Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-07-01
Shift Of Inner Loop
Southwark Urged

A drastic switch in the north
route of the Districts inner
loop freeway system - moving
it southwark from Florida ave-
nue. nearly to Massachusetts
avenue NV. - has peen urged
by a consultant team study
ing the problems of Washing
tons downtown business area.
The change in the freeway
location would be a desirable
benefit" to the central business
area by making it an "access
road" to downtown business
establishments instead of
purely a bypass route"
around them, the consultants
said.
This recommendation came
in a 115-page report, rejecting
views of two consultant groups,
prepared for a committee of
Washington business and plan
ming leaders who have pro-
posed a $200,000-a-year study
of downtown improvements.
The primary conSultantS were
Washington planner Carl FeisS
and Boyd T. Barnard, presi-
dent of the jackson Gross Co.,
of Philadelphia. They were
backed up by a panel of six
prominent businessmen from
other cities who met under
auspices of the Urban Land
Institute.
Numerous Remedies
Their lengthy report drew
an exhaustive physical picture
of downtown Washington, list
ing the areas assets as we'll as
defects and suggesting numer-
Gus remedies.
AS the loops northern leg
has been planned for the last
four years, the report said, ii
provides absolutely no bene-
fit" to the central area and lin
fact, only serves to effectively
bypass it."
Similar loop roads under
construction in Cleveland, Kan
sas City and Pittsburgh and
planned in Baltimore, the re-
port said, all are designed at
least partly to facilitate" &C
cess to the central business dis
trict by being closer to it. This
could be accomplished here by
moving the freeway parallel
to Massachusetts, avenue and
about two blocks north of it
and using the area in between
for high rise high income
apartments and high-grade in
town motelS," the report MAIN
tanned.
The effect thus would be to
reduce the size of the whole loop
network.
Serious Problems
The report noted that while
serious construction problems
would be faced in building the
freeway near Dupont circle and
in the railroad area near New
York avenue NE, the impera-
tive is to better serve Washing
tons central business area
which, as it grows and develops
would be in a better position tc
make use of this facility"
The downtown area itself
meanwhile, plays a much more
limited role in the life of thu
community than it could OF
should" the report said. 1t add
ed:
While parts of the centra
business area are booming with
new construction, other sec
lions remain dormant or arr
beginning to deteriorate. The
area suffers from a lack o.
identified purpose and a clear.
ly defined plan for the carry
ing out of specified detectives
THE role of the central area
is and always will be a multi.
purpose one. There is no doubt
that it will retain its domi.
nance in the metro area as the
center of finance, of Office
space and as the entertain
ment center. 1t can retain its
dominance in the field of re-
failing"
Exploitation Failure
But the area today is failine
badly to exploit tourism, retail
values, residential development
the hotel business and "the
frequently concommitant cul.
tural activities of the fine arts.
AS a whole, the report said
retail sales downtown dropped
2 per cent between 1948 and
1854 drop which has not
taken place in all cities with
fast-growing metro areas.
One of the worst signs in the
retail area, the report con-
tinued, are the "facades of