Evening star., 1940-01-07

e eastern entrance 10 washington az
sthe bridge plaza at the foot of East
Capitol street.
Mr.. Calvert contended that when
the plan was changed, emphasis was
laid upon the western part Of the
District instead of beautifying both
East and West Washington equally.
Northwest improvements.
Ever since the original LEnfant
plan was changed, Mr.. Calvert
claimed, the eastern part of the city
has been neglected while the North
west has received practically all the
improvements.
For more than century and .
half the planned emasculation OF
the natural flow of travel in the Dis
trict has been the bane Of East
Washington" the head of the Lin.
coin Park Group asserted.
"When Pierre LEnfant proceeded
to lay out on the banks of the Poto.
mac a city Of unrivaled beauty for
the seat Of government there had to
be starting point. And many who
have studied the subject agree that
the starting point was what would
now be, il the street were graded,
that part of East Capitol street
washed by the Eastern Branch OF
the Potomac River"
BY neglecting to follow the plan.
Mr.. Calvert maintained, and not
erecting a bridge across Kingman
Lake and the Anacostia River, the
city fathers pronounced the doom
of East Washington.
1T is now or never with US in East
Washington to get bridge at that
point" Mr.. Calvert said. Every
thing else will 60 into the discard
if there Is failure to recognize this
fact. It will dead-end the proposed
Avenue of the States. 1t will make
the Anacostia parkway . run
around. 1t will annihilate the full
fillment of plans that would make
the eastern half of the city the
beautiful gateway to the National
Capital
Ever since he came to live in East
Washinton in 1914. he recalled. he
has been fighting to get the East
Capital street bridge, while the Lin
coin Park Association took up the
struggle 10 years later.
In fact, he pointed out, his asso-
citation originally had two principal
civic objectives-a new bridge over
the Anacostia River at Pennsylvania
avenue Sc. and one at East Capitol
street.
"And now that we've obtained the
first half OF our program" he said,
we're going to concentrate AL our
efforts to get the second"
Randolph Introduces Bill
In connection with the proposed
Identification and development OF
East Washington, Representative
Randolph, Democrat, of West Vir-
ginia, has Just introduced in Con-
gress a bill authorizing construction
of a parade field. swimming pools
and other recreational facilities IN
Anacostia Park.
A possible connection of East Cap-
itol street with the proposed Wash.
ineton- Baltimore direct highway via
| the old w. B. e. A. right OF way
was seen Yesterday by Capt. H. G.
Whitehurst of the Highway Depart.
ment.
He explained that the right OF
way ran about half mile from
the end of East Capitol street at
the District line and that an ad-
Iustment could easily be made to
connect the street to the highway
If the latter is ever built. At pres
ent, he said. plans for boule"
ward are at standstill.
Such connection would, OF
course, make East Capitol street q
direct outlet from as we'll as en-
trance to Washington, increasing
tremendously the amount OF traf11c
that would pass through the street
and over the proposed East Capitol
Street Bridge.
If the bridge is built, Mr.. Calvert
pointed out. continuous line
through Washington from east to
west would be available.
"The beautiful aspect of WASH
ington would and should continue
to the District line on the east"
he continued.
He dismissed with a wave OF his
hand the thought of bridge across
the Anacostia River at Massa-
chusetts avenue.
Such a bridge, he pointed out,
would have to cut across the
grounds of Gallinger Hospital and
in addition would be compelled to
pass under or over the railroad
bridge across the river at that point.
Area Plans Drawn Up.
The National Park and Planning
Commission has drawn up plans
for an East Capitol street bridge
as part of the development of that
area, but has neither advocated
nor suggested such bridge, COM
mission officials said.
In fact. part of the development,
according to commission plans, calls
for a sports field ON the shores of
Kingman Lake. effectively blocking
East Capitol street.
The Lincoln Park Association, Mr..
Calvert declared emphatically, Is
against any proposal that would
prevent the building of a bridge
at the foot of East Capitol street
and has registered its disapproval
of any field blocking the street.
"The sports field could Just as
easily be placed in the neighbor-
hood of Twenty first and East Cap
itol Streets" he asserted.
Admitting that the new John
Phillip Sousa Bridge which has re-
placed the old Pennsylvania Ave-
nue. Bridge will care for q great
part Of the traffic that will result
from the erection Of the armory