Evening star., 1939-07-21
Pooled Efforts
Start for Play
Development
Conference Planned
ToCombine Resources
And Push Program

Plans got under way today as to
how best to pool the resources of
the National Park Service and funds
appropriated the District in order
to start development program of
areas in the District recreation sys-
tenn.
Lewis r. Barrett, District recrea-
ton director, was to meet with the
engineers of the Playground De-
partment, representatives of the
District repair shop and members
Of the branch Of plans and design
of the National Park Service to
formulate such plans
Among present resources WHICH
may be used for the physical de-
velopment of the areas are the
c. C. c. camps assigned to the
Office of National Capital Parks,
w P. A. labor under the Play
ground Department and $25,O00 ap-
propriated to the Playground De-
partment for improvements in the
recently enacted District of Colum-
bia Appropriation Act.
First order of business will be to
plan and build shelter houses on the
Rosedale Playground, Seventeenth
and Rosedale streets NE, and the
Edgewood Playground. Lincoln road
and Evarts street NE.
C. c. c. and w. P. A. labor is
to be used where possible in grad
ing and surfacing areas sadly in
need of such work Mr. Barrett
mentioned Southeast Recreation
Center and Banneker Recreation
Center as being in great need of
this work. Many others are in
need also, however, Mr.. Barrett
said today.
To Work Out Master Scheme.
When program for use of
existing resources is completed, he
said, large-scale plan for the
improvement of the entire recrea-
ton system would be worked out
for presentation in budget esti-
mates this fall.
Mr.. Barrett has always main
tanned that the efficacy of anv
recreation area is attendant on its
power to attract users to it and
that the opening of additional
Fairgrounds alone is not the proper
remedy for the fact that play areas
are not utilized to capacity.
AS corollaries to a program of
physical development Mr.. Barrett
said he plans to formulate a more
comprehensive and better co-ordi-
mated play program and to better
the caliber of supervisory personnel
The Office of National Capital
Parks has pledged itself to CO.
operate fully in adapting facilities
on its areas to any program
which may be worked out.
More Play Areas Opened.
Meanwhile two more play areas
were opened today in Stanton anc
Lincoln Parks under w. P. A..
leaders provided under a project
calling for the adding of so addi-
tional leaders to be placed in recre-
alton work So far Is of these
have become available. Most of
them will be used to expand per-
sonnel in Fairgrounds already open.
Mr.. Barrett said he had thought
play areas in Lincoln and Stanton
Parks as we'll as in Franklin Park
were already open, but found yes
terday they were closed because OF
lack OF funds to operate them. He
had assumed they were open, he
said, because they were carried on
the regular summer schedule. He
said the area in Franklin Park
would be opened as soon as a suit
able w. P. A. leader became avail
able.
Due to this situation a total OF
seven heretofore closed areas
would be opened, he said.
-Four others opened yesterday
were at the Harrison, Cleveland
Grimke and Bundy Schools. With
the exception of the Bundy School,
these were on list of ten recon-
mended for opening by the Com
munity Center Department. The
Bundy School grounds were opened,
Mr.. Barrett said, when he found
that the grounds of the Gales
School, one of those normally
closed, had been opened by the
principal of the school under her
voluntary supervision.
The six play areas at which
leadership personnel is to be ex-
panded are the Burroughs, Gal
llnger, Rosedale and Garfield play
grounds and Randall and Banneker
Recreation Centers.
Mr.. Barrett said that he was in
hopes that the problems of open
ing additional grounds soon would
be cleared away so that he might
concentrate on reorganization of
the District recreation setup which
still is contained in the Play
ground and Community Center
Departments.