Evening star., 1941-01-09
De|ano Predicts
Twill Take|n
Suburban Area
No Loss of Political
Rights Seen in Purely
Administrative Move

A Capital City extending farther
into both Maryland and Virginia
for better metropolitan administra-
tion was envisioned yesterday by
Frederic A. Delano, chairman of the
National Capital Park and Planning
Commission.
Such an expansion was foreSeen
by Mr.. Delano at a luncheon given
for new National Capital Parks Supt.
Irving c. Root at the Cosmos Club.
Mr. Root was pledged cooperation
by several officials and civic leaders
interested in park and recreational
work.
Mr.. Delanos prediction looked
forward to tract of about 20 by Is
miles on both sides of the Potomac,
with some sort of central govern
ment, the details of which were not
yet worked out. He voiced the hope
that our wayWard sisters across the
Potomac River might some day be
brought back into the fold"
His aside" was made in answer
to a brief talk by Col. Christopher
Garnett, chairman of the Arlington
County Planning Commission, who
had pleaded for better cooperation
between the District and the Vir-
ginia side of the Potomac"
Wouldn't Lose Suffrage.
The lack of cooperation started,
Col. Garnett said, when Arlington
County, once a part of the District,
was ceded back to Virginia.
Mr.. Delano, asked what he had
meant by his remark, said he re-
ferred to his plan for leaving the
District as it is but adding to it,
for purposes of efficient metropoli-
tan administration, large sections OF
Virginia and Maryland.
These areas, he said, would pay 10
per cent of their taxes to the States
of Maryland and Virginia, that
being, he said, the average amount
OF taxes reaching the average State
Golfer.
Likewise, he said, those thus
blanketed into the Nations Capital
would not forfeit the right of suf-
frage. They simply would throw in
their lot with the residents Of the
District to form one unified city.
Asked how the fiscal details of
such a setup would be worked out
and how some persons in city could
vote when others couldn't, he said
only careful study could work that
out
Il have never attempted to 60 into
the details of such a proposal he
said, but it is obvious that Wash
ington should be a single metro
politan unit and it's something
people ought to think about"
Delano Pledges Cooperation.
Mr.. Delano pledged cooperation
to Mr.. Root in his new post, as did
also J. c. Nichols, real estate men,
ber of the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission. Two of Mr..
Roots superiors, Newton B. Drury,
director of the National Park Serv-
ice, and Arthur E. Demaray, asso-
ciate director, said the same.
I'VE are proud that our new school
buildings lend themselves so we'll to
recreation said Mrs. Henry Grat-
tan Doyle, president of the Board
of Education, In years to come we
must have far greaetr coordination
and cooperation in the recreation
field in the District
These words were interpreted by
many present to mean that Mrs.
Doyle looks with favor on plans to
unity recreation in Washington
through joint effort on the part
of the schools, the District govern
ment and the parks. She has
spoken in favor of legislation to
create a nine-man recreation board
in Washington whereon would
serve in an ex officio capacity rep
resentatives of the District Com
missioners, the Office of National
Capital Parks, the Board of Public
Welfare and the Board of Educa-
ton and five responsible District
residents appointed at large.
Others who spoke were Capt. John
L. Person, assistant engineer commits
sioner for the District, for Engineer
Commissioner David McCoach, jr.;
Lewis R. Barrett co-ordinator of
recreation for the District; and Miss
Sibyl Baker, director of Community
Centers; T. Howard Duckett of the
Maryland National Capital Park and
Planning Commission; Theodore
Irving Coe, chairman of the District
Board of Zoning Adjustment; Henry
P. Chandler, chief of the Admin
istrative Office of the United States
Courts, and Charles F. Consaul, vice
president of the Committee of 100.
Others in Attendance.
Others present to wish Mr.. Root
well were Jay DoWner, consultant to
the Park and Planning Commission
in plans for the Fort Drive; Evan
Tucker, Horace Peaslee, DR.. T. S.
Palmer, Claude w. Owen, Joshua
Evans, jr., Charles w. Eliot, II, and
Col Alvin B. Barber, members, and
John DeLaMater, secretary, of the
Committee of 100; E. Russell White,
chairman of the Fairfax County
Planning Commission; L. E. Pea
body, chairman of the Alexandria
City Planning Commission; Lacey
Shaw of the Maryland National Cap
ital Park and Planning Commission,
Harvey l. Jones, member of the
Parks and Recreation Committee
of the Washington Board of Trade;
Francis F. Gillen, chief of planning
and construction for the Office of
National Capital Parks, and Frank
T. Gartside, assistant superintendent
of National Capital Parks; John
Nolen, jr., director of planning, and
Thomas S. Settle, secretary and
legislative representative for the
National Capital Park and Planning
Commission.
Conrad l.. Wirth, supervisor of
recreation and land planning, and
Milo Christensen of the National
Park Service; Earle S. Draper, as
sistant administrator of the Fed
eral Housing Authority; James Ring,
of the Council of Social Agencies,
Henry Austin, member of the Plan
ming and Parks Committee of the
Federation of Citizens Associations;