Evening star., 1926-02-21
CITY WILL DEVELOP
/ PARK RIM ROADS
Land Will BE Given to Dis.
, trict and Treated as
: New Streets.

Inoprovement OF the proposed high
WAYS to skirt Rock Creek ana 70.
tomac Parkway, on the top eose ol
either bank, will be done by the D's,
trict of Columbia under the presen'
plan, according to Maj. I. ,. t,Iait'
Sd. director OF the once ol Iuo,lo
Buildings and Public Parks OF the
National Capital. Under this plan
fhe necessary land will be transferred
~ the District for street purposes
and II is expected they will be opened
az streets, with the cost aSSessed
against the abuttinE property owners.
This will save the cost of transferring
them to the Federal Government. II
was explained. and at the same tlilit
insure that the fronts OF houses OK
+he project will face the parkway. IN
stead of away from it as alonS S'ilie
other park projects OF the CITY.
School .Abuts Property.
The school site is comparatively
small, and the fear has been expressed
that when the highway was linaiit
laid down at this point, an elort
might be made to take the land on the
park intended for street purpose ana
give TO over TO a playground. avert.
ing the highway around the schooi
bv way of y and TwentN-Fourtf
streets Mai. Grant expressed the
belief that when the land was trans
ferred it would have to be used fol
street purposes.
On y street. between Tweuty-fourtF
and Twenty fifth streets, the DlStrlcl
nov is eXcaVating for the erection O
a colored school which is right on tht
edge of the park project. and II be
came known that small portion
the building, a depth of about 80 feet
will rest on federal property. Their
Is, it was pointed out, federal Ia
which prohibits the erection of an
building on federal property withou
the specific authority of Congress.
When Maj. Grant was asked abou
this project, he ordered an eXamina
ton of the records and found, he said
that no actual transfer OF the propert!
had been made to the District
Columbia. However. he eNplaine'
that il was the purpose of the Govern
ment TO turn over TO the District tn
land on the rim of the parkway 70
street purposes and this section
land would be included. He adde6
further that when the street project
at this point was transferred it would
include a certain section of land on the
y street side, which would be needed
for street purposes and that the
school building would rest on a part
of this property.
Zoning Ruling Delayed.
Without criticizing the Zoning Com
mission, II was pointed out that the
time of this body is so taken up with
hearings on other urgent matters that
1t has little tiIr-e for thorough study
Of such projects as those involved III
the Rock Creek and Potomac park
way, such as zoning it so that only
detached dwellings OF certain types
will be allowed along it. At present a
large part of the area is faced by
small and ill-kept row houses which
can add nothing of beauty to the
parkway treatment. which already
has been started at the Connecticut
avenue end.
Such a commission as provided in
the park commission law amendment,
could come in and take a perspective
study of such a project as this, and
lay down ideal plans which will re-
suit in setting off the beauties of the
parkway to the fullest extent, OBJ
servers believe.
Maj. Grant thinks the enlarged com
mission would be able to deal with
such matters as Zoning or this project
on a larger scale. In this connection,
he also said, apropOs of the oppOSi-
ton which seems to have developed
to the revised city planning law that
he believed that it was a good cOmpro-
mise of the two extremes as could be
obtained at this time.