Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-02-02
PLANS ARE PUSHED
!. TOSETTLE DISTRICT
MARKET QUESTION
Southwest Area and Patter-
son Tract Are Bidding
for Merchants.
Governmental STEPS
PENDING IN CONGRESS
Definite Decisions Are Expected
Soon, Affecting Food Supply
of Many Residents.

AS the Government drives ahead with
its great building program for the Mall,
Pennsylvania avenue triangle, with
hopes of evacuating all the market in
terests to erect new buildings, begin
ming this year, many plans are under
way to take care of the scattered mar
keting with several important questions
on the verge of settlement.
Both the Southwest market area and
the Patterson tract section are bid
ding for commission merchants, and
an appropriation now before the Dis
trict subcommittee of the House COM
mittee on appropriations providing
100000 for a new farmers wholesale
as the target for a wide difference of
opinion in testimony to come before
the committee.
Project Is Hanging Fire.
The matter of providing a new Cen
ter Market to replace the great struc-
ture which is to be torn down to make
way for the Department Of Justice, is
hanging fire in two different places.
In Congress legislation is pending to
establish a new Government Center
Market at public cost, while private in
terests represented principally by the
Downtown Market Co., now are nego-
itating on a proposal to build new
Center Market with private capital.
Within the near future, therefore, the
whole market question thus will break
into public attention, with prospects
that before long some definite decisions
may be made to affect the food supply
Of a large section of Washington S
citizens.
The interests behind the Patterson
tract development, represented by the
Union Market Terminal Corporation, of
which j. o. Harrison is president, are
building a group of stores on Fifth
street northeast above Florida avenue,
and constructing a farmers market
across Fifth street from these stores
to accommodate between 900 and 1,00c
farmers.
About IS Per Cent Complete.
The Patterson tract buildings are
about rs per cent complete, eight more
are to be built in the near future, ac-
cording to Mr.. Harrison. Forty-two
commission men are planning to move
to this site, Mr.. Harrison said, some
time in May. This group of commits
sion merchants, according to Mr. Har-
rison, claims to be doing 80 per cent
of the total tonnage of commission
business on fruits and vegetables in
Washington.
The Maryland and Virginia Farmers
Marketing Association, at a recent
meeting at the National Museum, voted
to move to the new farmers market
of the Union Market Terminal Co. ON
the Patterson tract, when 1t is COM
pleted. The offer made to them was
understood to have been IS cents per
load of produce. The secretary of this
organization is s. B. Shaw, director
of extension work of the University Of
Maryland.
In the Southwest section the Po-
tomac Freight Terminals Co. has
erected large group of stores on Water
street and, according to the vice presi-
dent, S. T. Price, expects that enough
merchants will go to these stores to fill
them all. These commission men do
not expect to move to their Water
street location. according to Mr.. Price,
until the Government Gusts them from
their location.
Now on Archives Site.
Most of the wholesale commission
men are located on the site of the
Archives Building, bounded by Ninth
and Tenth, B street and PENNSYLVANIA
avenue. From present prospects, some
OF these men will go to the Patterson
tract and some to the Southwest site.
The Southwest interests are expecting
Congress to appropriate the $500, 600
which was authorized by the Stalker
Dill. which passed the last session of
Congress and was signed by the Presi-
dent. The appropriation estimate is in
cluded in the District appropriation bill
Tor 1881, and now is before the sub
committee Of the House appropriations
committee, of which Representative
Simmons is chairman.
The site OF the farmers wholesale
market authorized by Congress is placed
at Tenth and Eleventh streets, between
E and G streets southwest.
Meantime, the Government is push
ing ahead with its plans to acquire all
the Archives site now occupied by the
commission men.
About one-third Of this large area
already has been purchased direct by
the Treasury from the property own
ers, and the rest is under condemna-
| ton. How long it will take to ac-
quire the property under condemnation
proceedings is not known, but informal
estimates place the final acquisition
some time in the Summer It is the
plan of the Government to tear down
the old buildings as soon as title is
new Archives Building.
While a resolution is pending in Con-
! gress to close Center Market on July l,
this long-standing proposition still was
! in the air today, as both the Govern
| ment proposal to build a new market
out of public funds, and the private
| proposal to build with private funds
were pending. officials of the Down
| town Market Co. were hopeful last
toIa of bo
The Federation Of Citizens Associa-
ton is on record fatty opposed to the
| expenditure of the 100000 for a new
farmers wholesale market. Leaders in
| the federation market work point out
| that Congress should be informed OF
| the change In situation since the
| Stalker bill was passed authorizing the
market.
Specifically it was learned, the House
committee will be informed of the new
developments in the Patterson tract
| the new stores going up, the trend in
that direction of commission merchants
handling a large share of the tonnage
of fruits and vegetables, and particular
| ly the vote of the Farmers Association
agreeing to go to the Patterson tract
| farmers market.
! Federation leaders. insist, however
| that they are not launching ugni
against any southwest farmers market
site. They insist that they are au-
| thorized by the federation to oppose
the expenditure of public funds for the
erection of wholesale farmers market
The citizen leaders point out that The
situation is likely to make still further
changes, and that 1t would be waste
| full" OF public funds to use them now
to build wholesale farmers market