PROVIDING FOR THE RELEASE OF ALL RIGHT, TITLE, AND INTEREST OF THE UNITED STATES IN A TRACT OF LAND IN THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, CALIF. JULY 1, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. JOHNSON, from the Committee on Armed Services, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 524] The Committee on Armed Services, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 524) to provide for the release of all the right, title, and interest of the United States in a certain portion of a tract of land conditionally granted by it to the county of Los Angeles, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. PURPOSE OF THE BILL The purpose of the proposed legislation is to authorize and to direct the Secretary of the Army to convey, relinquish, and release to the county of Los Angeles, Calif., all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to a certain portion of a tract of land conditionally granted to the county of Los Angeles pursuant to an act of Congress approved March 24, 1933, as subsequently amended. The land involved is a 10-foot strip on the outer edge of property which formerly belonged to the United States and was used in connection with an installation originally designated Arcadia Balloon Field and later Ross Field. The land, of which this 10-foot strip is a portion, originally was conveyed to the United States by the county of Los Angeles. Subsequently, an act of Congress dated March 24, 1933, directed the Secretary of War to convey to the county of Los Angeles the property originally acquired by the United States from the county. The property comprised 184 acres and the consideration was to be $55,655. No conveyance was made pursuant to that act. The act of Congress approved June 17, 1935, amended the 1933 act and provided for conveyance of the property to the county of Los Angeles, without cost, but provided, as did the 1933 act, that it be used only for public park, playground, and recreational purposes and also provided for reversion of title to the United States if used for any other purposes. The property was conveyed to the county pursuant to this act. The city of Arcadia in conjunction with Los Angeles County is contemplating the establishment of a civic center on the land conveyed to the county. Since existing law provides for reversion of title in the event of use of the land for other than public park, playground, and recreational purposes, the county desires that the restriction be removed with respect to the 10-foot strip of land since that strip will contain sidewalks and appurtenant improvements which might be construed as a use inconsistent with the provisions of the act of Congress under which the land was conveyed. The Department of the Army and the Bureau of the Budget offer no objection to the proposed legislation, as indicated by the attached letter from the Acting Secretary of the Army, which is hereby made a part of this report. Hon. CARL VINSON, Chairman, Committee on Armed Services, House of Representatives. MAY 4, 1949. DEAR MR. VINSON: Reference is made to your recent request to the Secretary of Defense for the views of the National Military Establishment with respect to H. R. 524, Eighty-first Congress, a bill to provide for the release of all the right, title, and interest of the United States in a certain portion of a tract of land conditionally granted by it to the county of Los Angeles. The Secretary of Defense has delegated to this Department the responsibility for expressing the views of the National Military Establishment. The Department of the Army has no objection to the above-mentioned bill. The purpose of this bill is to authorize and direct the Secretary of the Army to convey, relinquish, and release to the county of Los Angeles, Calif., all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to a certain portion of a tract of land conditionally granted to the county of Los Angeles pursuant to an act of Congress dated March 24, 1933, as amended. A brief No objection is interposed to this measure since its enactment into law will not adversely affect any activity of the National Military Establishment. summary of the background of this bill is enclosed herewith. It is recommended that the bill be enacted into law. Passage of the bill will not involve the expenditure of any Federal funds. This report has been coordinated among the departments and boards in the National Military Establishment in accordance with procedures prescribed by the Secretary of Defense. The Bureau of the Budget advises that there is no objection to the submission of this report. Sincerely yours, GORDON GRAY, Acting Secretary of the Army. QUITCLAIM DEED OF PALACE OF FINE ARTS TO COUNTY AND CITY OF SAN FRANCISCO JULY 1, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. HAVENNER, from the Committee on Armed Services, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 5289) The Committee on Armed Services, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 5289) authorizing the Secretary of the Army to convey certain lands to the city and county of San Francisco, having considered the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The purpose of this bill is to remove a restrictive provision in the act of March 3, 1925, which conveyed to the city and county of San Francisco the so-called Palace of Fine Arts situated in that municipality. The restrictive provision in question guarantees to the United States a right of reentry to the property. The act of March 3, 1925, conveyed this property to the city and county of San Francisco without monetary consideration. During World War II this property was reentered for military purposes by the Federal Government and was returned to the city and county of San Francisco on August 21, 1947. The Department of the Army does not desire to retain a full recapture right to the property, so long as perpetual ingress and egress across the property is provided and so long as the present authority of the United States to operate a spur-track railroad from Fort Mason to the Presidio is not disturbed. The Department of the Army further desires that the release of the present right of reentry be made contingent upon San Francisco's granting the State of California permission to use the main building for National Guard purposes. Consultations and agreements between the State of California, the city and county of San Francisco, and the commanding general, Sixth Army, have developed commitments which are regarded by the committee as very favorable not only to the pro H. Repts., 81-1, vol. 4-105 gram of the National Guard but also to the Reserve components which come under the direct contol of the Federal Government. These agreements were looked upon by the committee as an important consideration on behalf of the Federal Government. Section i of the bill provides for the conveyance of the property. Section 2 contains