Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-12-30
Zoning Shifts Asked
On New Road Land
Prince Georges
Cases Stir Call
For Nap Curbs


Disclosure that two Greenbelt
area industrial developers had
obtained detailed plat map Of
a section of the proposed inter-
+, county belt freeway in Prince
Georges County has brought
another plea for legislation
Tightening the land purchase
procedures of the Maryland
Roads Commission.
The developers have filed two
applications for light industrial
coming of land they own rear
Edmonston road in Greenbelt, 1t
was brought out yesterday at a
meeting of the Maiyland-Na-
tional Capital Park and Plan
mig Commission.
One application asks the in
ldustrial coming on a 300-foot-
wide strip running west from Ed
Imonston road. The tract totals
1868 acres.
Follows Freeway Plan
| The strip comedies with the
proposed route of the belt free
way, according to Warren Gil
auque. Prince Georges County
planning engineer for the PLAN
ming commission. In other words,
he explained today, the applica-
,tion seeks to rezone precisely the
land the State would have to
buy for the freeway's right-of-
way.
The application. accompanied
iby a detailed plat map of the
highway, was filed by Jennie
Pollin of 931 Longfellow street
INV, and Eugene NJ. Howerdd,
jr., Of Highlands, N. C.
Their second application seeks
ito rezone to light industrial a
I125-acre tract adjacent to the
300-foot strip. Both tracts now
are Zoned rural residential.
Right-ofWay Map
| Mr.. Giauque brought the two
applications before the planning
commission yesterday along with
three others seeking rezoning on
or near the route of the belt
Ifreeway in Prince Georges. One
Iof these applications also had
a detailed right-of-way map &C
lcompanying it, he said, but it
was obtained from the Roads
Commission about year ago
when the agency made the map
public in order to oppose re-
coming of the land in question.
4 Mr.. G.auque recommended to
the commission that it put the
land involved in the five petit
tions under reservation to pre-
vent it's value from increasing
heavily until the State could buy
the needed right-of-way.
! However, the commissions
general counsel, ]. Bond Smith,
ruled that the commission could
not legally reserve land il such
instances.
/ Puzzled by Sources
| The planning commissioners
were puzzled about where the
detailed right-of-way map was
obtained on the two Greenbelt
applications. 1t didn't come from
the planning commission, a
spokesman said.
| Leroy c. Moser. chief right
Iof-way engineer for the roads
commission in Baltimore, said
the may didn't come from his
! office either.
j The map contains an inscrip-
tion at the bottom. which reads:
j Washington circumferential
highway boundary lines from
.Irlsht-of-way plat supplied by
Michael Baker, jr., Inc, August
26. 1885"
! The Baker firm is a consult
ing engineer employed by the
roads com mission to survey the
belt road route.
Mr.. Moser said Baker is not
authorized to give out any maps
without clearance from his Of
Efice.
1 Conferences Sought
The planning commission fl
rally voted to seek conferences
with the Prince Georges County
Commissioners, State legislators
from Prince Georges and Mont
gomery Counties and the State
Roads Commission.
Object of the conferences. they
said. would be to:
l. Find out where the Green
belt area map came from.
: 2. Point out to the Prince
Georges County heads, who have
the final decision in rezoning,
: that the granting of the five
applications could mean that the
cost of the right of-way on that
section of the freeway would be
about $12 million higher than
lat present.
3. Seek support for legislation
tighter ng Maryland's right-of-
way acquisition laws.
;. Joseph D. BuScher, assistant
Maryland attorney general in
charge of the Roads Commits
sion legal affairs, told The Star
last week that he is preparing
such legislation for presentation
to the 1856 Legislature. He said
it will be patterned after the
Pennsylvania system, where the
value of lani needed for new
road projects is frozen early in
the planning stage.