Evening star., 1927-10-16
Senator Smoot viii Present
Appropriation Plea to
Congress.
0VERCR0WDED OFFICES
HELD EFFICIENCY BAR
Location of D. c. Buildings Now
Believed to Forbid
Expansion.
RY WILL 7. KENNEDY.

BY WILL +. KENNEDY.
Already oVercrowded and beirc
forced to evacuate. the municipal gov.
ernment of the District of Columbis
faces an imperative and urgent hous.
ing problem, which will he laid before
Congress as soon as It. assemblies.
Congress will he asked 10 make =
modest but very necessary appropria.
tin for an expert study of the pro-
posed new site for model municipal
srou? of buildings, just as a special
study has been made and revised for
the proper grouping of new Federal
buildings on the triangle south OF
pennsylvania avenue to The Mall.
Senator SmOot of Utah, chairman of
he Public Buildings Commission.
which has commandeered for the Fed.
efdl bu = program the site now
occupied by the municipal building,
sites occupied by some eight Or ten
District activities and the site on
which it had been planned to extend
the municipal building to the south,
viii lake charge of presenting the
Districts S problem 10 Congress. 1t is
4 matter or incalculabIe importance TO
the future OF Washington. The situs-
lion calls for prompt action.
Because the present District Build.
ing is 50 seriously overcrOwded as to
interfere with enIcient transaction of
public business.
Because there is no room for ex-
panslon at the present location.
Because some or 1U District
re1
their present quarters to make way
for the new Federal buildings.
Because the present District Build.
ing IS included in the layout OF Fed
erdl buildings, and the municipal
ofllces that occupy it have no place
to go:
Because already so per cent addi.
tional space is needed, and 100 Der
cent acdltional is needed for easily
foreseen expansion during the next
~ years.
Proper Plans Urged.
Since the District government must
move 10 new home, il is strictly
good business to properly plan the
new home so that it MAY most effi.
ciently serve the needs OF this rapidly
growing municipality. 1t is most de-
sirable also that regrOupinS of the
DASIA iSt SIlOuiQ De CO-OrQls
mated carefully with the new Federal
building program, and help to carry
forward the general program of Capi.
tai development.
Acting under instructions of tho
joint committee on public buildings
and grounds, careful study has been
made of the various units of the Dis
trict government covering the space
now occupled-some of which is in
the District Building, some in
Government-Own structures and
some in rented quarters-tO deter
mine the space now actually occu-
pied by these activities, which in
most cases Is Inadequate.
Each agency next was called upon
to report on. what additional space
1t now needs, and was called upon
to set up another figure showing
additional space that would be needed
covering a period of about 10 years
The office of the Engineer Commits
SiOner then allowed Il certain inCIe-
ment which it was thought would be
more indicative of the ultimate size
of the housing space the District
should have-sO as to get IA business
like basis for figuring a construc-
ton program, and charting the pro-
posed municipal group.
In this way it has roughly been
mapped out just about what space
will be needed to adequately accom-
modate the existing municipal or
SaniZation, properly located in q
model municipal center.
1000 900 Feet Needed.
The survey showed that approx.
mateiy 1000 900 square feet OF space
Will be needed in the new buildings.
tr;, -
some 100000 square feet, with an All
ditional 1900 needed at present and
another 100000 estimated as neces-
sary during the coming 1O-year period.
so the step-up to 1,O0O,000 square feet
is not at all eXtraVagant.
With these figures before them the
officers working with the Engineer
Commissioner picked out a proper
location, where there was adequats
space for present and future needs
and sufficient surplus space for park
ing TO fit in with the city-beautltul
program. This location-between
Third and Sixth streets, north of
Pennsylvania avenue to Judiciary
Square, on either side of John Mar
shall place-co-Ordinates well with the
Federal building development to the
south and west and the extension of
the Capitol grounds to the east and
the Mall, squared up, on the south.
Erection of model municipal
group on this site would start the
long desired cleaning up Of the north
side of Pennsylvania avenue, just as
the Federal Government is going
ahead with the program of cleaning
up the unsightly south side, on which
the Government has held dead
hand" for two-score years. BY erecting
a municipal group on this site, which
is somewhat larger than present needs
demand. the city government would
be Safcguarded against some few years
later finding itself in the same posi-
ton as it is in tOday-eXpansion I'M
peratiVe and no room to expand.
Use of this location would also car
~ out the program outlined in the
famous Mcmillan report to Congress
some 80 years ago, in which park
way along the line of John Marshall
place, widened, to Judiciary Square, is
discussed. The use of this area for
municipal group is especially apprO-
pirate because the present courthouse.
facing John Marshall place and one
Of the most classical buildings i'm the
Capital. was the original city hall.
Would Settle Wrangle.
The grouping of District buildings
there would settle the long and bitter
wrangle over the proposed location of
the new Police Court Building on
Judiciary Square, and bring all of the
courts closer.
This would prove very important
aid in the Capital development pro
Continued on Page I. Column So.