Expanding and developing Columbia Island Columbia Island (District of Columbia)

1 expanding , developing columbia island

1.1 arlington memorial bridge , expansion of columbia island
1.2 designs columbia island
1.3 construction: boundary channel bridge
1.4 revisions great plaza
1.5 eliminating memorial columns
1.6 completion of columbia island

expanding , developing columbia island
arlington memorial bridge , expansion of columbia island

dreding operations in potomac river in 1930. note floating pontoons outline soon-to-be-completed land define pentagon lagoon, , unfinished central bascule span in arlington memorial bridge.

in 1922, congress authorized arlington memorial bridge commission (ambc) hold design competition proposed arlington memorial bridge. awarded design commission firm if mckim, mead , white, appointed architect william mitchell kendall lead designer. congress subsequently authorized construction of kendall s bridge on february 24, 1925. legislation authorizing construction of bridge provided construction of approaches (on-ramps, off-ramps, , pedestrian areas) on both d.c. , virginia ends of bridge; improvement of b street nw new ceremonial avenue link bridge; , construction of roadway (eventually called memorial drive) between bridge , main gate of arlington national cemetery new ceremonial entrance @ gate (subsequently known hemicycle).

preliminary designs bridge showed terminating on columbia island, necessitated expansion of columbia island. united states army corps of engineers planned dredge potomac river , enlarge columbia island, on april 1, secretary of war john w. weeks ordered expenditure of $114,500 dredge river between highway bridge , lincoln memorial. dredged material dumped on columbia island. ensure island support bridge, corps planned construct 20-foot (6.1 m) levee around island.

the corps reached agreement ambc in april 1925 jointly share cost of dredging, involved removal of 2,500,000 cubic feet (71,000 m) of river bottom, , construction of 2,000 feet (610 m) of seawall , 15,000 feet (4,600 m) of levee. 40 acres (160,000 m) of columbia island removed in order widen main potomac river channel, , height of island raised 6 feet (1.8 m) above average water level 22 feet (6.7 m) on 2 years.

early designs columbia island

in addition abmc , corps of engineers, united states commission of fine arts (cfa) , national capital parks commission (ncpc) both had authority approve aspects of bridge. cfa had extensive authority review of bridge.

the cfa , ncpc first discussed bridge approaches in january 1926, when met jointly discuss how virginia terminus serve gateway washington. 2 bodies agreed proposal urban planner c.a.s. sinclair, proposed series of roads radiating outward virginia end of bridge. however, in december 1926, cfa learned arlington national cemetery expand eastward onto property of usda experimental farm (which lay east of arlington ridge road). because impacted approaches bridge, cfa asked kendall restudy sinclair s proposal columbia island terminus. kendall presented revised design street , highway approaches virginia landing in may 1927. plan series of traffic circles on columbia island.

by june 30, 1927, dredging of potomac river complete. reshaping of columbia island finished, , 200 acres (810,000 m) island had risen 22 feet (6.7 m) feet above water. following month, work began on engineering , architectural drawings boundary channel bridge. bridge cross boundary channel (which separated columbia island virginia) connect arlington memorial bridge planned memorial drive.

kendall s may 1927 design columbia island generated lengthy debate 2 years. noted architect milton bennett medary (who left cfa in 1927) wrote commission of fine arts in january 1928 after having seen kendall s proposal. medary argued national mall ended lincoln memorial , 2 great roads leading – rock creek , potomac parkway (rcpp) , arlington memorial bridge. columbia island, said, should reflect simple, formal dignity helps ease transition neoclassical mall , bridge informal landscaping of arlington national cemetery. medary s argument proved persuasive cfa, , in late may commission , kendall announced revised treatment in great plaza built on columbia island. plaza, roads lead across island bridges connect proposed mount vernon memorial parkway , lee highway. traffic circles eliminated, , columbia island reshaped allow north-south roadway pass along axis of island. great plaza intended contain 2 166-foot (51 m) high columns representing union , south. 2 columns surmounted gold statues of nike. additionally, cfa concluded there should 2 40-foot (12 m) high pylons @ both eastern , western ends of bridge. these pylons inscribed bas-relief images representing national accomplishments, , topped statues of golden eagles. kendall s design included 2 large, round greek revival temples close bridge on island s east side, , several larger-than-life greek revival , romanesque revival statues scattered island.

early construction: boundary channel bridge

the dirigible uss akron flies on columbia island in 1931. below , right of airship s tailfins island, on extensive construction under way on great plaza , axial roads, boundary channel bridge, , memorial drive. note lack of bridges north (left in image).

