Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-05-07

taken to court, and MIR. O'Rourkl
Is worried that this area viii
eventually wind up the same q
the 800 houses on 100 acres.
Two Of his neighbors who. a.
he did. bought substantial acre.
age when they moved in severa
years ago. already have sold par
Of their land for development
Now, IN an example of the mixed
feelings of the suburbanite
they're holding on to what they
have left.
Mr.. ORourke is far enough
from the center Of both Amman.
dale and Springfield that h,
hasn't been bothered too much
by commercial development.
At first, he and his wifi
shopped for groceries on tn,
WY home, at q store on Lei
highway. Now they 60 grocery
shopping in shopping centers IL
Annandale or Shirlington. TIT
O'Rourkes still do quite a bit o.
their other buying downtown.
Airport Worries
One Of Mr.. 0Rourke's biz
personal worries Is the prospect
Of an airport at Burke.
I'm a fugitive from Queens
In New York." he says. 81
remember what the airport die
there. It shook the dishes of
the shelves. And the noisel"
But il the airport comes in.
George Martin. a neighbor. told
him. think Of the money wei
save in taxes"
I'D rather pay the taxes" Mr.
O'Rourke said.
The family's transportation /,
one Of his lesser problems. They
have two cars. and Shirley high
way helps. Mrs. O'Rourke drive.
to her job at the Pentagon. dur.
ing rush hour. In about IS min.
utes. Mr.. O'Rourke, now with
a private organization downtown
but still in labor work. leave,
after the rush hour and makes
1t in IS or 30 minutes.
His children. Jerry, II; Maria
IL. and Billy, 8. use the schoo
bus to get their classes.
But the traffic. brought on b!
the building boom. is something
different.
when I first came out here
I seldom saw q car go past,
Mr.. O'Rourke says. Now it,
hard to look out and not SCI
a car. We're had three bat
accidents on the road here sine
Christmas"
Mr.. Oo'Rourke no longer raise
corn. tomatoes, goats and bull
dogs. He's too busy, in his spar,
time, being q citizen Of the new
city that has grown UP arouns
Understanding PTA meetings
citizens association meeting
and coming hearings.
He finds it reminiscent Of hi
boyhood In Queens. The neigh
borhood he lived in there, h,
says. grew UP almost overnight
too.
Common Problem
Mr.. O'Rourke's worry abou
what's going to be built next doc
is a worry that plaques the su'
burbanite throughout the Wash
ington area.
The mushroom growth Of TIL
suburbs brought a natural meet
for stores and shops TO take car,
Of the new communities basi,
needs. The supermarket ans
drug stores were the first to fol-
low the suburbanite out to hi
new neighborhood.
Now the shopping center, an
other outgrowth Of the automo'
bile. is the big thing. That hal
brought more and more branches
Of the big downtown stores int
the suburbs.
. Since 1850, wholesale and re-
tail trade employment In tn,
Washington area has gone VI
from 12l,500, TO l33,3OO, will
most Of the increase in the SUI
burbs. There are few issues o.
the newspapers, downtown ant
neighborhood. which do no
carry stories Of coming fights.
Local governments, hare
pressed in time Of rising cost,
and increased need for service :,
more taxpayers. seek "compa
tible" industry - industry tn,
least likely TO create q nuisance
and at the same time boost To,
money.
Rockville. Nd. for example
last year created It's Rockville
Development Council 10 lurl
-