Evening star., 1939-07-09
Passage Is Urged
OF Bill 10 Provide
City Parking Lots
Terminal Facilities Held
As Much q Municipal
Function as Streets

Adoption by the present Con-
gress of House bill No. 1881, pro-
viding for municipal automobile
parking lots in the District, is urged
by the District of Columbia Motor
Club, unit of the American Auto
mobile Association, in communi-
cation made public yesterday.
The bill, introduced in February
by Representative Dirksen, Repub-
lican, of Illinois, has been COM
mended by the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission. 1t
was referred to the House District
Committee. If passed. it would au-
thorize the District Commissioners
to establish, maintain and operate
parking facilities for motorists.
Washington I. Cleveland, man.
ager of the motor club, in a letter
to Representative Dirksen, said in
part:
Practically no considera-
ton is being given to the matter
OF parking facilities other than add
Ing further restrictions, placing fur
ther limitations and imposing fees
through the imposition of parking
meters.
Hurts Auto Purchases.
THE point has been reached where
many persons are refraining from
purchasing automobiles in the Dis
trlct of Columbia because the use of
motor vehicles is hampered or pre-
vented by the absence of any
semblance of adequate or convenient
parking facilities. 1t is just as much
a municipal function to provide
terminal facilities for the parking of
automobiles as it is to provide
streets and avenues for moving
traffic"
Chairman Frederic A. Delano of
. the National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission recently advised
Representative Dirksen that the
commission has discussed the park
Ing problem several times.
The commission" Mr.. Delano in
formed Mr.. Dirksen, has not been
very successful in its efforts to have
adequate parking facilities provided
in and around the new Federal
buildings which have been con-
structed in the last 10 years. This
has been largely due to the cost in
providing space in buildings or of
acquiring vacant land nearby, for
which funds have not been made
available.
DelanO Sees Possibility.
"One thought that has occurred
to me in connection with your bill is
that it would be possible to acquire
land within the areas authorized for
purchase for temporary use as park
ing lots in Southwest Washington
and in the Northwest rectangle west
of Seventeenth street and north of
Constitution avenue, pending their
ultimate use for public buildings.
In this way private buildings would
be prevented, and meanwhile park
ing facilities would be provided at
convenient and profitable loca-
tions.
There are, I believe, in these
areas certain properties which are
NdSdilO VI OOOlA ~ ullploNCu WlllCll
could be acquired at costs COM
mensurate with a reasonable park
ing fee. This possibility should be
investigated"
In urging action of this bill at
this session, Mr.. Cleveland pointed
out that the last survey of parking
facilities in the District-in 1886
disclosed that while an average of
$4,000 automobiles entered the
downtown area of Washington each
day, total parking facilities, includ-
ing garages, parking lots and curb
space, was sufficient for only $500
cars with only 5000 of these being
curb spaces
And the curb spaces, Mr.. Cleve-
land continued, are being eliminated
gradually and continually. The
number of motor vehicles using Dis
trict thoroughfares continues to in
crease and the chaotic conditions
resulting from the inability of mo-
torists to park their cars grows
steadily worse" he stated in con-
clusion