The Washington times., 1911-07-10
ONE SURE WAY OUT OF THE
DIFFICULTY.

The profitable maneuver of boosting
values on property which the Govern
ment or the District indicates a desire
to acquire and use for public purposes
has frequently been observed in Wash
lngton. Probably no more striking in
stance could be found than is presented
by the owners of the land which it is
proposed to convert into a parkway
between the Union Station and the Cap
itol. Up to the moment Congress
passed the bill authorizing an expendi-
ture of 100000 a year for the pur-
chase of this property, realty values in
the neighborhood of the Capitol had
been falling. Ever since then they
have been ascending.
The reason is obvious. Uncle Sam
is out to buy land, and whenever he
begins writing checks prices go up. Ell
lott Woods, superintendent of the Cap
itol and grounds, and member of the
commission to acquire the land in ques-
tion, explains the situation in these
words:
The commission advertised for bids
from the owners of the property in
volved about August !, 1910. The an
swers we received represented approx
imately 20 per cent of the total land
and the valuations ran from Sc to SIS
per square foot We considered this
exorbitant, and referred the matter to
the Department of Justice with
the request that the property be ac-
qutred through condemnation proceed
ings.
A statement from one of the mem
bers of the District Board of Assessors
is also illuminating, showing the stimu-
lating influence on land values of the
declaration of the Governments inten-
tion to buy. This official says the as
sessment of the property involved has
been more than doubled in the last
three years. According to him, owners
of land in the area to be acquired have
reversed the usual order of things by
trotting to the District building and
asking to have their assessments in
creased. "Some OF the valuations pro-
posed by owners" he says, were ridic-
ulous."
The whole scheme by which the prop
erty owners hope to get q big price
for land that was a drug on the market
few years ago is revealed by the as
SCISSOR in these words:
This property had been dep--ciating
every year until the Government de-
termined to buy it, and l am sure that
If that act were rescinded the property
would not bring one-half it's present
assessed value in the open market
The statements of Mr.. Woods and
the assessor, together with the known
facts in the case, make of this Capitol
grounds extension business one of the
rankest attempted holdups that have
ever come to the attention of the Dis
trict. Will Congress stand for it? Will
Congress keep on appropriating 100000
every year, with every reason to be-
lieve that about half the money will
go into the pockets of real estate own
ers as clear profit?
IL mas DocH demonstrated InaC Jne
land cannot be bought outright except
at exorbitant figures. 1t is doubtful
if a much better bargain could be
made by condemnation. What, then,
is to be done about it? The parkway
should be established-everybody is
agreed on that-but how is Congress
to make certain it will get the land at
something like a reasonable price?
There is one way out and, we be-
lieve, only one. Congress could stipu-
late that one-half the cost of the prop
erty acquired be assessed as benefits to
the property in the immediate neigh
borhood, which will actually be bene-
flied by the improvement. If such a
provision were tackled onto the appro-
priations realty values would take a
quick tumble.
incidentally, the owners of the prop
erty benefited ought to bear part of
the cost of the improvement. In some
cities the whole expense for the crea-
tion of parks is assessed against the
benefited property.