Evening star., 1960-07-24
4Groups0pen
About Drive
ForCityCenter
Fear Mort Plan
Will Fail if Tenuni
Isn't Found Soon
By GEORGE WILSON
Star staff Writer


Four city organizations have
opened an all-out drive to give
downtown Washington a 5000
million commercial center con-
sisting of a transportation ter
minal, 14,000-seat auditorium.
1,000-room hotel and interna-
tional trade exhibit.
They feel time is running out
on this project which the
business community long has
wanted to construct on PENN
sylvania avenue between Eighth
and Eleventh streets N. w.
Their immediate objective is
to get the Government to rent
3 million square feet of Office
space in the commercial COM
plex or persuade private indus
try to use that much space as
an international trade exhibit.
Tenant Needed
Either way, the project could
become a reality since the
financing Is available. But if
a principal tenant is not found
within the next IL months.
hackers fear the offer of money
for the transportation and busi-
ness center will be withdrawn.
Daniel w. Bell, president of
the Terminal Committee, voiced
this fear yesterday in unveiling
the latest concept for the Fed
eral City Center, the new name
of the project. you can't ex-
pect 5000 million to be held out
on the end of a branch for
ever" he said. The American
Securities Corp. and Tishman
Realty and Construction Co.,
both of New York, two years
ago offered to put up the money
for the center.
Since then, all efforts to find
a tenant for the Office space
have failed. The Navy was
one of the prospects contacted,
but no commitment was OBJ
tanned. Now the Terminal
Committee, Federal City Coun-
Gil, Metropolitan Washington
Board Of Trade and Downtown
Progress-formerly the Nation
al Capital Downtown Commit
tee-will form a committee to
conduct an intensified search
for a tenant for the Federal
City Center.
All Favor Center
Mr.. Bell said the financial
sponsors would not feel the
project was practical unless
a tenant was signed up ahead
of time. He said he was "op-
timistic" that the unified cam
paign would succeed.
The four organizations have
adopted identical resolutions
which "unqualifiedly indorse the
concept of the Federal City
Center" and have asked the
District Commissioners to give
their official blessing to the
project.
A new commercial center to
pump life into Washington'S
downtown has been discussed
for almost 10 years. But this
latest concept of what should
be built along Pennsylvania
avenue is more ambitious than
previous ones.
Besides the helicopter and
bus terminal proposed in ear
lier plans, the Federal City
Center now on the drawing
board would include a 14,000-
seat auditorium and a 1000
room hotel. The center would
front on Pennsylvania avenue
between Eighth and Eleventh
streets NV. and take up a five
block area. The oval auditorium
would be flanked on one side
by the hotel and the other by
the trade center or Offices.
Helicopters would land on the
roof of the center while local
and long-haul buses would
whisk in and out of the under~
ground terminal through north
and south tunnels connecting
the new Southwest Freeway
and the proposed expressway
near New York avenue.
Provide Parking
Besides handling buses, the
space beneath the Federal
City Center would provide
parking for private cars and