John Veatch, Former Land Planner In Reston, Dies At 80

ASHBURN, VA: Due to the current COVID-19 situation, we will be having a celebration of life ceremony as soon as possible. We will invite family and friends to share reflections of John’s life and what he meant to them at that time.

John Veatch passed at the age of 80 in Ashburn Virginia.

John was born in Denver Colorado, the son of James and Nona Veatch. He was middle child, older brother to Charles (Chuck) and younger brother to Jim Veatch. He was raised in Arlington, Virginia from the age of three. He graduated high school from Washington and Lee’s class of ‘58 in Arlington. He leaves behind his three sons, Alan, John (Jay), and Stephen Veatch as well as four grandchildren, Forrest, Haley, Paden, and Mary.

He was a resident of Northern Virginia most of his life. In 1963, at the young age of 24, John worked as a licensed surveyor and land planner in Reston’s land planning office. He was skilled engineer that helped to plan and execute R. E. Simon’s vision, the town known today as Reston.

“He was a great older brother to have, and the reason I started my career in Reston. We had many similar interests, and in many respects, I followed in his footsteps,” said Charles (Chuck) Veatch.

He went on to own 3 engineering firms. John did a large amount of engineering for developers in the Northern Virginia area. He was a planner and surveyor for many of the major developers for many years, including NV Homes.

His skills reached beyond surveying and land planning to include entrepreneurship, marketing, innovation and all-round self-made businessman. As an innovator in the surveying and land planning field, he held a patent for performing surveys using GPS and satellite imagery. He retired to Naples, Florida in 2005.

The family has asked that donations in John's memory be made to Cornerstones in Reston.