Evening star., 1944-12-15
Planning Board
Asks Settlement
Of Virginia Line
Auditorium and New
Courts Building
On Must List

Federal planning officials today
placed on their program of future
must legislation bills for settle
ment of the District Virginia bound
AIRY dispute and authorizing con-
struction of municipal auditorium
and new Federal courts building.
Other measures on which the Ma
tional Capital Parks and Planning
Commission will endeavor to secure
action at the next session of Con-
gress include:
An amended urban redevelopment
bill for postwar projects in the Met
ropolitan Area, legislation to set
aside East Capitol street as public
building area, and reorganization OF
the Planning Commission.
Virginia Traffic Discussed.
Thomas Mcdonald, public roads
administrator, discussed Virginia
traffic in and out of Washington in
view of the new Federal aid bill
which extends recognition to urban
as|well as rural roads. Mr.. McDon-
aid explained to the commission
the origin and destination of traffic
in Washington from Virginia as
studied by his agency. Also con-
sidered was the effect of the new
Suitland parkway and the Shirley
parkway. The latter extends now
from the Pentagon grounds to Fort
Belvoir and eventually will lead to
Quantico.
Planning officials would not say
that their interest in Virginia traffic
indicates they are planning to renew
opposition to the Highway Bridge
plans proposed by the District
Commissioners and the Public
Roads Administration. The Plan
ming Commission had advocated a
single six-lane span to replace the
Highway Bridge in preference to the
Districts proposal of two spans of
four lanes each.
Members of the Planning Com
mission also felt this was a good
time to reintroduce the Lanham bill
for a new Federal courts building
and the Connally bill for a munich
pal auditorium. The war had blocked
both these measures.
Offers Own Boundary Bill.
Secretary Thomas S. Settle said
the commission would support it's
own District-Virginia boundary bill,
which proposes the high-water mark
on the Virginia shore of the Poto-
mac as the District boundary line.
This measure, which would definite
ly include the Washington Airport
in Virginia as it is now so regarded,
has the strong support of the Justice
Department, it was said.
The present high-water mark of
1871 constituting the present bound
ary has led to many problems due
to many changes in the water line
during the past century.
Some of the opposition to the
commission boundary bill was due
to the fact that operators of the
Terminal Restaurant at the airport
would prefer to function under Dis
trict liquor laws.
Several proposed Federal buildings
and Improvements for the Washing
ton area were added late yesterday
TO the list of permanent projects
approved by the planners and the
Fine Arts Commission for early or
immediate construction.
Two new buildings are proposed
for construction at Suitland, Md,
one to house 1,70O Census Bureau
employees and the other to provide
storage for Government files and
motion picture films. The former Is
slated for immediate construction
whereas the storage facilities are
designed as a postwar project.
Reiterate Stand on Stadium.
The Planning and Fine Arts Com
missions also reiterated their rec
ommenda ton of the 150-acre recre-
ational area at the end of East Capt.
tol street as the logical site for a
national stadium in Washington.
The stadium bill, now awaiting
presidential approval, leaves the Sc
lection of site to the determina-
ton of commission to be ap-
pointed under authority of the act.
For the postwar program, it was
agreed that No. l priority be given
to the new Navy Building, to be built
on the banks of the Potomac near
the west end of Constitution avenue,
and the removal of all temporary
Government buildings and dormi-
tories on the Mall and other down.
town parks.
Completion of the west central
heating plant, for which the founda-
ton has been laid at the intersec-
ton OF Rock Greek and the C. 81 o.
Canal in Georgetown, also was given
high priority. Another was the
building of the General Accounting
Office, for which foundations have
been dug on G street between
Fourth and Fifth streets NV.