Evening star., 1940-01-13

recredt1on tdc1ltt1eS OF other cities
NTH those OF the District of
Columbia.
BY RUDOLPH KAUFMAN III.
Each year the vail goes up from
parks and recreation officials in
Washington, Where can we get the
money to develop the land we
have?"
1t is true that Washington's parks
and play areas, in addition to being
starved for maintenance funds, are
starved, on the face of things, for
money to develop the land which
the National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission has bought.
Akron, Cleveland, Cincinnati,
Milwaukee and Minneapolis haven t
been able to 60 out and lay cash
on some contractors barrelhead and
say, Build. me this and build me
that"
How have they done it? With re-
lief labor. They have capitalized on
c. w. A, F. E. R. A., w. P. A., N. Y.
A. and c. C. C.
Developed by Relief Labor.
Hugo E. Varga, director of parks
and public property in Cleveland
says that at one time he had l4,0OO
w. P. A. laborers at work on his
parks and play areas He says his
program of land development, field
Ehouses, courts, diamopdst pools, and
;theTtest, is so per. ceiit compiled
perofne C. Dretzka, executive secre-
tary of the Milwaukee County Park
Commission, says he is Is years
fahead of schedule on development
H. S. Wagner. director secretary o1
the Akron Metropolitan Park Dis
trict, says his park facilities are
nearing completion.
All this is because parks and play.
grounds in these cities are being de.
veloped by relief labor. Land &C.
QUESTION has been a problem, main
tenance of the areas is an increasing
problem, but development, why
that's easy.
And by development it is moi
meant that the w. P. A. and Others
have done little grading here, 6
little planting there, and little cul.
vert laying another place They have
lone all phases of the work. They
have built field houses and shelter
houses, camps, swimming pools
parkWays, masonry retaining walls
everything one can think of thai
park would need to develop it fol
the broad scale use of the com.
munity to be served
Why is it then that Washington
which has land, has done little but
grade many of its areas or has done
nothing? Why is it that Washington
park and recreation officials com.
plain bitterly that they are 10. Is
20 years behind schedule on develop.
ment work, with files packed with
pretty plans and no way to put
them in effect?
Fewer Skilled Workers.
Build a field house with w. P
A? Why we couldn't do a thing
like that with w. P. A. All we car
do with them is grade" they say.
OF course, there are some reasons
why Washington may not have beer
able to accomplish what other cite!
have done with w. P. A. labor. Ir
the first place, Washington is 6
political nonenity, and nobody i.
fighting to get w. F. A. projects ap
proved here. In the second place
Washington is not an industrial city
where thousands of skilled workmer
have been thrown out of work
men who can build field houses ane
such and do as well as the best con.
tractor. A third reason is lack O
sponsors contributions. More len
iency has been allowed on project
in politically juicy cities like Cleve
land and one project, to this writer
knowledge, was instituted with a
little as a per cent sponsors con
tribution.
However, none of the five cite
visited has more park money ap
propriated than Washington. Per
haps most of the money appropri
ated here-seven-ninths Of 1t ou
of the Districts pocket-goes int,
the expensive maintenance of Uncl
Sans front rather than into facin
ties which John @. Taxpayer, hi
wife and his children can use il
their leisure time Perhaps lot o
the money appropriated out of tn
Districts pocketbook for parks goe
to pay for the topheavy and re,
tape laden administration which op
crates Washington's parks under tn
National Park Service and the De
partment of the Interior. Probabl,
much more of the appropriated o
tax-raised funds 60 into sponsors
contributions in the five cities visit
ed than in Washington.
c. C. C. Boys Helpful.
But what about c. c. c.? Aren'
C. C. C. boys all of a feather Il
start with? Aren't they youngster
unskilled in any trade when the,
start out?
The Office of National Capita
Parks has five C.. c. C. camps at it
disposal. Mr.. Wagner, in Akron, ha
: one. -Akron's metropolitan park
are provided with roads, parkin
lots, fieldhouses, bathing pavilions
: lakes, play meadows and othe
things done solely by G. c. C. boys.
Il Take the f1eldhouse at Vrgini