bids construction of boundary channel bridge opened on july 18, 1928. project divided among several contractors. north carolina granite co. provided below-water granite, hallowell granite works provided granite voussoirs , facing on piers 10 feet (3.0 m) above mean low water level. woodbury granite co. provided coping granite , balustrades. hallowell delivered granite in may 1929, north carolina granite delivered june, , woodbury granite delivered half granite june 30, 1929. construction contract awarded n.p. severin company in october 1928.

nearly year passed before cfa approved pylon designs columbia island in march 1929. great plaza , roads on island needed further study.

work on boundary channel bridge began in spring of 1929, ran problems. unstable rock shelf 13 feet (4.0 m) thick lay under western abutment of arlington memorial bridge. rotten rock had not been revealed borings 2 years earlier, came light construction began on boundary channel bridge. additionally, thin layer of sand , gravel discovered lying atop bedrock of eastern abutment of boundary channel bridge. both obstacles had removed before construction proceed further. june 30, 1929, arlington memorial bridge s western abutment finished (except exterior masonry facing), , many of concrete columns boundary channel bridge finished.

by end of june 1930, additional filling in of columbia island needed finish arlington memorial bridge. no construction had occurred on columbia island great plaza, monumental columns, or 2 pylons cfa had still not approved final design these. additionally, work on western half of boundary channel bridge had come standstill. tracks of rosslyn branch of pennsylvania railroad ran along virginia shoreline. in order avoid at-grade crossing memorial drive, cfa proposed in june 1927 these tracks lower 20 feet (6.1 m). since meant extending boundary channel bridge, new engineering studies of bridge needed. corps , cfa still studying how depress pennsylvania railroad tracks 3 years later. informal negotiations had, end of june 1930, come agreement line moved closer river, , underpass through bridge (accommodating 2 side-by-side tracks) , depressed tracks should constructed first before railroad took title new line. permit uninterrupted rail service. pennsylvania railroad agreed cede old right-of-way government once new tracks , tunnel operational. otherwise, construction on boundary channel bridge complete.

revisions great plaza

northern end of columbia island shortly after completion in 1932. roads visible connecting central axis road george washington memorial parkway (left) , boundary channel bridge (showing completed , incomplete pylons) memorial drive , arlington national cemetery in distance.

the cfa again considered designs columbia island plaza in july 1930. repairs levees on columbia island made same month. in september, cfa reviewed did not approve designs memorial columns, , additional landscaping on island. cfa members began question whether columns effective in memorializing reunited north , south, although there still agreement integral great plaza s design. nonetheless, kendall asked restudy issue yet again. additionally, great depression having severe , negative impact on funding entire arlington memorial bridge project. bridge , connection arlington national cemetery finished, congress hesitated provide funds columbia island. cut costs, cfa deleted green revival temples , many statues scheduled columbia island. rather building extensive roads north , south on island when no connections ready made, cfa agreed short segments of these avenues built adjacent great plaza. eliminating statuary on island , on boundary channel bridge saved $478,000.

due settling, additional dredged material deposited on columbia island in october , november 1930. new goal raise island 30 feet (9.1 m) above average water level.

there still problems in designing final segment of boundary channel bridge in november 1930, road across columbia island connecting arlington memorial bridge boundary channel bridge finished in december.

the cfa continued wrestle columbia island s great plaza design in 1931. commission again discussed columns in january, , eliminated granite balustrade around great plaza (saving $400,000). september, agency still had come no resolution on redesigning plaza.

eliminating memorial columns

design issues surrounding columbia island great plaza resolved in late 1931 not cfa, president herbert hoover. 2 airfields, hoover field , washington airport, existed in virginia south of columbia island. in spring of 1931, ambc executive officer ulysses s. grant iii (then lieutenant colonel corps of engineers) advised ambc , cfa huge memorial columns planned columbia island risk aviation. both bodies ignored him.

on september 28, 1931, united states department of commerce told cfa tall columns risk aviation. commerce department said columns interfere air traffic using hoover field, , demanded cfa either eliminate columns or floodlight them brightly. washington board of trade added opposition columns on september 29. grant agreed that, should investigation show hazard, columns have eliminated. cfa agreed street lights should placed alongside roads on columbia island both aid vehicular traffic , means of warning air traffic. cfa adamantly opposed floodlighting memorial columns, compete softer lighting illuminating lincoln memorial , arlington house in arlington national cemetery. william kendall, however, adamant retaining memorial columns wrote president hoover (who technically chaired ambc) in october 1931 outlining reasons keeping columns , telling hoover move airport if interfered flight.

