Evening star., 1898-12-15
HIGHWAY EXTENS ON MAPS
Revised Tlans of Section One Submitted to
the District Commissioners,
Views of Suggestions of Highway
Commission Touching Grades
Widths of Blocks in Subdivisions.


ceived from the highway commission two
maps in connection with the revised plan
of section 1 of the proposed highway ex
tension, One, marked A a tentative
sketch. with a rather arbitrary location of
streets. The other. marked B. was pre-
pared after thorough study of grades. &c.
These maps were sent to the Commissions
ers for consideration and report, together
with letter from the office of the high
way commission stating that 18th street
would be moved POO feet farther west: that
lllnois avenue would be omitted west of
1uh street: that roads a. and "B'' would
be abanioned; that the short street immed-
aJely north of Emory Chanel would he
omitted and that the commissioners were
requested 70 revise the size of the blocks.
80 as 10 make The SJTCetS more nearly 100
feet distant.
Commissioners Views.
The Commissioners late yesterday after
noon returned the mans to the commission
with letter stating that the order of the
Commissioners as to relative sizes of blocks,
coupled with the instruction that they shall
be regulated by grades. &c, appears 20
leave great discretion in the DEVELOPMENT of
the S'reet plan Map a. they say, shows
streets that cannot be changed except bv
at OF Congress. III black lines Broken
olsick lines Indicate streets that cover large
t'f''-tH' anu nave Dt"n acceptable
oWntrs, Wh.le red lines indicate streets laid
out "uh Geet apart below Brightwood and
10" feet apart above that section.
1t Is evident, the Commissioners con-
uhue mat below Brightwood any other
distance than 3n1 feet would make consd-
erahie confusion in the plan, because of the
it,vtuvu SUBDIVISION oI I-eIwcrtn and the
SueetS Idld out and accepted west of 10th
street. Above Hri@htNOod even distances
OF tin feet fail to join with certain existing
streets. or with streets in tracts where no
change is desired. They also affect Emory
chapel and Battle cemetery, and in running
INTO the broken country near 18th street
they pass over ground at many points un-
fas oraoIe Tor grade.
1T may be well to add that the Com
mlsSioncrs consider that block widths of
four hundred feet are rather unfavOrable
Tor subdivision purposes. Blocks of two
hundred ana fifty feet are more nearly
ideal. as the former with an alley, ard the
latter with pace street and alleys al
low lots one hundred and fifteen to ninety
feet in depth, whicn are close to the limit
lH% hSures of economical subdivisions.
REIMBURSEMENT of Grades
1t Will appear that OH account of grades
a readjustment is necessary for the streets
from NJ to z and west of 18th, and that
they should be also moved to connect with
streets already laid out east of 9TH street
Also that street should be dropped on
account of grade and because of its inter-
ference with Battle cemetery. A read
ement is likewise considered best for
the streets y, Y and L, because Of the
Topography, and for the reason that they
are great distance from the city where
very large blocks have always been con-
sidered advisable. East of Ith street the
land is of Il rolling nature, so that grades
bear little weight in the location of the
streets but 1t Is advisable that they con-
meet with the streets recorded east of North
Capitol street with those in Takoma Park
and with those in the small tract bordering
on 1th street road.
1T is recommended in addition to the
abandonment of Illinois avenue and n
street, as ordered by the highway commits
sion, that there be further eliminated the
streets j and Q, west of Eth street and
all of street lying on the west side of the
1th street road. This will give an average
block distance north of Brightwood and
west of 18th street of go feet, all of which
blocks are varied in size to suit the topog-
raphy and the conditions OF subdividing
East Of Tth street the block distances will
average 800 feet, making an average of
4iu feet for the whole plan OF section one,
north of Hrightwood.
The Commissioners are advised that
the objections which have been presented
are based entirely upon a desire to make
the street extension plan conform tG a
few frame houses and existing property
lines, where the holdings are, in the few
cases, small. 1t was exactly this policy
which caused the undesirable subdivision
Immediately outlying the city, and as the
highway act III its present form pract-
cally leaves the opening of streets to the
owners of property, the Commissioners