Evening star., 1954-10-10
Highest Court
10 Hear Plea on
RedeveIopnlent
Action Set Friday
On Clarifying Stotus
Of District Act of AS
By George Beveridee

The Justice Department Is
scheduled this week to ask the
Supreme Court to wipe out legal
shadows hanging over Washing
toms Southwest redevelopment
programs.
The plea will come in oral
arguments before the court. ex-
pected Friday, on the crucial is
sue of whether the city's 1945
Redevelopment Act is constitu-
tional.
However. in a lengthy brief
already filed, the Justice Depart
ment also is seeking reputation
of parts of lower court ruling
which, the brief says. is "errone-
GUS and severely hobbling to the
redevelopment program"
Upheld i'm Lower Court.
The lower court ruling, handed
down last November 5 by a spe-
cial three-judge tribunal, upheld
the constitutionality of the basic
1945 act.
The Justice Department said
in its brief that it "of course
supports this holding"
But the court below" the
brief added, while it sustained
the statutes constitutionality,
also announced by way of quasi
dictum some limitations and re-
strictions which we believe to be
erroneous and severely hobbling
to the redevelopment program"
With this introduction. the
Justice brief devoted a major
part of its 58-page written argu-
ment to sharp criticism of the
three judges opinions.
Finds Fault With Concept.
Basically, it finds fault with
the lower courts concept of re-
development - the newest and
most drastic weapon cities have
to attack slum and deteriorating
areas.
The 1945 act empowers the
District Redevolpment Land
Agency to acquire area-wide
parcels of property, clear the
areas completely and sell or lease
the cleared land to private devel-
opers for rebuilding in compli-
ance with city-adopted plans.
Success of the city's pilot prof.
ect, the 76-acre Area B in the
southwest. hinges directly on the
constitutional decision. Work al
ready is well under way. Plans
are made, and the RIA has ac-
quired more than half the B
area properties. But the work is
nearing point where it will have
to await a final decision.
Also affected are negotiations
under way with the New York
firm of Webb & Knapp for q
dramatic rebuilding of virtually
all the rest of the southwest.
Challenge Filed In Suit.
The challenge to the acts con-
stitutionality was raised more
than a year ago in combined
suit filed by the late Max r.
Morris. owner of a department
store at 712 Fourth street S.W..
and another Fourth street busi-
ness property owner, Mrs. Goldie
Schneider. 4
Both the properties are slated
to be acquired in the Area b
project.
In a unanimous ruling. the
three-judge court-made up Of
Judge E. Barrett Prettyman Of
the United States Court of APP
peals and Judges Edward M.
Curran and Richmond B. Keech
of the U. S. District Court-up-
held the acts constitutionality.
But the jurists made it clear
they were ruling only on the
acts constitutionality. They said
Congress did not confer powers
to seize property beyond the
reasonable necessities of slum
clearance and prevention" and
suggested the property owners
take specific complaints about
the RIA program to a lower
court.
The property owners did.
Contends Act Exceeded.
| Mrs. Schneider, owner of q
hardware store at TIC Fourth
street NV, filed a new suit con-
tending the government exceeded
the scope of the 1945 act by
including her store in the Area
B plan.
Attorneys for Mr.. Morris ap-
pealed directly to the Supreme
Court the three-judge ruling on
the acts constitutionality.
In brief, the appeal questions
tSee SOUTHWEST, Page A-6)