Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-03-12
BEAUTIFYING THE CITY
MIR. C. c. GLOVER'S SUGGESTIONS
ALONG THIS LINE.
Talks of Placing Buildings So as to
Bring Rental to General Gov
ernment-Notes.


from persons wanting to make investments
and from home-seekers, and it has been
impossible for the local dealers to care for
them. In the words of the local realty
brokers, 1T has been impossible for us to
to carry people to look at property they say
they would like to buy
AS a matter of fact trading in local real
estate has been very active for the past
ten days, and more transactions have been
recorded than for number of weeks past.
Among the large transactions of the past
week is a notable instance of the loan to st.
Patrick's Church of $150O00 for the i'm
provements to be built on the corner of 10th
and G streets, formerly occupied by the
parish house of this institution.
The work of erecting public buildings in
the city of Washington on various lots Of
fered to the District congressional commit
tees has been the subject of great deal of
comment among prominent citizens gener-
ally, President Glover of the Riggs Ma
tiOnal Bank in talking to a reporter of The
Star today expressed himself very emphati-
cally along this line.
Opposes Building Along the Mall.
ct am very much in favor of anything
that will tend to beautify intellectually
the city of Washington. but am very much
by Congress for the placing of buildings
along the Mall. believe that the only place
for erecting new public buildings in the city
of Washington is on Pennsylvania avenue
between 18th street and the botanical gar
dens. My belief is founded on two reasons.
In the first place, do not think the Mall
from the Capitol straightway to 23d street
should be disfgured by any building of any
kind. So much for. that.
In the second place, from constant asso-
citation with the realty and financial world
| am of the opinion that the government of
the United States can purchase that portion
OF Pennsylvania avenue between 10th street
and the botanical gardens at figure that
will bring revenue to the government in the
end This proposition may sound absurd to
a great many people, but my idea in nut
shell is this:
Let the government purchase all the
ground, including the improvements on
Pennsylvania avenue, from 10th street to
the botanical gardens, and for distance
of two squares south from Pennsylvania
avenue, then the government owning this
property will be able to say In the future
tC those people in Congress desiring to erect
in the city, We have the ground on which
to erect these buildings, and they must be
placed on ground already owned by the gov
eminent. The advantage of such propo-
sition is to me very great one.
Source of Revenue.
THAT is to say, my idea, II carried out,
would bring a constant revenue to the gov
eminent from rents for the property ac-
CURED. For instance, the government hav-
ing purchased this entire plot between 10th
street and the botanical gardens, could
leave standing every building now occu-
pied and rented and could secure from the
occupants of these buildings an annual rem
tai that would more than pay the yearly in
terest on the amount of money for securing
the ground desired. AS each square shall be
encroached upon for the purpose or putting
up a public building it will necessarily fol-
low that the additional adjoining property
will increase in value and the government
could of course, secure an additional rental
This / think, is one of the most feasible
plans, as well as one that would prove a
financial benefit to the government, for the
Identification of Washington, l know or
and would in no way encroach upon the
elegant prospective that the park commits
sion has in view from the National Capitol
far as the eye can reach.
Secures a Contract.
Washington architects have gone into the
foreign field and won prize. Mr.. A. o.
Won Herbuls has secured the contract for
the new University building at Ottawa,
Canada.
The entire building is to be built of stone,
and will have q frontage of $40 feet, while
the wings will be 150 feet deep. The base
ment floor will be taken up with skating
rink, recrea ton halls, billiard rooms. re-
factories and dining rooms for professors
and students.
The first floor will contain parlors, re-
ception rooms, offices and class rooms. The
central portion of the second floor occupies
the university senate chamber, decorated
in monumental style and the third floor is
entirely taken up with professors and stu
dents rooms and large dormitories.
Mr. Lester A. Barr has sold to Mr.. John
G. Campbell the two large houses 1916 and
1918 Baltimore street, Washington Heights
for $4,000 each. The sale was made
through Messrs. Early & hampton, the
real estate brokers. The same brokers have
sold for Mr.. Franklin I. Sanner to Mr.
James Z. Evans house S33 4th street
northeast for $500.
Gen. James NJ Bell has sold to Mr. F. E.
Wilhoite a large building site on Mintwood
place, having a frontage of 100 feet by a
depth of 131 feet. The site will be improved
Immediately by five three-stOry and cellar
houses, containing ten rooms and two baths
each The total cost of the Improvements
with the land will be about $4,000.
Objections to Building Site.
According to the local realty men great
indignation has been caused by the efforts
of Senator Fairbanks, chairman of the COM
mittee on public buildings and grounds, in
urging a provision in the bill providing for
a new department building which will re-
suit in the destruction of the central and
Oldest residential portion of the city and
the obliteration of many of the most his
toric landmarks.
Mr.. Fairbanks is backed in his efforts by
a board of landscape gardeners and archi-
tects forming the park commission, who
have prepared plan for identifying Wash
ington which, it is asserted, would entail
expenditure of 5000. 000,O 600. This plan
would destroy some of the central features
of the grand scheme of Maj. LEnfant, who
laid out the national capital on It's present
scale.
The new building proposed is for the de-
partments of State. Justice and Commerce
and Labor. The bill creates a commission,
which is to select one of three sites for the
building. Two Of these sites have been
practically eliminated in advance and the
third. which undoubtedly would be taken,
lies directly opposite the present State, War
and Navy building, bounded on one side by
Lafayette square and on the other by 18th
stSeet. Should this site be taken It would
result In tho attraction of tyuantv fl,trt,r