Political Quotes

“I first with to thank Chairman LaTourette for lending his support and providing leadership for this bill. Also Chairman Young and Ranking Member Oberstar, trustees of the Kennedy Center, have worked to establish broad bi-partisan support for the bill. This bill will authorize the Department of Transportation, the Government of the District of Columbia, and the Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center to enter into agreements to conduct environmental planning, provide designs, and execute plans to improve pedestrian, vehicular, and bicycle access to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The Kennedy Center is currently isolated from the surrounding city and its physical setting is inconsistent with its mission. A report authorized by TEA-21 identified a number of conditions that impede access to the Presidential memorial. There is no access from the east for pedestrian, vehicles, or bicycles, the pedestrian link to the Metro is too far away and poorly signed, pedestrian and bicycle traffic from the south must cross hazardous roadways, very poor vehicular connections exist between the freeway and the Rock Creek Parkway, and a complicated series of ramps and exits exist to the south of the Center. The study recommends a series of improvements to remedy the access problem. The centerpiece of these improvements is a proposed plaza, which will be atop a deck over the Potomac Freeway.”