Letter
Dear Mr. Blake:
In its meeting of 19 July, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed a concept proposal for the rehabilitation and expansion of the D.C. Metropolitan Police Memorial, located near the northwest corner of the Henry J. Daly Building at 300 Indiana Avenue, NW. The Commission approved the concept with the following comments for the further development of the proposal.
In their discussion, the Commission members questioned the scale and detailing of the broad curved walkways that would provide ramped access to the existing small plaza and memorial fountain designed by the notable John J. Earley Studio. In order to unify the new and historic elements compatibly into an overall composition, they recommended studying the relationship between the sweeping gesture of the new walkways and the intimate scale of the contemplative space and historic fountain at the center. To ensure that the significance of the inscribed names is not diminished by the large scale of the new setting, they suggested closer study of the placement of the names on the walkway wall. They also recommended eliminating the benches proposed alongside the new walkways, which they said do not relate to either the inscribed names nor to the contemplative central space, and they suggested the addition of trees for shade. In general, they recommended preparing ground-level perspective views to evaluate the appearance of the curve within the architectural context as well as within the broader landscape setting.
The Commission looks forward to further review of this project. Please coordinate the next submission with the staff which, as always, is available to assist you.
Sincerely,
/s/Thomas E. Luebke, FAIA
Secretary
Donald Blake, President
The Washington Metropolitan Police Memorial and Museum, Inc.
300 Indiana Avenue, NW, Suite 4067
Washington, DC 20001
cc: Hany Hassan, Beyer Blinder Belle
Peter Newsham, Chief, D.C.Metropolitan Police Department
Greer Johnson Gillis, D.C. Department of General Services