Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-03-23
Bethesda q Zombie?

Government by remote con-
troll again besets Bethesda.
The county council. the
school board. the county Ii
brary board. plus various
county and intercounty COM
missions decide. Petitions and
neighborhood meetings are ex
post facto. apparently. Be-
thesda with its $4,000 people.
moving toward 100000. is a
zombie. without voice or life.
once promises Of elections
are out Of the way.
The proposed cycle Of
events which burst forth a
month or less ago from Rock
vile is an example The cay
after the Edgemoor Citizens
Association meeting adopted
a resolution questioning it. an
announcement from Rockville
indicated that the 1ominoes
will fall in this order: Long
fellow School property will
be purchased. The Bethesda
Elementary School will be
moved there. The County
Building. Youth Center and
parking for 400 cars will go
to the elementary property.
The Bethesda Library will be
expanded to cover much of
its present ground.
1t would appear that the
county council. county school
board. county library board,
Longfellow School and others
were well along on this while
the residents slept: also that
resolutions and petitions were
a bit late.
AS I've constantly advo-
Gated. counterparts to the
Fine Arts Commission and
other controls have insured
more logical development of
Bethesda. With its $1,000 peo-
pie. it is largely 3 miles long
and a block wide. business
wise. with small. false front.
gulch-town ancestry in its
building program. Our parks
and recreation centers are
equally deficient.
Will new traffic congestion
and hazards multiply in an
area already oyertrafficked by
business, churches and nor
NAL growth? Will not Wilson
lane and many other narrow,
villagelike adjacent streets
need speedy widening with
new discussion of tree and
shrub destruction' Has rhe
Triangle been carefully con-
sidered for the County Build
ing to save the present church
and school area from police,
jail. court congestion and the
usual courthouse atmosphere?
Should these and a Youth
Center be in a one-package
deal? Is expediency taking
the place Of logic?
AS to the library, ! have a
personal longtime interest.
I enjoy its activity Just over
my back hedge. I was an
early agitator for a library.
Frankly I like the library as
1t is.
We are now a branch Of a
county library system. With
our growth. would it not be
logical to plan another
equally good branch library
near Walter johnson High
School? It would be nearer to
thousands of people. Traffic
could be handled with much
less congestion. 1t would be
another strong link in the
county library chain. My
main point relates to the
issue of more local neighbour
hood branch libraries. near
the people-or does that not
matter?
OF course, even though
governed in everything by
remote control and without
feeling Except at election
time). we must give way on
many things as we try city
ways without being a city
and as we look to the in
evitable growth in popula-
ton, business and traffic. I
shall. therefore, mostly sit in
the bleachers, wish we had
more planning. ask an &C.
casional question and stole
ally accept any action taken
as more or less inevitable and
preordained from Rockville.
James L. Fieser.