Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-22
The Municipal Center Loan.


The Senate District committee this
afternoon will hear representatives OF
the washington community state their
views on the Capper bill for a loan Of
SIS ZOO, 900 at three and one-half per
cent to finance the Municipal Center.
The Chamber of Commerce has de-
cided to oppose the measure. The Board
Of Trade withholds action pending
further study. The Federation of Citi-
zens' Associations has voted to indorse
the measure, with the interest pro-
vision stricken out and with the amount
of the principal increased.
It would be q wise decision on the
part of the Senate District committee
to postpone its action on the bill until
the Senate appropriations committee re-
ports the District appropriations bill.
It is dangerous to commit the taxpayers
Of this community to program Of ex-
pensive undertakings without knowing
what the revenue availability is to be
or without deciding in advance upon
the policy for sharing the cost. These
decisions rest with the appropriations
committees of Congress, and the legisla-
tive committees, in all fairness to the
taxpayers, must be guided to a large
extent by those decisions.
During the hearings on the District
appropriations bill Representative Sim
mons Of Nebraska made two comments
on two different subjects that, taken to-
gether, strike Squarely at the root OF
this Municipal Center project in its re-
lation to District financing.
Speaking on the subject OF school
buildings, Mr.. Simmons said:
I could live and have o lot of fun,
probably, in larger and more imposing
house than / have, more expenslVely
furnished and with larger number OF
servants, paid higher wages, but l nave
not got the income to do 1t. The City
of Washington has just so much money
as income, and we are squeezing every
dollar we can into the school fund and
spending it for the education of as
many children as possible. They have
certain conditions to meet, and 1t Is
/ lust as sensible for me to say I ought
to have one room all furnished WITH i'm
ported rugs and with tiled bath for
one Of my children and let the other
sleep in an unfurniShed room on a dirty
rag as 1t is to say that you are going
to build this type of school building for
this child and send another one to
school under the conditions that some
Of them have to go under.
Speaking of the Municipal Center I'M
dertaking, Mr.. Simmons said:
-" want to know, and 1 am sure
everybody in Congress wants to know,
that we are going to have building
down there that will be comparable with
the other buildings being erected by the
Government here and mat we are going
to have q building that no one need
apologize for from the municipal stand
point. At the same time the Dis
trict will probably be putting good
many million dollars into this PROPOSE
ton before it is finally completed, and
it ought not to have to apologize for i
when 1t 10 done. Now Is the time to
make certain that 10 or 20 years from
now no apology will be necessary.
There is little reason to believe that
the District will have to apologize fol
the Municipal Center. The amount o.
money to be spent on that project Il
almost a guarantee in itself. The ques'
ton confronting the District, and which
our wise legislators must answer, il
whether, in not having to apologize fol
the Municipal Center, our community
will continually have to apologize for 1T
schools and for grade crossings and fol
sewers that run through public park
not to mention the apologies for lack o!
sewers elsewhere.
The importance of the Municipa
Center and the wisdom of expenditure!
thereon are, of course, relative. They
depend altogether upon the obligations
the Federal Government chooses to as
sumo in connection with the Fedora
City. That is the question that mus
| be answered FIRST.