Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-06-19
Hearing on Contract
For Area B Slated
Proposed Lease
To Be Subject
Of Public Session
BY WILLIAM a. MILLEN

The Redevelopment Land
Agency today decided to hold q
public hearing at 3 pm. Friday
June 20 on q proposed contract
to develop residential land in
Project Area B in Southwest.
The hearing will be held in the
Ambush School. L street between
Sixth and Seventh streets S.W.
A proposed lease areement be.
tween Ria and James H. Scheure
of New York and Roger L. Ste
vens Of Detroit, who want to re-
develop Project Area B, win be
the subject of the hearing.
After the public hearing, the
RIA Board can authorize q con-
tract to. be signed and carried
out with Mr.. Scheur and Mr..
Stevens. It is understood that
these two redevelopers plan to
form corporations later to re-
develop Project Area B in sec.
tons.
Find Plan After Approval
Then, after RIA official ap-
proval Of the contract, Mr..
Scheuer and Mr.. Stevens will
produce their final architectural
plan for the area. The advice
|of the National Capital Planning
Commission on these plans will
be requested at the proper time.
officials said.
Under the proposed agree
|ment Mr.. Scheuer and Mr.. stew
ems are to use due diligence to
|get Federal Housing Administra-
ton approval of the plan to in.
sure the mortgage by Deem
Der 81.
If all goes well, officials said,
ut could mean, the start of actual
construction by February.
Under the contract a maxi.
mum of three years from the
time of commencement would be
allowed to complete everything
in Project B. As a safety meas
ure RIA reserves in the proposed
agreement certain rights to end
1t under certain conditions.
Public May Express Ideas
The hearing will permit the
general public to express its ideas
on the proposal. The proposed
lease agreement is a 25-page
complex document, which has
been evolved after a series of
meetings between lawyers.
John r. SearleS, executive di.
rector of RIA, explained that
tentative prices indicated by FILA
or developed by the agency's own
Staft average $3.50 per square
foot. The redevelopers will pay
AZ per cent of the value of the
land as ultimately determined by
FILA. the Urban Renewal Admin
iStration of the Housing and
Home Finance Agency and RIA.
officials said.
Soil conditions are not unusual
in project Area B, as shown by
behring's, Mr.. Searles told the
RIA board today.
The board had some discuss
sion on the advisability of start.
ing low cost housing develop
ment f1rst-or at least building
this phase of the project at the
same time as the higher rent
apartments proposed. But no
f1nal decision on this was
reached.
Appraisers Get Directive
In another action, the Board
directed its appraisers to look
into land values in Project B as
the law requires. The appraisers
are. William Throckmorton.
former president of the Wash.
ington Real Estate Board, Will
liam S. Harris, and Curt C. Mack.
The RIA Board officially COM
plimented Malcolm A. Burrows,
its deputy executive director. He
was recently given the Melvin
c. Hazen Award as being the
outstanding District govern
ment employe for last year. This
was awarded by the Junior
Chamber Of Commerce.
Chairman John A. Remon told
the board he is anxious to see
actual construction start, SO that
redevelopment may go forward
in a praCtical NAV