the restrictive provisions on the deed of conveyance which were agreed to by all interested parties and which were regarded by the committee as necessary in the interests of the United States. It is proposed that the city and county of San Francisco shall permit the use of the Palace of Fine Arts Building as a battalion armory and it is clearly understood that this armory shall be available for use by Reserve component units as well as National Guard units. This requirement was one of those imposed by Gen. Mark Clark, Commanding General, Sixth Army, and testimony at the hearings disclosed that it was intended that all of the military services should benefit through the joint use of this armory facility. Representatives of the Department of the Army appeared at the hearings and stated that the terms of the proposed legislation are satisfactory to them. The Bureau of the Budget interposes no objec tion to the bill. The following letters from the Secretary of the Army, the mayor of San Francisco, and the Adjutant General of the State of California recommend the enactment of H. R. 2448, the predecessor to the bill now under consideration, and are hereby made a part of this report. Hon. CARL VINSON, Chairman, Committee on Armed Services, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, House of Representatives. DEAR MR. VINSON: Reference is made to your recent request to the Secretary of Defense for the views of the National Establishment with respect to H. R. 2448, Eighty-first Congress, a bill authorizing the Secretary of the Army to convey certain lands to the city and county of San Francisco. The Secretary of Defense has delegated to this Department the responsibility for expressing the views of the National Military Establishment The purpose of H. R 2448 is to authorize the Secretary of the Army to convey by quitclaim deed to the city and county of San Francisco, Calif., certain_lands and improvements in the city and county of San Francisco, known as the Palace of Fine Arts. The subject property, previously conveyed to the city and county of San Francisco by the act of March 3, 1925 (43 Stat. 1129), was taken over by the United States Government during World War II pursuant to the provisions of the aforesaid legislation. On August 21, 1947, the property was returned to the city and county of San Francisco. subject to all provisions of the original con veyance. Enactment of HR. 2448 will convey the subject property to the city and county of San Francisco without the provisions for recapture by the United States Government imposed by the act of March 3, 1925. The Department of the Army would have no objection to enactment of H. R. 2448 into law provided it is amended to protect the United States rights of ingress and egress across the property and a provision inserted to insure the construction of an armory on the property as agreed upon by the Department of the Army and the city and county of San Francisco A suggested revision of section 2 of the bill is attached for your consideration. Enactment of the subject legislation will not result in the expenditure of additional Federal funds. This report has been coordinated among the departments and boards in the National Military Establishment in accordance with procedures prescribed by the Secretary of Defense. The Bureau of the Budget advises that there is no objection to the submission of this report and the suggested revision. Sincerely yours, Re S. 863 (H. R. 2448), S. 862 (H. R. 2515). Chairman, Committee on Armed Services, GORDON GRAY, Acting Secretary of the Army. OFFICE OF THE MAYOR, House of Representatives, Washington 25, D. C. DEAR Mr. VINSON: The above-numbered bills pertaining to the Palace of Fine Arts and the Fort Funston properties are directly interrelated. San Francisco has owned the Palace of Fine Arts property since 1927, subject to the right of recapture by the Department of the Army in event of emergency. The Fort Funston property, consisting of approximately 242 acres, has ceased to be usable as a coast artillery installation. The southerly 200 acres has been transferred to the Veterans' Administration for construction of a thousand-bed neuropsychiatric hospital The remaining 42 acres is the subject of S. 862 (H. R. 2515). Maj. Gen. Curtis O'Sullivan, the adjutant general of the State of California, in conjunction with the Department of the Army, is desirous of establishing armories on both the Palace of Fine Arts and the Fort Funston properties for the purpose of training members of both the National Guard and other Reserve components. Toward this end, numerous meetings have been held among representatives of the Department of the Army, the State of California, and the city and county of San Francisco, both in San Francisco and at Washington, D. C. As a result, all three parties have reached an agreement which they believe will be in the national interest as well as mutually beneficial. The prompt enactment of S. 863 (H. R. 2448) and S. 862 (H. R. 2515) is necessary to put that agreement into effect as follows: 1. San Francisco will permit the use of the Palace of Fine Arts Building as an armory both for National Guard and other Reserve components. 2. That portion of the northern 42 acres of Fort Funston best suited for armory purposes will be the site for two essential armories, with the balance of the property being convered into park, zoo, and recreational purposes, which insures that the property will not be used for purposes ordinarily considered as incompatible with use of the adjacent property for armory and Veterans' Administration purposes. Detailed conditions, restrictions, rights-of-way, and other provisions have been agreed upon and will be placed in the deed of conveyance of the Fort Funston property rather than in the legislation, and, therefore, the bill contains general, rather than specific, language. It is my understanding that the State of California and the Department of the Army together with California Congressmen and Senators will submit detailed statements and testimony in connection with these bills. The purpose of this communication is to confirm the fact that San Francisco is entirely in accord with the proposals, and consequently respectfully urges prompt and favorable action on these bills by your committee and the Congress, amended as suggested in the reports submitted by the Department of the Army. With all good wishes, I remain Cordially yours, ELMER E. ROBINSON, Mayor. STATE OF CALIFORNIA, Re S. 862 (H. R. 2515). S. 863 (H. R. 2448). Mr. CARL VINSON, Chairman, House Committee on Armed Services, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. VINSON: The above bills refer to the Palace of Fine Arts and Fort Funston in the city and county of San Francisco. The State of California has undertaken a large program of armory construction. Money for some 39 armories has now been obligated and the amount of $10,000,000 |