Evening star., 1954-09-02
Hurdle Set Up
To Plans for
DowntoWnSpan
Eisenhower Gives
Mckay Role Of
Arbiter on Site

agreement by city and Federal
planners on details Of the newly
authorized Potomac River bridge
to serve the downtown area was
in sight today.
It loomed in President Eisen-
hower's request at signing the
authorization bill that the Secre-
tary Of the Interior approve all
plans for the bridge and its
approaches.
The $24.5 million span to be
constructed by the District, up
stream from Memorial Bridge
and south of Roosevelt Memorial
Island. connecting with Twenty
fourth or Twenty-fifth street
NV. already was a compromise
substitute for controversial e
street bridge proposal.
The E street bridge, backed
by city highway officials. fell
under fire from the National
Capital Planning Commission
and the Roosevelt Memorial As
sociation. the latter objecting to
its proposed crossing of the
island.
The President said he signed
the bill, which also authorizes
the Jones Point bypass bridge,
because it provided a compromise
solution for the long-standing
controversy over the location Of
the central area bridge.
Sees "Serious Defects"
But he cited serious defects"
IN the bill. He said. for one thing,
it does not provide statutory rec
ognition and adjustment Of the
bridge and its approaches to
present and future improvements
on park lands. He spoke of its
potential impact on national
memorials in the area and on
the Memorial Bridge itself.
The Presidents statement
called on Secretary Of the Inte-
rior Mckay to submit recon-
mendations for correcting the
defects. These recommendations
for executive action and amend
ments are now being drawn up
in the Interior Department.
Presumably they will include
authorization for the Interior
Secretary to approve all plans
for the bridge and its approach
es, as outlined in the Presidents
statement. &
& The statement said also that
trucks should be prohibited on
the bridge and its approaches
and that passenger-carrying
buses now using Memorial Bridge
should be required to use the
new bridge on its completion.
Bridge Gain in Question.
One question raised by the
Presidents statement is whether
it tends in the direction of sub
stituting the new bridge for Me-
mortal Bridge as q traffic ia
cility.
In other words. instead Of
gaining another bridge with a
capacity of 10000 cars day.
would the District find itself
building a new bridge to take
over most of the Memorial
Bridge load, leaving the latter
to serve largely as a monu-
mental approach to the city?
District highway officials say
it is imperative to get additional
capacity over the river. They
count on Memorial Bridge to
continue to carry its full share
of committing traffic. Otherwise.
still another bridge will be
needed.
Orme Lewis, Assistant Secre-
tary of Interior for Public Land
Management, makes no such
Interpretation of the PreSiden-
tial statement. however. He sees
| its purpose as move to assure
the Interior Department a say
over the design and layout Of
the bridge because of its effect
on Washington as the Capital
City.
Layout Being Drawn.
A three-man subcommittee
representing the District High
way Department, the planning
commission and National Capital
Parks is working up suggested
layout for the bridge approaches.
expected to be ready for the
October meeting Of the planning
commission.
The three-man group was as
signed to sift the various schemes
for getting on and of the bridge
at both ends, and try to come up
with an acceptable plan.
Thus the Interior Department.
through its National Capital
Parks Office, and the planning
commission already are engaged
in preparatory studies on the
exact location of the bridge.
In addition to clearing the
bridge plans with the planning
commission. which could be ex-
pected to protect the national
memorials in the vicinity of the
crossing, the District anticipated
clearing them with the Fine
Arts Commission.
Location Not Solved.
Tentative agreement between
District and planning commits
sion officials on the pressing
needs for q bridge between Me-
mortal and Key Bridges that
would not cross or directly ad-
join Roosevelt Island, the Wild
life sanctuary, does not mean
agreement on the details of It's
location.
One difference between Fed
eral and District planners con-
Germs the tie-in at or near
Twenty-fourth street. Federal
planning officials have proposed
q connection also with Constitu-
tion avenue. District officials
have objected that this would