Evening star., 1935-07-07
CAPITOL HILL SITE
FOR c. A. 0. URGED
.ON SENATE GROUPS
Avenue Location, Addition
to Present Quarters Also
Weighed.
SUBCOMMITTEE MEETS
ON PROBLEM TOMORROW
D. C. Officials Find City Center
Program Too Elaborate at
Present Time.
BY J. A. O'LEARY.

BY J. A. OLEARY.
A proposal to place the new general
accounting Office near the group OF
legislative buildings, somewhere on
Capitol Hill. has been put forward at
the Senate Subcommittee hearings on
the second deficiency Appropriation
bill, it was learned yesterday.
This has provoked three-cornered
discussion of the problem, since the
subcommittee already had been de-
liberating over whether to enlarge the
old Pension Office Building, now used
by the general accounting agency, or
to build a new structure on the north
side of Pennsylvania avenue, in the
vicinity of John Marshall place.
The subcommittee has not reached
a decision and meets again tomorrow.
Although some of its members are
understood to prefer retaining the
House provision for the enlargement
and refacing of the Pension Building
in Judiciary Square, there Is also re-
ported to be strong sentiment for the
plan of bringing the general account
ing Office near the Capitol. There IS
a possibility the subcommittee will
leave the issue to be determined by
the entire Senate Appropriations
Committee when it meets to report
the bill later in the week.
Economy Is Factor.
Those who favor leaving the &C
counting Office where it is by adding
wings to the Pension Building con-
tend that would be more economical.
Officials of the general accounting
establishment are understood to pre-
fer enlargement of the Pension Build
ing if the new building is to go on
the Pennsylvania avenue frontage OF
the District municipal center site.
They are reported to be inclined to
favor a new building, however, if it
could be located in the Capitol Hill
area. One Of che arguments ad-
vanced in support of the latter sug-
gestion is that the controller generals
Office is an agency of the legislative
rather than of the executive branch
of Government. Another argument
has been that more basement space
would be possible on Capitol Hill than
Pennsylvania avenue.
The House bill contained a $4,000,
600 appropriation, part of an ultimate
expenditure of $4,7o00 900, to add two
wings to the Pension Office and to
put new exterior on the old struc-
ture. When the bill reached the Sen
ate. the Attorney Generals Office, Of
ficials of District Supreme Court and
spokesmen for the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission told
the Senate Subcommittee of plans
that have been under consideration to
keep Judiciary Square as a center
for court structures. They testified
the enlargement of the old Pension
Building at this time would prevent
its removal at some future time to
make way for new District Supreme
Court Building.
District Has Extra Space.
District government officials, con-
vinced that the original Municipal
Center program is too elaborate to be
carried out by the city under present
conditions, have been hoping the Fed
eral Government would take over the
Pennsylvania avenue frontage for some
Federal building.
The District will need no longer
all the area bought for the Municipal
Center development, since it is now
planned to erect buildings for the
police, Municipal and Juvenile Courts
on open spaces in Judiciary Square.
In the discussion during the past
week over location of the General Ac-
counting Office, however, it has been
argued to the Senate Subcommittee
that it would cost more to erect new
building on the Pennsylvania avenue
site than to remodel the Pension Build
ing, as in the House bill. 1t has also
been pointed out that if the latest
suggestion of a Capitol Hill location
should be adopted, there would be
the additional expense of planning
the exterior design and materials to
conform to the marble buildings in
that area. A decision is looked for
during the coming week.
The Senate Committee is expected
to approve the supplemental esti-
mate of $50, 900 for the District Water
Department to renew old pumps at
the Mcmillan Park filtration plant. AS
it came from the House the bill con-
tained other District items amounting
to $542,862, principally for mainte-
nance Of hospital service and other
welfare institutions