Evening star., 1960-08-03
Crucial Decisions
Near on Renewal
Mojo'r'. Bills. 81
Policy Actior,
To ShopeFuture
BY GEORGE, WILSON
.>'. Star Stan Writer

"a t4NNAoARAAo 10 ~ hld0C dO DOIIL
ends Of Pennsylvania avenue
within the next tea1 weeks will
aefsrmine the direction, and
the speed, OF Wash
urban, renewal pro-
gram. ~
Congress will decide the fate
Of. several urban renewal bills
while President Eisenhower and
The District Commissioners will
h1ake important policy deci-
SiBhs regarding the program.
Z ssnAtoh Beall,. Republican
df Maryland, told The Star
HeSt tefday Nhe hopes hearings
N1t t;be Held when Congress re-
tAfnss on bills affecting the
city's 1lrban renewal program.
But he said the hearings may
have to be postponed until next
year.
81 won't know anything def
mite until I get back in town
and talk to the leaders," Sena-
tor Beall said. He is chairman
of the Senate District Commit
tees Business and Commerce
Subcommittee. the one which
has two major urban renewal
bills before it.
Rabaut Bill Involved
One is the Rabaut bill which
passed the House last June 81
on a 348-to-35 roll call vote.
The bill would lodge more re-
sponsibility for the urban re-
newal program with the Dis
trict Commissioners: forbid
authorizing new renewal prof.
ectS at this tmie and require
slum-cleared land to be dis
posed of by competitive bidding
instead of by private negotia-
ton.
In short. the Rabaut bill
would make some drastic
changes in the way urban re-
newal is handled in Washing
ton now. The District Com
missioners and city urban re-
newal agencies oppose the bill.
The other bill before Sena-
tor Beall"s subcommittee is
strongly backed by the District.
1t would amend the city's cur
rent urban renewal law by re-
defining blight and make other
changes sought by the Rede-
velopment Land Agency to
Streamline procedures. It's fate,
too, is uncertain.
Suggestions Invited
To get background for hear
ings on the Districts urban re-
neWal program, the Senate
District Committee already has
written city agencies asking for
suggestion on how to speed
up the renewal program. Sena-
tor Hartke. Democrat of Indi-
ana, said in proposing the let
ters that Washington should be
"a model city" of urban re-
newal and that the time had
come Ito see what changes, if
any, can accelerate redevelop-
ment."
President Eisenhower will af-
feet the course of the city's
urban renewal program his de-
cision on whom to appoint to
the ng-standing vacancy on
the board of the Redevelop-
ment Land Agency. Most of
those connected with the pro-
gram are hoping for a vigorous
chairman who can spend lot
/ of time going to bat for urban
renewals.
Two Top Questions
AS for the District Commits
sioners, two major declolons
are before them:
(D Should they set the time
table for urban renewal prof.
ects?
co Should they let the Re-
development Land Agency en-
bark on the new approach to
renewal envisioned in the
Adams-Morgan proposal?
The timetable question
hinges on what happens to the
Community Renewal Program
approved by the Commissioners
yesterday. The program is an
overall plan for the develop
ment of the city as a whole.
Assistant Engineer Commits
sioner T. K. Fullerton recon-
mended it last week.
At the time, Col. Fullerton
said his Office probably would
draw up the overall plan and
gather statistics to help deter
mine what urban renewal prof.
ectS the District can afford.
The fear within the Redevol-
opment Land Agency is that
this may end with Col. Fuller
tons office debating the tim
ing of slum clearance projects.
SlOwness Under Fire
The Adams Morgan question
is basically one of whether the
District Commissioners want to
see the RIA undertake a new
project in Northwest when the
sloWneSS of Southwest renewal
is being assailed on Capitol Hill.
The RIA is eager to undertake
the Adams-Morgan project be-
cause it would give the agency
a chance to show what it can
do to rehabilitate an area, as
opposed to bulldozing it away.
The National Capital Plan
ming Commission already has
approved the project and the
majority of citizens in the
Adams-Morgan area of North
west voted for the urban re-
neWal program. The emphasis