Evening star., 1927-11-06
BY BEN McKELWAY.

Announcement by the District Com
missioners last week of their intention
to seek at the coming session of Con
gress a $500, 900 appropriation for
new Police Court building in the area
advocated for the proposed municipal
center is another indication that the
plans for this municipal group are al
ready emerging from the Obscurity OF
vague talk into the realm of actuali.
ties. For il the Commissioners are
successful in obtaining this appropria-
ton for the desired location the Police
Court building will probably be
planned and built as the first unit OF
the municipal group-conStructed with
the understand that 1t will be only
small part of a structure, or group
of structures, to be built in future as
the necessity arises and the money
becomes available.
Planning for this municipal group
Is now q task for the Commissioners
and the municipal architect, with the
approval of the Commission of Fine
Arts. And while there are plans down
on paper, they have been made chiefly
for the purpose of furnishing a founda-
ton on which to build, something to
start on, later to be revised and
changed as the result of study and
discussion. About the only thing def
initely decided upon at this time is
| that the area proposed for the munich
pal group. lying between Pennsyl-
vania avenue, D street, Third and
Sixth streets, must be treated as a
whole, and not in parcels. Whether
the municipal group is to be one large
building, covering the whole area, or
whether it is to be divided into a num-
Der of separate buildings. is a matter
still to be settled. BY the time the
Commission of Fine Arts meets the
latter part OF this month there will
be furnished for it's consideration a
proposed plan for treatment of the
three or four meetings the subject is
expected to be studied until a plan is
approved for presentation to Congress.
y X \ X
The area advocated for the munich.
| pal group is one which lends itself
! to any number of plans for architec.
| tural treatment. To the north of it
| lies the Court House, considered one
of the most beautiful buildings in the
| District. Directly across Pennsylvania
avenue there lies the Mall, while
| diagonally across the Avenue, on the
| southwestern corner of Pennsylvania
avenue and Sixth street, is to be the
| tip of the famous Avenue triangle"
of Government buildings. The area
must be treated, therefore. in relation
to all Of these points. The building,
or group Of buildings, must be in
keeping with the Federal buildings
extending along the south side of the
Avenue, so that there will be no
sharp contrast or dropping off, be-
tween the two groups. At the same
time the municipal group must Sc
harmonic with the Court House that
the latter will be emphasized rather
than overshadowed by the new con.
struction.
AS an experiment, more or less. In
ways to treat the area, drawings are
now being prepared which show a
series Of connected buildings extend
ing solidly around the area, broken
by an archway over John Marshall
place and with an open court in the
center of the buildings on each side
OF John Marshall place. This pro-
posed treatment would permit vista
from the Avenue to the Court House,
John Marshall place being divided in
the center by parking. One difficulty
to be contended with here is the
grade from Pennsylvania avenue to
the Court House. The platform in
front Of the Court House is 80 feet
above Pennsylvania avenue. If traffic
is to run through John Marshall
place, d street in front of the Court
House might be lowered and the steps
which run from d street to the plat
form in front of the Court House
heightened. II traffic is not to run
through John Marshall place. there
might be constructed a monumental
stairway leading from d street down
into John Marshall place.
The question of maintaining John