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• GOVERNMENT
Trek to the Suburbs Bureau of Standards joins parade of government agencies moving outside Washington city limits
J&^EEPING UP with the times, the U. S. Government is joining the mass migration to the suburbs. Although dispersal of government activities outside Washington, D. C , is nothing new, the number of government agencies planning t o move their headquarters to the suburbs within a 25-mile radius of the capital has increased markedly in the past year.
Now that Congressional approval has been obtained, the National Bureau of Standards is readying plans for moving to nearby Maryland. Thus NBS joins the list of agencies such as the Atomic Energy Commission, U. S. Weather Bureau, and U. S. Geological Survey, who have already announced their moving plans or are now constructing new buildings. AEC is already pouring concrete for its new home, located near Gaithersburg, Md., 15 miles northwest of Washington. Geological Survey, with offices scattered among 16 locations in Washington, has been hoping to move for years. I t has looked a t several locations in the 25-mile area bu t is still waiting for Congressional appropriation.
Although the House refused to g o along with the NBS plans, and deleted a $2.8 million planning item from t h e bureau's budget (C&EN, May 14, page 2378) , the Senate restored some of the money. House and Senate, in a compromise move, have just agreed on a n appropriation of $930,000 to get t he work started on the bureau's new home.
• Why Move? Underlying all t h e agency moves are these basic reasons:
• Many government agencies conduct their activities at widely scattered locations in the city. Consolidation of al l the scattered units in one central location will improve the efficiency of operation.
• As is common in most urban locations, suitable land at reasonable cost is almost nonexistent within the city limits of Washington.
• T o minimize the effects of a n atomic attack, Office of Defense Mobilization regulations require relocation of vital agencies away from the target area.
Individual agencies have specific problems in their present locations.
For example, t h e National Bureau of Standards is now located in the heart of a heavily populated residential area. Some of trie experiments conducted at NBS, particularly in the electronic field, bring irate protests from nearby householders because of interference with the normal operation of household appliances.
At the W e a t h e r Bureau, atmospheric conditions a t the present location almost in the heart of t h e city seriously interfere with t h e accuracy of observations. W h a t the Weather Bureau is looking for in a s u b u r b a n site is an elevation of at least 500 feet for proper operation of electronic storm-tracking gear, and a location to windward of the city to minimize t h e harmful effects of atmospheric pollutants,
• Repercussions. Local business leaders i n Washington are worried about t h e effects of the increasing tempo of government migration to the suburbs, For Washington is a one-industry town, and that industry is Government.
Just last week the District of Columbia Bankers Association passed a resolution calling for an orderly procedure in relocation of federal agencies. Present "haphazard plans" for relocation, the bankers say, do not pay sufficient attention to the economic factors involved, I n the ^bankers' opinion Government Services Administration should supervise all relocation planning.
However, t he re are no indications that there will b e any slowdown in the rush to t h e suburbs.
Potomac Postscript
• FTC hear ing examiner Abner E. Lipscomb has issued an order which would dismiss for lack of proof charges that t h e manufacturer has misrepresented the operation and advantages of t h e Evis water conditioner, T h e examiner ruled that evidence t o support some of the charges was inconclusive and that no evidence w a s produced to support the rest of t b e charges. FTC may appeal the ruling.
3 1 1 2 C&EN JUNE 2 5, 1956