on october 12, hoover ordered ambc staff, kendall, cfa, , arlington memorial bridge consulting engineer w. j. douglas restudy columns. washington post reported several ambc , cfa members, member of congress, increasingly worried huge cost of columns. columns estimated cost @ least $500,000, $100,000 needed foundations. cfa took issue @ regular meeting in november. when cfa members expressed skepticism issue, senator hiram bingham (an aviation enthusiast) began organizing aviation interests oppose them. bingham threatened introduce legislation in congress bar aviation hazards being erected in d.c. area. on november 27, 40 postal , air transport pilots wrote president hoover demanding pillars eliminated. 3 days later, board of trade contacted hoover directly lobby against columns erection.

faced overwhelming opposition, ambc voted eliminate columns in december 1931, , asked kendall yet new design columbia island. in wake of ambc s decision, proposals came public , architects outside project add either high-spouting fountains or towers retract whenever planes took off airports. no decision made.

completion of columbia island

aerial view of columbia island in 2011: unfinished great plaza @ foot of arlington memorial bridge; northbound george washington memorial parkway skirts far (eastern) side of island; racetrack feature visible circling island; southbound george washington memorial parkway skirts near (western) side of island; , boundary channel bridge (with memorial pylons) spanning silt-laden, brown boundary channel, toward bottom of image.

by april 1932, work under way on relocating pennsylvania railroad tracks. new, shifted route had been graded, tracks laid, , western end of boundary channel bridge designed. while there delays in completing railroad underpass, work advanced. formal dedication of hemicycle, memorial avenue, , boundary channel bridge occurred on april 9. colonel ulysses s. grant iii, executive director of arlington memorial bridge commission , officer in corps of engineers, formally opened memorial avenue , boundary channel bridge. (memorial avenue 30 feet (9.1 m) wide , unpaved, corps working have widened 60 feet (18 m) , have paved july 1.)

the worsening federal budgetary situation led complete halt in columbia island s development. on april 7, 1932, house of representatives deleted project s entire $840,000 budget fiscal year 1933 (which began july 1, 1932). design , other work on great plaza came immediate halt. did corps final push fill in island, landscaping , road grading. cfa met in november 1932 discuss how incomplete work might fixed appear complete or become functional.

franklin d. roosevelt took office president of united states in march 1933. convinced massive federal spending on public works essential not prime pump of economy cut unemployment, roosevelt proposed passage of national industrial recovery act. act contained $6 billion in public works spending. act passed on june 13, 1933, , roosevelt signed law on june 16. public works administration (pwa) established disburse funds appropriated act.

on july 13, month after pwa formed, agency announced $3 million grant finish work on columbia island , other parts of arlington memorial bridge project. cfa , ncpc met in november decide how proceed on columbia island, had 1 link virginia — , led arlington national cemetery. on december 4, agencies announced pwa money used construct bridges on north , south ends of island in anticipation of links lee highway , new highway state of virginia , arlington county discussing constructing in south. (the southern bridge carrying parkway became known humpback bridge because had slight rise in center.) connect these bridges, completion of roads on columbia island needed. these roads staked out in january 1934, , cfa , ncpc began discussing whether new, large traffic circle should added center of island replace bottleneck simple cross-axis be. engineering , architectural design northern bridge approved in october 1936.

the cfa further discussed columbia island great plaza in january 1935, again come no decision. without funds, little action other bridge construction or marginal improvements made. improved landscaping designs boundary channel bridge submitted in january 1935, , approved in march 1936. 7 months later, cfa began studying design lighting scheme arlington memorial bridge, columbia island, , memorial drive.

minor elements of columbia island completed in last years of 1930s. second northern bridge, designed link lee boulevard (now known arlington boulevard) approved in 1937. joseph a. lavezza & sons construction company began work on $24,875 bridge. new bridge, , (at last) bridge on pennsylvania railroad tracks completed in july. although cfa continued confer on plans concerning great plaza late january 1938, no improvements made. memorial avenue completed in september 1938.

the final elements on columbia island constructed in 1939 , 1940. in april 1939, congress approved $100,000 build last connections between bridges , central traffic circle on island, build sidewalks, trails, , parking lots , improve landscaping there. cfa, after 4 years of deliberation, approved lamppost design island in january 1940. last major improvement island came in september 1940, when racetrack feature – larger outer traffic circle – constructed handle rapidly increasing north-south traffic on island. permitted north-south motorists avoid bottleneck @ traffic circle (which largely handled east-west traffic).