Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-07-24
BY WiIIiom A. MilIen


One Of Washington's land
marks, the old Patent Office
Building. is threatened by plans
to tear 1t down and set up park
ing facilities on its site at Sew
enth and Ninth. F and q streets
NV.
While legislation now pending
in Congress to permit private
enterprise to acquire the site is
considered to have little chance
at this session, friends of this
landmark are rallying to its de-
Tense, for they feel the proposal
will crop up again. The build
ing is now occupied by the Civil
Service Commission.
So the controversy RACES about
whose five acre site was chosen
by Maj. Pierre L'Enfant; who
laid out the city. to be the site
Of q national church. The build
ing was a barracks and hospital
in the Civil War and Walt Whit
man, the poet. visited the
wounded there.
Two Buildings Burned.
H. p. Caemmerer, for many
years Fine Arts Commission Sec
rotary. recently retired, wrote
that the original two buildings
burned on the site, He said of
the present structure: ct is a
monumental marble building,
Doric in its style of architecture,
and with its large pediments and
columns - in design and size
like those Of the Parthenon -
creates the impression of simple
dignity and beauty that is eter-
nal"
A stout defender of the build
ing as anartistic and historical
structure is the American Irlsti-
tute of Architects. At its 86th
convention at Boston in June,
the Institute adopted a resolu-
ton declaring that as long as
temporary Federal Office build
ings exist in Washington. q good
building like this should not be
demolished.
Michigan Sponsor.
"A different view is expressed
by Representative Oakman, Re-
publican, Of Michigan, sponsor
of legislation to pave the way for
the new parking facilities. He
said:
MY bill does not order any
thing done. It would empower
the Administrator of General
Services to negotiate and If he
came up with a proposition that
looked good, he would have to
come back to Congress for afflr-
NATIVE action. was in the city
government of Detroit for 10
years and know the problem of
the lack of downtown parking.
eve are building expressways
to bring in the traffic to metro
politan areas, but not properly
providing the parking space. It is
difficult to park in the Washing
ton business area and parking
is just as important as express
ways.
81 went out and saw this old
weatherbeaten building, the for
mer Patent Office. To hear its
friends talk, you would think it
is the most important building
in Washington. They believe the
Washington Monument and the
Lincoln Memorial are just Sec
ond raters compared to it.
"But there are only 1000 en-
pioyes in the two-block area. It
is not good for an Office build
ing. In its stead, the Govern
ment would get q good modern
building. The land would be-
come available for downtown
parking and this would aid the
merchants.
I'm such q plan ! would think
there would have to be one
story businesses around the
periphery Of the parking build
ing. !.
washington is in a class by
itself. With the big transient
population. the city is entitled
to q bang-up shopping area with
adequate downtown parking
facilities. =
Al companion bill has been IN
troduced BY request in the Sem
ate BY Chairman Martin Of the
Senate Public Works Commit
tee. But friends point out the