Evening star., 1939-04-30
Civic Problems, Civic Bodies
Old Hospital Site Again Center
Of Controversy; A Veteran Chormon

tract at this location was ac-
quired by the District of Colum-
bia in 1900 at an expenditure
OF $4,000 as the site for q mu-
nicipal hospital. Originally this
property was bounded by Four
teenth street, Upshur street,
kansas avenue and Allison street,
and comprised about 321s acres,
including Thirteenth street,
which has since been extended
through the property.
The first and only hospital unit
to be erected on the site was the
old tuberculosis Hospital. In
1916 the District of Columbia
appropriation bill, as passed by
the House. provided for begin
ming construction of the Gal
linger Hospital on the property.
This encountered vigorous op-
position on the part of the or
ganized citizens in the adjacent
area. These determined citi-
zens persisted In their opposition
before the Senate, even though
the item had been favorably re-
ported by the Senate Committee.
They succeeded in having sub
stituted a site to be selected on
Reservation 10, where the mu-
nicipal hospital had been located
for more than 10 years. The
Gallinger Hospital at its present
location was the result.
These organized groups con-
tinued their efforts to clear
this property of the tuberculosis
Hospital, which they contended
should be replaced by modern
sanatoria located on a large tract
remote from the city. Their
hopes were finally realized in the
fine institutions at Glen Dale,
Md.
The extension Of Thirteenth
street through the property just
about equally divided the area
into two tracts. Upon that por-
ton lying east of Thirteenth
street has been erected the Mac
farland Junior High School, the
Theodore Roosevelt Senior High
School and the Petworth branch
of the public library. The ex-
tension of Arkansas avenue from
Fourteenth street to Allison
street has taken one corner of
the western part of the original
site, and upon the northern end
has been erected the Allison
Health School and the Denni-
son Vocational School for Girls
on the Allison street frontage.
With the abandonment of the
old tuberculosis hospital there
arose demands for the use of this
portion of the property for va
rious purposes, both of a tenn
porary and a permanent charac-
ter. All such attempts were met
with strong opposition by the or
ganized groups which throughout
many years have been interested
in the development Of the prop
erty for educational and recre-
ational purposes.
These associations are insistent
upon the development of the re-
mainder Of the tract strictly for
neighborhood recreational pur-
poses, and in this they are sup
ported by the National Capital
Park and Planning Commission.
Both the citizen groups and the
commission are impressed with
the need of this property for de-
velopment as a community rec
reation center free from any
structure other than would be
required for recreational pur-
poses.
In the quest for q site, on Dis
trict owned land, for a new
building for the Wilson Teachers
College, to replace the present
building at Eleventh and Har-
ward streets NV, a location was
finally decided upon at Thir-
teenth and Upshur streets. The
National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission and these citi-
zen groups reluctantly acquiesced
as a compromise. The city plan
ners Of the commission have
worked out a comprehensive
treatment Of all of the square
bounded by Fourteenth, Upshur.
Thirteenth and Allison streets
and Arkansas avenue.
This plan places the Wilson
Teachers College fronting on
Upshur street at Thirteenth, a
swimming pool with removable
glass roof, showers and dressing
rooms, and q gymnasium would
also front on Upshur street and
be connected with the main COL
lege building by a covered pas
sage. Community recreational
features include tennis courts,
play field, boys area for small
games, girls area with space for
small games and an area for
small children. The existing
building, formerly the nurses
home, facing Thirteenth street
Immediately opposite the Roose-