
interior work: from three million square feet for
Comstock development at the last planned Metro
stop in Loudoun on Route 772, to Potomac Yard in
Arlington, to Park Potomac and Watkins Mill in
Maryland. They even just won a competition for the
new Wiehle Avenue Kiss & Ride.
Doug
talked with Bisnow on Business about his
philosophy and some of his projects in Stafford
County and Tysons Corner.
Bisnow on Business: You are known as an
architect who thinks about the future. So what are
you thinking?
That there's a huge
freight train coming down the track, and we're
pretending it's life as usual. We will get
flattened if we don't act quickly.
What is that
train?
Growth.
What should we do about
it?
I'm not coming at this not from
no-growth or NIMBY standpoint. Growth is healthy,
and we should celebrate it. But we need to control
it.
Okay, so what would you do if you were
tsar?
Start treating the cause, not
the effect. The effect is congestion. You hear
people say, "Build more roads! Build the Metro!"
I'm not saying you shouldn't build some. But
that's basically treating symptoms.
So what's the
cause?
Backward looking,
congestion-generating, totally antiquated zoning
ordinances. Since World War II we've put in place
something called spot zoning. You're supposed to
have your offices over there in the office park,
and retail over here, and schools down there, and
so on. The result is we've created society that
cannot function without getting into a car. It's
crazy. We have people commuting to our office from
West Virginia. Some people commute to D.C. from
Pennsylvania.
And the
answer?
High-density, mixed-use,
transit oriented development. Environments that
will create a sense of community, excitement, and
economic vitality. Places that are amenity rich
where you can work and play and pray and shop
without having to get into a car.
But not everybody likes that. Many
prefer to live in quieter, even pastoral
areas.
Of course you have to give
customers choice in America. Some people don't
want to be in high density areas, but many do —
it's a movement sweeping across the country. It
may actually be a false choice. We've got a
project in Stafford County, near the Quantico
marine base, that we think blends both. We're
designing it in such a way that you have high
density residential, but we're saving 50% of the
land, so when you look out your back window you
see parkland.
How big is your project in Stafford,
and with whom are you doing it?
We're
doing it for Garrett Development, and it will be
on a peninsula projecting into the Potomac River.
Probably 6000 dwelling units, three to four
million square feet of commercial real estate,
from office to a small R&D component, with
retail. Construction would start in the 2007-2008
timeframe and people would start to occupy within
6 to 9 months after that. It would be 1/3 condos,
1/3 townhouses, 1/3 houses.
How is this different from a
Reston?
We're taking it a step further
and focusing it on transportation, which Reston
does not. The Metro is coming to Reston belatedly,
and you'll have to hike through office buildings
to get to the town center. Also, we will really
have a commitment to preserve the land in
Stafford. It is a gorgeous piece of land, very
hilly, with beautiful views over the Potomac
River, lots of trails, wildlife, even bald eagles
that nest in the area. I have lived in Reston for
39 years and have been on all three design review
boards. Reston has certainly tried to create
trails and open spaces, but not to the tune of
50%.
You do work in Tysons. How do you see
the density issue there?
There are
about 160,000 jobs in Tysons right now, which at
the current metro area rate of 1.6 persons per
household means you need about 100,000 dwelling
units, not the mere 6000 units in Tysons. If next
Monday morning you had 100,000 units there, you'd
hear a huge sucking sound, which would be the
sound of cars being sucked off Northern Virginia
Roads. Of course, that's nirvana, and it will
probably never happen that way.
So short of that, what are you doing to
create high density, amenity-rich
living?
We’re planning several major
mixed-use developments there, all of which are
committed to high density and transit orientation.
Tysons Corner might truly be called a planning
accident, but now, with the arrival of Metro, we
have an opportunity to build a vibrant new
community where people can live, not just commute
to work.
Are you working with the car dealers on
another parcel?
Yes, on the north side
of Route 7. We want to create a really well
designed high density urban area on about 50 to 60
acres, which could generate two or three thousand
dwelling units. Fairfax has an amazing opportunity
to take advantage of the Metro stations that are
coming.
EVENTS!
CREW
Luncheon, Oct. 25
11:30am–1:30pm,
Capital Hilton. "Women Shaping Washington," panel
of business executives talk about careers,
community, and balance. Registration
and more information.
ULI’s Young
Leaders, Oct. 26
6:30-8:30 PM, Bebo
Trattoria, Crystal City. Networking experts show
you how to develop. Then you get to practice at a
reception! Register: 800-321-5011 and mention
meeting code 8138-0718.
Builders’
Ball, Nov. 4
6:30PM-Midnight, National
Building Museum, $250 a ticket, over 1000
expected. Unlike previous years, NOT black tie,
NOT sit down. Point is to circulate and have fun!
Thank event chair Darrel Rippeteau for that fun
spirit. Registration
and more information.
NAIOP
"Night of Stars," Nov. 16
6:30 PM,
Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner. NAIOP of Northern
Virginia's glittering annual bash for stars of
commercial real estate. Reservations
ULI’s
Lifetime Achievement Award Dinner, Nov.
29
6:30-9:30 PM, National Building
Museum. Tribute to Southern Engineering Corp.’s
legendary Albert Small. Contact
the Coordinator for more
information.
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