Evening star., 1938-01-26
HOUSE UNIT URGES
|R0AD LABORATORY
|CONSTRUCT|ONBAN
Committee to Demand Test.
ing Building Halt Pending
Airport Decision.
GRAVELLY POINT SITE
is REPORTED MENACED
Delano's View Projects Would Not
Conflict Cited at Hearing >!
on Issue. II

Immediate suspension Of construcs
ton work on the new Bureau Of Pub
lie Roads highway-testing laboratory
until the Gravelly Point airport ques-
ton Is settled, was demanded today
by the House Committee on Public
Buildings and Grounds.
Meeting in executive session after a
stormy hearing, the committee au-
thorized its chairman. Representative
Lanham, Democrat, Of Texas to pre-
sent its demand Immediately to sec-
retary of Agriculture Wallace and bu-
reau officials.
AT todays hearing, construction Of
the laboratory was denounced as "un.
1alr to Congress" and as jeopardizing
the airport project
construction of an airport at
Gravelly Point If the laboratory Is
allowed to remain there would neces-
state carrying the airport fill beyond
the present boundaries into deep water
and would make 1t necessary to locate
the Mount Vernon boulevard In 4
1.o00-foot. tunnel passing under one
OF the airport runways, according to
a plan presented to the committee. The
laboratory buildings would jut out into
the airport, which would have to take
the form OF horseshoe, according to
this plan.
Delano Views Cited.
Testimony showed the $957,000 con-
tract for construction of the laboratory
was awarded after President Roose-
velr had announced himself publicly as
1aVor1ng the Gravelly Point airport
site. The contract was signed on the
strength OF a letter from Frederic A.
Delano, chairman of the National
Park and Planning Commission, in
which he stated that in his opinion
the laboratory construction would not
conflict with the airport program, H. S.
Fairbank of the Bureau Of Public
Roads, told the committee.
Mr.. Fairbank admitted that the
| bureaus airport plan had not been
submitted to any aeronautical or
ganization for approval but said that
ne felt that with the laboratory on
the ground some satisfactory plan
could be worked out"
THE locations for an airport in
the vicinity of Washington are few
and hard to find" said Representa-
tive Grove, Democrat, OF Indiana,
1t seems to me there has been q Sc
rious lack Of Coordination in the To-
cation Of this highway laboratory In
q position which will jeopardize one Of
the most popular airport sites"
why jeopardize this airport site
when you can locate the highway lab
oratory Just as well on any one Of 100
locations? don't think 1t Is fair
to Congress, and I think this work
was started prematurely."
| To Ask Delano Reappear,
Mr.. Fairbank told the committee
Mr.. Delano's letter was received Dec-
ember is and the contract for the
laboratory was awarded two days
later. Representative IAnham an
nounced that he would ask Mr..
Delano to reappear before the COM
| AAA1ooSS w CcA WHY he grained q re.
commentator for the construction
while the airport matter = pending
before Congress.
Construction Of the laboratory has
been planned for several years, Mr..
Fairbank testified. The bureau put
OH construction because Of the
Gravelly Point angle until after the
District Airport Commission made its
report last year favoring an airport
site at Camp Springs, Md.
| Mr.. Fairbank testified the bureau
has spent $4,000 for So acres of land
Tor It's laboratory, which will have a
total cost of $1,36o,ooo. Approximate
ly sls.500 has been spent in prepara-
tory work and $4,000 already has
been spent under contract for ex-
cavations and foundation work. The
main laboratory building will be about
800 feet long, with a roof line 100
feet above mean low-water level. he
said.