Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-31
Reaction to the New Zone Plan.

The Board of Trade coming commit
tees objection to Maj. Davison's pro-
posal of limited commercial zone, to
be applied to such residential areas as
lower Sixteenth street, is based more on
the contention that such a proposal
would fail to solve the difficulties of
property owners in the areas affected
than upon any radical fault in the pro-
posal itself. Maj. Davison's plan, for
instance, contemplates the permission to
erect such structures as Office buildings
in these residential zones. But the
Board of Trade committee does not be-
lieve that if the permission were given,
ONCE buildings would appear as a mat
ter of course. There is also some OBJ
lection to the proposal that theaters
and moving picture houses be permitted
in these residential zones. The result
ing traffic congestion, it is felt, would
be harmful to such neighborhoods.
Neither Maj. Dawson nor any one else
is welded to the plan for the new re-
stricted commercial zone. The sugges-
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obtaining just such reactions as have
come from the Board of Trade COM
mittee. This committee believes that
the proper solution of the problem lies
in adjusting assessments made on resi-
Dental property so situated that the
property has lost in desirability for resi-
dence use, but increased in hypothetical
value because Of its proximity to COM
nnercial areas. In the case Of lower
Sixteenth street property owners have
seen their assessments and their taxes
increase enormously because of the
h1gh-priced commercial district lust
around the corner. But coming pro-
hibits them from disposing of their
property for commercial use, while new
conditions and customs have made the
property less desirable for residential
use.
The committee does not believe that
the high sales value of commercial
property should so radically affect the
assessment on nearby property that re-
mains zoned for residential use. The
assessor, on the other hand, bases his
valuations for taxes on the strength of
sales, and not on coming classifcations.
There never has been any attempt to
coordinate assessments and coming. It
is not established that such co-ordina-
ton would be possible, because here In
Washington it has never been tried.
But the fact remains that If land is
assessed on one basis and zoned on an
other the property owner is caught be-
tween the horns Of a dilemma from
which, under present conditions, there is
no rescue.
The Board of Trade committee sug-
gested an interesting thought in its dis
cussion regarding ONCE buildings. The
erection of new Government buildings
win create vacancies in ONCE buildings
now standing that win not be filled for
an undetermined period and during
this period there win be 1ittls demand
for new private structures of this type.
If lower Sixteenth street were opened to
ONCE buildings, as Maj Davison's plan
proposed, it might be many years be-
fore the demand for ONCE space in this
section would bring about new con-
gtruction. Government condemnation
of private structures does not invari-
ably mean new private building de-
velopment that tends to increase as
sessments, taxes and therefore the reve-
nue. productivity of the decreasing area
Of taxable land in the District.