Evening star., 1927-11-06
POLICE COURT MAY
HASTEN THE MUNICIPAL GROUP

Marshall place as a thoroughfare FOR
traffic Is still to be decided. One
opinion is that the street will not be
necessary for traffic, as Sixth and
Third streets provide north and south
bound thoroughfares, while cutting Off
John Marshall place from through
traffic would decrease the noise in the
offices OF the municipal group. Blocked
as it is on the north by the Court
House. there c1Es :. seen little need
for continuing John Marshall place as
through traffic street, it's more prac-
tical use of the future being a means
of egress and exit TO and from the
proposed inner courtway of the mu.
nicipal group.
At first it had been tentatively de.
cided to erect on the area a group of
separate buildings. and plans for this
group were drawn before the treat
ment for the Federal building group
in the Avenue triangle was approved.
The final plan for the Federal builc-
ings, however, led to the suggestion
that plans be drawn for a series OF
connected municipal buildings, or
rather one monumental building. with
the thought that such treatment
would be more in keeping with the
Federal group. But the opinion still
group of separate buildings, with
plenty of open space and green grass
between them. would serve more ef-
fectively as a setting for the Court
House in the background than would
the proposed series OF connected
buildings. broken by inner courts and
archways.
1t will be many years before the
municipal group. as it Is beginning to
be pictured in the minds of its propo-
nents. actually materializes in the form
of stone and mortar. There is no
hope that Congress will say, at the
coming session for instance, go
ahead. Draw your plans and we'll
give you the money to begin work on
them" The present plan is to i'm
press Congress with the wisdom of ac-
quiring the land in the proposed area
for the municipal group, and as q
starter to begin the erection of the
group with the Police Court Building,
a building which Congress has already
authorized, but has not appropriated
for, and one which is needed i'm
mediately. If this plan was approved.
the Police Court would be built as the
first section Of the progressive group
which is to follow. But already
there is opposition, and it comes from
a. quarter which is peculiarly inter.
ested. The Police Court judges know
one thing. and that is that their pres
ent building is disgracefully made
quate for the demands that are placed
upon it. They have received congress
sional approval for building a new
building and they want it built i'm.
mediately. They are afraid to en-
q 1P
building by delaying it's erection until
Congress gives its approval to the
municipal group. They fear that in
trying to kill two birds with one
stone both birds might get away, and
the resulting loss would be doubly
hard to bear because one bird is al
ready in hand. There is further op.
position on the part of the Police
Court judges to the idea of merging
the individuality of the Police Court
with that of the Municipal Court and
the Juvenile Court by making its build
ing one of the proposed group Of
court buildings.
The Police Court judges now want
to construct the new Police Court
Building on the present site of the
old building. While the argument of
expediency is good one, it is not in
keeping with the broader idea of the
municipal group. Unless the group
is started with a building which must
be built now, and continues to ex-
pand as other buildings become real
necessities. there will be no municipal
group, but merely continuation OF
the practice in former years Of taking
the shortest cut to fill a present need
without thought to planning for the
greater needs of the future. Settle.
ment of the Police Court difficulty one.
way or another will have a significa MT
bearing on the ultimate realization OF
the municinal prn1n nlan