Evening star., 1934-12-22
STREET WIDENING
AND ROCK CREEK
SEWERSD|SCUSSED
Park and Planning Board
Considers Traffic Sur
vey Findings.
STUDY OF POLLUTION
IN PARK is PUSHED
Navy Service Interests Opposition
to Gravelly Point Airport
Site Are Heard.

The National Capital Park and
Planning Commission turned its at
tention today to a traffic survey re-
Gently conducted here, the proposed
widening Of G street, between Seventh
and Ninth streets, and the pollution
Of Rock Creek. Previously 1t had
referred to a subcommittee the ques-
ton Of the objection of service in
terests to development Of GraveIly
Point as an airport.
Charles Herrick, city planner, ar
ranged to present preliminary report
as the result of a traffic census con-
Quoted here to determine the origin
and destination Of cars. He hopes to
offer detailed report in January.
Ofhcials have been tabulating the in
formation for many months and they
hope to evolve facts upon which the
commission and the District Gov
ernment may base future highway
development here.
The recent Public Works Admin
istration ALLEGATION to study the poll
luton of Rock Greek will be dis
cuSSed. The commission is anxious to
see adequate sewers constructed to
care for this and to ban further con-
tamination Of the stream which flows
through one Of Washington's most
popular parks.
F Street Work.
The commission feels the widening
OF G street, just north of the old
Patent Office Building, is not nearly
as complex as the problem of widen
Ing F street. In the case of G street,
the building proper is not involved.
But the Public Works Administration
has recently made funds available for
clearing away the south steps of the
old Patent Office Building. Widening
of both F and G streets is considered
advisable to improve traffic conditions.
While holding to its original posi-
tion of favoring Gravelly Point as
WaShington's air terminal, the Com
mission decided to appoint its chair
man, Frederic A Delano, and Col.
Dan I. Sultan, Engineer Commits
sioner of the District, as a special SUBJ
committee. This group will confer
with the War. Navy and Commerce
Departments, the President and 9TH
ers concerned. Rear Admiral Ernest
j. King, chief of the Navy Bureau of
Aeronautics, has objected to the use
of Gravelly Point as an airport, fear
ing commercial air traffic will inter-
fere with the efficiency of the naval
planes at the Naval Air Station at
Anacostia, just across the Potomac
River. Chairman McSwain of the
House Military Affairs Committee also
has objected to the Gravelly Point
program.
Proposed Levee Studied.
Further study of the proposed levee
between the Washington Monument
and the Lincoln Memorial, as a feature
of the Washington flood control pro-
gram, was ordered by the commission.
Maj. Robert w. Crawford, district en-
gineer for the War Department for
the Washington area, and his chief
engineer, E. A. Schmitt, together with
the commissions own staff, will ex-
anime the problem more closely. Trees
that fringe the rejecting pool of the
Lincoln Memorial would be imperiled
in the scheme, some of the planners
felt, and additional studies were di-
rected, to work the levee, which would
be nine feet IN height, into the Mall
park development. Plans were sug-
gested for using the unemployed in
the construction of the levee.
The commission put over until its
January meeting decision on the rec
reation report, submitted by L. H.
Weir of the National Recreation As
sociation, designed to unity the Dis
trict's recreational system. This was
done, officials explained. to give local
interests an opportunity to express
their preferences on one of the four
plans presented by Mr.. Weir.
Plans for the American Unions
Administration Building, to be erected
shortly at Eighteenth street and Con-
stitution avenue. were given commits
sion approval. These were drawn by
DR.. Paul Cret, noted Philadelphia
architect.