The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-10-11
PLANNING BOARD
 TO BE CREATED
 BY COMMISSION
Will Study Ramsay's Plan For Civic Center At
 Park Site

Erskine Ramsay's civic center plan ana submit recommendations to the offlclal bodies with power to act, will be creat- cd by the city commission next Tuesday President D. E. McLendon and Com snissioners W. l.. Harrison and w. E. Dickson promised a meeting of citizens at the city hall Friday afternoon.
 The meeting was called by the Ensley Kiwanis club and was attended by about 20 citizens, including Mir. Ramsay, Dr. Q, B. Glenn, superintendent Of scnoois, the members of the park and nDrary boards, city commissioners and Mayor w. V. M. Robertson, Jr., Dr. N. c. Clark of Ensley presided and Clyde W. Ennis, secretary of the Ensley k1wanls club, acted as secretary.
 MT. Ramsay briefly explained his plan for the development of a greater civic . center around Woodrow Wilson park, and declared he would be glad to see planning board named to consider 1t from every angle.
 q got into this whole matter inno- lcently," he asserted. During a meeting of the directors of the First National bank, various civic questions were be- ing talked, as they frequently are, and some one brought up the plan proposed by Mir. W. M. Drennen for solving the library site question. It occurred to me that the Drennen plan might be carried further and that a splendid civic center plan might be worked out.
 Hanson Interested
 ''So t.lked to MT. Hanson (mean- ing Victor H. Hanson, publisher of The Birmingham News) and he seemed irl- terested. We called on Chairman Har- rison, of the park board, and he was also interested I then had an architects drawing of my plan made and took 1t to Mr. Hanson. I don't know that ought to tell this, but MT. Hanson die lated every word of my interview. Then l gave it to the papers,"
 Major Robertson spoke briefly, urging lthe appointment of nOn-partisan board to study the plan. He opposed Wood row Wilson as a site for the new pub lie ibaray and declared public senti- ment was badly split on this question.
 1.-The Ramsay plan tives us some thing definite to work or" he said, sand I believe a planning board com posed of outstanding citizens will be Iable to work out happy solution. am not an expert, but am deeply i'm pressed with MT. Ramsay's plan."
 Commissioner Harrison, who also is chairman of the park board, said if the Ramsay proposal could be worked out without long delay, the park board would favor it unanimously, but that if the construction of the library was to be held up indefinitely, he felt sure that ma jority of the board would stand by its action in granting the library au- lthorities the use of building space in Woodrow Wilson park.
 Personally, I thing Mir. Ramsay's : plan is ideal" Harrison continued. "I see no reason why it cannot be carried out"
 Phillips Is Silent
 NJ. P. Phillips and Elmer ThustOn. park board members who have composed the minority faction, sat together dur ing the meeting but neither spoke. Both are opposed to placing the library in the park.
 z J. W. Donnelly, chairman of the li- brary board, declared the board was in ,terested in free site in order that the right kind of library building could be erected. He said the board would not agree to long delay in reaching de- cision on the Ramsay plan.
 If we can get a free library site through a modification of the Ramsay plan, I favor the civic center" Don- nelly declared. However, we feel that lthe site in the park is the most ideal yet suggested. If we can't get a free site, we will have to buy a site elsewhere and proceed with our construction work. We hope a quick decision can be reached on the Ramsay plan, however.
 T am afraid that the board of reve- nue will not agree to all the details of the Ramsay plan. It will be hard to make the county give the Park avenue corner and the Eighth avenue corner, in my judgment. Furthermore, this icivie center talk has been heard for years, but has not got far. The library board now has full authority to go ahead and put it's new building in the park. Unless some definite move is made quickly, we will go ahead.
 "We see no objection to the appoint nent of a planning board to study the whole situation. However, the library board will reserve the right to reject the recommendations made by this board in case they are not satisfactory. We feel, though, that this will not be necessary, and that we will be able to accept the recommendations"
 Dr. Clark said the Ensley Kiwanians took the lead in pushing the Ramsay plan for no motive except loyalty and civic pride" He said 95 per cent of the Ensley people favored it.
 Before adjournment, the meeting thanked the Ensley Kiwanians by viva voce vote for their timely interest lin the project.
 The planning board will be composed of seven members. The city commission will name two, the county revenue hoard two, and the members thus named will complete the personnel