Evening star., 1943-11-18
PI tanners 10 Hold
Closed Hearing
On Street Name
Playground Sites
Also on Aeendo
In Sessions Today
BY NELSON M. SHEPARD.

NOAAIC AAGW oCNCURIAC1AUC AL CCI
tain problems long under considera.
ton by the National Capital Parl
and Planning Commission were ex.
pected today and tomorrow during
the monthly planning session.
Reports dealing with the compre.
hensive recreation program for the
1945 fiscal year and with analytica
studies Of computed savings through
early purchases Of playground sites
in areas as yet undeveloped by pri-
vate enterprise were scheduled or
the morning agenda.
A closed hearing will be conducted
In the afternoon for bankers and
businessmen who are opposed to the
proposed remaining of Fifteenth anc
Seventeenth streets NV. south of K
street, a suggestion that emanatec
from the Planning Commission last
month.
Among other matters coming ur
in the morning is a request from
the Brightwood Citizens Associa.
tion asking the planning group to
consider the purchase of the Emery
estate property at Georgia avenue
and Madison and Concord streets
NV. for a recreation center. Sug-
gested changes in the Suitland, Md.
parkway plans also will be dis
cussed.
Urban Redevelopment.
The proposed urban redevelop-
ment bill drawn up by Alfred Bet
man, consultant city planner, re-
quires some ironing out. One OF
the unsettled questions concerning
the postwar plans for dealing with
blighted urban areas is q cleare,
definition Of the legal status. There
Is some questioning Of the proper
agencies that would have to ap.
prove the program.
In connection with recreation
problems, the commission hopes tt
start co-ordinating the 1945 pro.
gram Of the District Recreation
Board with its own general policy
OF acquiring playground and schoo
sites we'll in advance of their in.
tended use. Studies covering aver.
age costs Of developed and unde.
veloped sites will be presented by
members of the staff. Oficials
claim many thousands Of dollar.
can be saved by acquiring such
lands before they are subdivided OF
built upon II funds are made avail.
able long enough in advance.
Harry Thompson, resident land.
scape architect of the National Parl
Service, will present plans OF typi.
cal playground shelters. The Recre.
alton Board has $40 900 for four o.
these shelters which the Nationa
Park Service will build. Other site,
will be considered.
Street Name Protest.
Bruce Baird, president OF the Dis.
trict Bankers Association. will heAe
q committee to protest changing tha
name of Fifteenth street to Vernon
avenue. between K street and Inde.
pendence avenue. II the proposal o,
the Planning Commission is evel
approved by Congress, it would alse
necessitate remaining the one blocl
Of Vermont avenue between H an<
I streets. which then would be.
come Fifteenth street. That woule
add to the confusion, the banker.
claim.
A committee Of the Board o.
Trade will back them up and alst
oppose changing Seventeenth street
between K and the Tidal Basin tx
Connecticut avenue. Involved, also
is the one block Of Connecticut ave.
nue. between I and H streets
which would have to be called Sew.
enteenth street.
The Planning Commission hac
accepted the proposed change ir
street names on the recommends.
ton Of Frederic A. Delano, its for.
mer chairman. Immediately there
were protests from many business
people who would have to change
addresses on business stationery and
who feared the result would lead tc
confusion and inconvenience. The
Planning Commission passed the
buck to the District Commissioners
and the latter haven't made UP
their minds yet what to do about it
Bridge Relocation.
Tomorrow morning the planners
again will take up the relocation
of Highway Bridge across the Po-
tomac They will meet with Capt
H. c. Whitehurst, director of high
ways; Thomas Macdonald, commits
sioner Of public roads and Maj
Gilmore Clark, chairman of the
Fine Arts Commission.
Several alternative locations be-
tween the railroad bridge and the
inlet Of the Tidal Basin have been
proposed. To get better idea the
group will make a field inspection
in the afternoon. They will study
these sites in relation to the JEFF
ferson Memorial and approaches to
Fourteenth street and East and
West Potomac Park. The new High
way Bridge is not to be built until
after the war, but funds are avail
able for work drawings.
John Ihlder, executive officer OF
the National Capital Housing Au-
thority, will present site plans for
800 new colored war housing units
east of the Anacostia River. The
site is not being divulged, but there
is no dispute over the location.
A report will be made also by
John Nolen, jr., director of plan
ming, on proposed amendments to
zoning regulations which now for
bid the construction of low-cost
housing projects in certain "A" resi-
dental areas in Anacostia. Under
proposed changes. low-cost housing
could be built in these areas by
either public or private enterprise
fs. &sI's,. A6c