Evening star., 1954-08-08
By Hector McLeon

OF junk yards or cheap rooming
houses.
One reason they are not is
because the Nations Capital
was one of the cities which
| pioneered in adoption of zoning
laws to say how land may be
used in any given area, how
high the buildings may be and
how much open space there
must be around them.
The first United States city
to adopt zoning laws was New
York in 1917. The District fol-
lowed in 1920 after some four
years of debate, and then was
given just six months by Con-
gress to get the system into
operation.
18-MOnth Job.
Now a complete redrafting of
the 34-year-old coming regula-
tlons is getting underway and
is expected to be completed in
about 18 months.
| tomorrow, a newly appointed
Commissioners Zoning Advis-
ory Committee" named to pro-
vide District residents a voice
IN rewriting of the regulations,
will meet for the first time to
/ complete its organization.
/ Although Washington has been
a planned city" from the time
1t was first laid out more than
a century and half ago by
Pierre L'Enfant, a 1947 plan
for Civic Improvements" de-
clared:
Until 1916 the public plan
ming of Washington was confined
to public lands and structures.
Areas in private ownership were
left to be developed as the,
owners saw fit, save for the
usual building codes, regulation
of nuisances and the like. An
exception was a law passed in
1910 restricting the heights of
buildings, but the restrictions
were inadequate"
Plan Had Faults.
The 1947 report, produced by
a Citizens Planning Committee
headed by former Engineer
Commissioner Gordon r. Young,
said the original coming regula-
tions cleft a good deal to be
desired"
The report pointed out that
the original regulations have
been revised piecemeal and
urged that they either be re-
written entirely or comprehens-
lively croSS-indexed.
Another demand for such re-
writing came in 1850 in the
Comprehensive Plan for the Ma
tional Capital" by the National
Capital Park and Planning Com
mission.
CuHUS 1VE HEOJCCts
Funds to do the job were
turned down by Congress until
this year when $145,000 was ap-
propriated for the project.
Tomorrow's meeting-at 2 pm.
in the Board Room of the Dis
trict Building-will bring to-
gether for the first time the
Commissioners tZoning Advisory
Committee, composed of 45
Washington residents appointed
by the Board of Commissioners
of the District of Columbia and
headed by Thomas j. Groom.
Although the actual work of
redrafting the regulations and
the maps which go with them
will be done by specially en-
ployed experts, the committee
composed of unpaid members
serving two-year terms) was set
up to meet these objectives:
"To advise the Board of Com
missioners on matters pertaining
to the revision of the zoning
regulations: to- furnish advice or
assistance to the engineer con-
sultants employed by the District
to supervise the project; to hold
public hearings on zoning mat
ters and to keep interested citi-
zens' groups advised of step-by-
step progress during the project"
Experts to Confer.
Still under consideration to
handle the task are Berla & Abel,
Washington architects, and Har-
old M. Lewis, New York consult
ing engineer and city planner.
They are scheduled to confer
Tuesday with District staff ex-
pertS on the cost and scope of
the job as they propose to do it.
Control of Washington's zon-
ing is in the hands of a zoning
Commission, composed of the
three District Commissioners,
plus the Architect of the Capitol
and the director of the National
Park Service.
At lower level is the Board
of Zoning Adjustment. composed
of one representative of the
Zoning Commission. one from
the National Capital Planning
Commission and three District
citizens appointed by the Dis
trict commissioners.
Authority Explained.
They can hear appeals from
rulings of the Inspector of Build
ings, grant special exemptions
when authorized by the Zoning
regulations OF approve varia-
lions from the regulations in
cases of clear and exceptional
hardship. They cannot change
coming regulations. however. as
can the Zoning Commission.
A third organization is the
zoning Advisory Council. made
up of three specialists named by
the Planning Commission, the
Zoning Commission and the Dis
trict commissioners.
And. although the Zoning
Commission does not have to
take the advice of the council,
,,n<,ay. &1on lon, ~ v~1rrcf of lao 81