Evening star., 1927-10-27
ARTS COMMISSION
SPEEDS MALL PLAN
Completion of Major Details
Hoped for by 1882, Date
Of Celebration.

Looking toward 1882, when the 2OOth
anniversary of the birth of George
Washington will be celebrated here,
the Commission of Fine Arts is max
ing surveys and laying plans for early
development of. at least part of, the
roadway plan of the. Mall, and parti-
cularly that part lying between Sew
enth and Fifteenth streets.
Barred from utilization of much of
the Mall area between Seventh and
Four-and-a-ha streets by the pres
used to house Government units, the
commission plans to proceed with de-
Velopment of curb lines and plotting
of roadways on both sides of the Mall
area, so that when the final compost
ton is ready, the plan will have been
worked out.
Part of the grading of the Mail in
connection with roadway construction,
particularly between Thirteenth and
Fourteenth streets, is expected to be
taken care of when work starts early
next year on the central wing of the
Department of Agriculture Building,
authorization for which has been
granted by Congress.
Forms New Group.
Dedication of the Meade Memorial
statue last week, forming completed
architectural group with the Grant
statue to it's east. perfects the plaza
plan and makes necessary early com.
petion of the eastern section of the
Mall to bring the entire project into
harmony. At the same time, it is
hoped that temporary buildings 'front.'
ing on the plaza between the Capitol
and Union Station may be removed
by 1882.
At present, however, and for the
next year the commission will be busy
with establishment of at least two
parallel roadways, one on each side
of the Mall. to mark the building line
on each side of the east and west vista
through the city. In later years two
more roadways inside the two major
roads will come, to be overshadowed
by elm trees. leaving an open space
down the center from which visitor
may stand on the west steps of the
Capitol and look past the Washington
Monument to Lincoln Memorial, and
across the new Arlington Memorial
Bridge to Arlington.
At present. the vista is blocked by
temporary buildings at Four-and-a-half
and Seventh streets, and the mass of
roadways and parking. The Mall Gen.
ter is marked by the line of two brick
smokestacks on one of the temporary
buildings at Seventh street.
The plan to construct a sunken
roadway through the Mall to accom-
modate east and west traffic. brOached
several months ago, virtually has been
abandoned as without value and one
that is almost certain to destroy the
beauty of the central vista. Counter
plans for sunken roadways crossing
the Mall from north to south are un-
derstood also to have been cast aside.
Marked by Buildings.
The Mall building line is now de-
fined by several permanent Govern
ment structures, occupying permanent
sites in the central composition. These
include the old Freer Museum. the
National Museum. the Department of
Agriculture group. the Smithsonian
Institution and one or two more
structures.
Involved in the scheme to conform
the Mall plan with original lines for
a great central composition on the
east and west axis under the LEnfant
scheme of 1902. is the plan for con-
struction of the Monument Gardens,
all contemplated I'm modification of the
l. 'Enfant plan by the Mcmillan plan
of 1901. 1t is on these plans that
Charles Moore. chairman of the Com
of Fine Arts, who has vir
tually given up his work at the Lii
brary of Congress, now is concentrat-
ing, in the hope that much of the
work on the Mall may be completed by
1882.