Evening star., 1925-08-21
WOODS|DE Aligned
AGAINST BELT LINE
Suburbs North of Capital Join
Fight on Proposed #
Railroad.

Following the lead taken by other
communities in Maryland north Of
Washington. residents of Woodstde,
Woodside Park and North Woodside
aligned themselves against esta blish-
ment OF the proposed Washington and
Loughborough belt line railway. Reso-
lutions were passed at a meeting Of
the Woodside Civic Associa ton meet
ing al the Wuodside School pledging
the opposition OF the orga nization 20
the establishment of the belt line
through r.near Woodside, Woodside
Park or North Woodside, and a vote
of confidence was pledged 10 f. Brooke
Lee, secretary of state of Maryland,
for his efforts in behalf OF the ctti-
zens against the belt line.
Construction Of the belt line, A. p.
CIaxton informed the association,
might endanger the value of property
in the section north of Silver Spring
and would assuredly result in no bene-
fit TO the community. He added that
the proba bic corollary 10 the belt line
"a group of manufacturing and in
dustrial plan springing up along it's
right Of Way-would asSUredly not i'm
prove home property values in nearby
Maryland.
Electric Trains Planned.
1nllbrlCh AiCt pN ana + - " IL
liams. members OF subcommittee ap-
pointed 10 investigate the belt line
project. presented an answer by the
Allen F.. Walker Co. sponsors for the
proposed road 10 number Of ques-
tions asked by them. The Walker co.
said the belt line would use electro
trains exclusively. with electric en-
gines IS the motive power. The lOCa
tion Of the belt line, while not precise
| ly mapped out. would parallel the Bal
timore and Ohio Georgetown spur line
and run north OF Woodside in its ex
| tension 10 Hyattsville.
Operation OF passenger trains on
the belt line is not contemplated, al
! though the Walker 60. answer 81 ia
| the future may cause passenger train
! operation to be necessary. y charter
| in the name Of the company has al
/ ready been secured.
! The Walker Co told the associa ton
| that II could not estimate when con
! struction of the new road would he
gin. nor whether the tracks would
cross the Brookville pike by bridge or
go under the pike by means OF
tunnel
Another protest against the pro-
posed belt line has been filed with the
! Public Service Commission in Balti-
more. ii is signed by Prof. George
| NJ. Churchill OF George Washington
| University, and a number Of other
residents Of Bethesda.
| Prof. Churchilrs Petition.
Prof Churchill and his associates in
| the petition claim construction OF the
! belt line threatens To deprive resi-
dents Of Bethesda of part Of their
property and would injure the rest
! for home purposes. The Churchill
protest in part. follows
! The proposition TO open branch
railway along the line of the old Chew
| Chase and Glen Echo Railroad track
! threatens to deprive us of part OF
our property and seriously injure the
rest for the only purpose for which II
! has value to US.
! The character of this region and
| the contour of the country indicate
/ its fitness for a residence section. Its
! fitness for railroad and industrial pur-
| poses is questionable.
| Establishment Of the proposed belt
! line and it's accessories would raise a
! barrier against this advance tof home
| building in this section, for genera
| ton To come. We submit that II Is
more to the public interest, more 10
the advantage Of Maryland and OF TINS
county, that this section should he
come a region of hOmes-even If they
are small homes-than that II be
turned TO industrial purposes