The Washington herald., 1915-12-12

Full value $.O SO. so. ST
Ye Gods!
And the only adjacent and borderins
privately held lands lying at the northern
limit are assessed as follows:
Square. Cents per foot.
II 40 to 20
S of L .a5 to 10 20 at .35
g. 10 to .25 1-2 at 20
IS 20 to % $40 at 20
Z ofSs IS to 40 $40 at Is ,
rs 20 to 80
H 40 to so $40 at 40
Yet Potomac Park stretches three miles
from these abutting lands. To such ex-
tremes is Assessor Richards driven In his
hag-ridden fear that the values Of the
government areas cannot be raised to
support the half and hale contention
A few comparisons of Assessor Rich.
ards 1915 estimates with Assessor Dar.
neille's 1901 estimates will show the alb
surdity of the whole effort to assess
the worcestershire government areas
They are all raised from two-thirds to
full Value
Assessor Assessor
Darneille Richards
1904 1915
White Lot. 64, 4si.34 81, $50, 1-6
Monument Grounds: 9.Se2.1S 1850, 81
Smithsonian Park. l6.3s7,2 2i5 1l.3ss.37s
Agricultural Grounds. 9,32l,252 $3.50. ssa
Capitol Grounds. 3s.41s,s5o n,5e5,ss5
sl4s.1A.s4s .N.eoe, ls7
Assessor DarneiIe over As
SCISSOR Richards .....:........... SIS, ,2l2, ,Sl2
Potomac Park. ..... 81 66s 740. $40 $50 s97
Assessor Richards over Assessor
Darneille .-........-..-..........-k -k31 Is, l5i
Rock Creek Park So, 4oS. .S64 .....s 3e00 0:o
Now. why did both Assessors treat Po-
tomac Parks 7Ss acres so severely and
Rock Creek Parks 1,Soo splendid acres 80
gently?
For the simple reason that Potomac
Park is of by itself with no adjacent
comparable privately owned areas. while
Rock Creek Park lies In a long string,
fianked on both sides by the highly
speculative. highly valuable and grossly
underassessed properties of the great
syndicates. and the obvious comparisons
would have been extremely odious and
extremely undesirable.
The Washington Monument is assessed
at 81 COO. 0O0 But why overlook the scores
of statues in the various circles and small
parks? Why neglect the Government S
personally? Great opportunities have
been missed.
Again ] assert: The public areas dedi-
element of assessable value-private use
for profit Their return to private use
for profit would destroy a still greater
value in other private areas by destroy
Ing social values and increasing COM
petitive areas.
Federal Ownership of Streets.
One OF the favorite arguments of the
advocates OF the present half and
halr' plan, is that the Federal Gov
ernment owns the streets. and there
fore ought to maintain them.
The Federal Government owns the
fee of the streets in the City of Wash
ington a. was held by the Supreme
Court in the case of Van Ness ct ux.
VS.. The City of Washington q Peters
232). But in Smith VS.. The Corpora
tion of Washington 90 Howard refer
ring to the powers OF the corporation
of Washington. the court says:
The land was originally con-
veyed to trustees. to be laid out as
a Federal City. with such streets.
etc. as the President shall ap-
prove 1t has been so laid out.
and the streets dedicated to the
public. AS in all other cities and
towns the legal title to the public
streets is vested in the sovereign
as trustee for the public. and con-
StQutHlIy III OlStTlCt tney can
be regulated only by Congress. di-
rectly. or by such individuals or
corporations as are authorized by
Congress"
The possession OF the fee in the
streets and avenues of Washington by
the Federal Government is OF no more
Significance than the possession of the
underlying fee in any highway by the
adjacent property holders, since the
% Att
established. But as a matter of his
torical accuracy the Federal Govern
ment has never held the fee in the
streets of Georgetown. nor in 3-4 of
the alleys of Washington. In the
County dedications of streets and al
leys have been for over a century, ever
since the establishment of the Survey
ors Office. in fact, in specific language
"to the District Of Columbia" or 500
acres In District alleys title to only 50
acres Is in the United States.
..Dedicated to District Of Columbia,
So. of the entire highway system in
the District as at present developed.
63S.12 miles, only 234.5 miles belong in
fee to the United States and dedication
to the public is as full and free as in
any city or town in any State, while
the general highway plan. with its
tHousdHu hhoiC Vi icoS
to be developed. as the District grows
to a million inhabitants and increases
its taxable wealth with its require
ments. will all be dedicated ito the
District of Columbia"
As a matter of record. the areas are
as follows. as reported by the District
Surveyor:
Areas of streets and avenues publicly
owned
Acres.
In the original city................. 2423
and county........... 1888
Total in District. 676l
Area in yards. Observation-Disclosures. s72s, ,2io
Proposed streets .................. 4iOS
Grand total ................. 11.lss
Per Cent
u. S. owns of present mileage. 3G.7
Of present street area............. 35.S
will own Of eventual arca.... III
Yards.
Grand total of present pave
ments of all classes. s,s4s, $50
Sidewalks 2,i52 s6l
There are at present in the S3s.l2 miles
of highways 1866 miles of gravel and
dirt roads. and 12S.15 miles of dedicated
streets as yet unopened And undeveloped.
1t has been so sedulously claimed that
was burdened with the care
Of streets Of extraordinary width. far In
excess of those of other cities, that the