The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-08-14
Site FOR THE HOSPITAL
DR.. J. NJ. Watson Urges Location
at GiesbOro Point.
Reasons why Land is Cheap i'm the
Erecting the Proposed Building
There Would benefit the Section
The Long Neglect of Ana""stin.

Dr. J. NJ Watson. of Anacostia. recently
wrote to tho Commissioners. urging that
the municipal hospital be erected in the
neighborhood of Giesboro Point DR..
Watson refers to q statement recently pub
lished in The Times relative to the range
of prices submitted by those who had of
fered sites in answer to the advertisement
of the Commissioners.
1T struck me-" he writes. that while
the highest price mentioned, $4,000 per
! acre for a site at Schuetzen Park, might
be rather high. the lowest price, s175 per
acre. for property near Giesboro Point,
seemed very low for land in the District
of Columbia A few days since, while
passing through Gaithersburg, Nd. in
making a visit to the encampaent of the
District of Columbia National Guard be-
yond that point, / took occasion to en-
quire into the price of land in that To-
cality, and learned that Il is heldsat from
s1G0 TO 5000 per acre. Therefore, it seems
TO me that il land situated twenty or
thirty miles from the District and obtain
ing its value from its proximity thereto
is worth $500 per acre, land lying within
the District should be worth much mor-.
and If it is not, then there must be some
reason for IT,
"A few noments' thought made appar-
ent this reason. This land offered at SITS
per acre for municipal hospital site lies
in the extreme southeastern portion of the
District, in a part that is and has been
for years almost totally neglected by those
in authority in our municipality. l do not
believe that today your honorable board
would recognize this land as being a part
OF the County of Washington For one
thing the public roads throughout this en-
tire section are mere county highways,
not worthy of the name at all, and GER
tainly not as good as those over which /
passed beyond Gaithersburg. This is not
surprising, though. considering the man
nsr in which scant repairs are generally
made in the part of the District to which l
refer. Fer instance, when a hole or dan
geFous washout exists il a roadway, the
scarcity of money allowed for the purpose
only permits the road superintendent to
dump in a cart load of gravel or dirt to
make repairs, and residents have learned
TO expect nothing more unless, indeed, 1t
be the temperance of the same hole or
one much worse after brief space, par
ticularly should rain unluckily fall about
the same time.
Citizens OF that locality have appealed
many times TO your honorable board for
better roads, better repairs, better Inn
proyements, hut the answer has almost
always been that there was no appropria-
ton available The treatment that has
been acceB-ef the people living in this
part of the District has also been meted
out 10 Others residing in communities near
the centre of the city of Washington, their
homes being in the eastern eection. To
discuss a little this section. which is Ana
ecstis and a number Of adjacent villages:
II has been long time since the one
little. simple act in municipal sense)
which ras done so much to add beauty 10
the city of Washington. has been per-
/ formed in Anacostia. / refer to the plant
1 ing of shade trees in our section. Re-
! quests and petitions. net only for the set
| ting out of trees in parts OF our town, but
! for other improvements as well, have been
made time and again 10 your honorable
board by citizens OF Anacostia and the
Citizens Association of the suburb In
stead of beirg able to point out any result
of a beneficial nature from these requests
in recent years. it is a fact that our viii
LACE shows tie effects of the slight which
ii has been and is stin receiving in these
respects. And yet we continue to appeal
to your honorable board for our due. as
we have in the years past.
"A few years ago an appropriation for
tho reclamation. of the Anacostia fats was
stricken out BY Congress, and today the
pest breeding Eastern Branch seems to
have been forgotten. Our section Of the
District is conveniently situated with ref
erence 70 the centre of the city, and the
prices for land will be. as / have indi-
Gated more moderate than in other sec
tons. An Improvement Of the character of
the municipal hospital in the county would
doubtless surprise many of our northwest
ern friends but | can assure you that in
making such q selection you would arouse
a part that is now dormant for many rea-
sons, some outlined above, with the re-
suit that more impetus would be given to
building and improvements by citizens to
such an extent as to amount to a revela-
ton. l remember some years ago your
honorable board appeared willing TO give
us hospital for contagious diseases. We
were not too far away for that, IL ap
| peared. and though the matter never went
/ beyond the consideration stage as far as
/ our locality Is concerned, yet ! recall IL
row to remind you that our section has
already been considered by your honor
| able body when casting about for site
for q municipal institution. We are Ger
tainly not too far away for the municipal
hospital. In closing / wish TO say that l
have no interest financially in any site
that has been offered, and am only inter
ested as a resident and citizen Of the
eastern section Of the District / feel salts
! fed that the best and cheapest site will be
/ offered from this section, and | hope and
/ expect to see one Of these chosen"
The Commissioners have noted the re-
! ceipt of DIT. Watson's letter and have or
| dered il filed for reference when the choice
Of the site for the municipal hospital shall
| be next considered