more satisfactory for everyone concerned. Think of the position a man is in who has to put his home 300 feet off the highway. Senator CLEMENTS. Think about another thing, think about the maintenance of that 600 feet of right-of-way, too. Governor HEINTZLEMAN. There is no one paying any attention to most of this 600 feet of right-of-way which is covered with brush and constitutes a fire menace to the settlers' buildings which are back of this strip; and it makes it extremely difficult for the settler to keep the snow off his branch road in winter and to maintain it generally.~ Besides, who wants to live so far away from the highway? Senator CLEMENTS. The theorists have never gotten hold of anything in this country, and there is no State I know of with any 600-foot right-of-way on their roads. Have you any in Oregon, Senator? Senator CORDON. The only thing that even approximates it is the freeway across the State of Pennsylvania, and a like freeway now that runs up through New Jersey. There they got it for the purpose of establishing what the road people call a freeway, which is a complete control by the public body of access the full length of the highway, including complete control of all facilities that might be put along the roads for the benefit of the motorist. It represents to a very great degree what you would have if you had a parkway through a national park. Senator CLEMENTS. What is the width of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the width of the right-of-way? Senator CORDON. I do not know, but it is very wide in many places, and all accesses are controlled. Senator CLEMENTS. I know it is wide where they have the access roads, but just the normal right-of-way. It is nothing like that, is it? Senator CORDON. I doubt that it is. But there is a sufficient area on each side to control buildings and that sort of thing. Senator CLEMENTS. I could not agree with anybody more than I agree with the Governor on this right-of-way. My opinion is that you have a lot of roads in Alaska where a hundred feet will take care of your needs. Governor HEINTZLEMAN. That is right. The thing that the chairman mentioned, that some Federal agencies wanted to control the kind of buildings were put in along the highway, is something that I cannot go along with at all. Senator CLEMENTS. That is desirable. You are willing to trust the future legislatures of Alaska, are you not? Governor HEINTZLEMAN. That is right, to do the zoning that is necessary. Why should a man that owns the land 300 feet away be subject to having somebody put something right in front of him? He has no control over, something to stand in between him and the main road. What is it that looks bad about improved farmland along the highway? Why do we want a strip of timber to obscure it? Senator CORDON. I cannot find it to object to a cabin along the highway, if a man wants to live in it. When he can afford something better than a cabin, that will be built there, and when he can afford a castle, that will be built there. In the interim, he will be using the thing that will be put there for the use of people. As you may gather, I do not like that. 43175-54--11 Delegate BARTLETT. Senator, this is a great thing, you understand, because Mr. Coote just informed us that at one time the right-of-way was 40 miles. Senator CORDON. That ought to be wide enough for the most avid of planners. Senator CLEMENTS. I take it that you want to be sure that you have the opportunity to make that decision within the State? Governor HEINTZLEMAN. That is correct. Senator CLEMENTS. I think you have the capacity within your State to do that and to do it right. Senator CORDON. I wish, Mr. Slaughter, you would give some thought to the matter of these withdrawals. I think if any action is going to be taken with respect to narrowing the withdrawn area, we want to be darn sure that we do not narrow it too much, because there may be areas where 200 feet is necessary, and maybe 300 feet is necessary just to protect the integrity of the road itself, where there are some vast fields, cuts or drainage questions and that sort of thing. We want to know that we haven't, in an attempt to cure the disease, cut off the head of the patient. Mr. BENNETT. You might want to put it into the report, again, because I am sure the report will be acted upon. Senator CORDON. We can do that. Mr. BENNETT. The matter has been considered, I know. Senator CLEMENTS. I do not want to take up a lot of your time, because this is a matter that you probably know about even better than the Senator from Kentucky does. But I think the Governor would tell you that a lot of produce raisers in Oregon and Kentucky would be right envious of the type of produce that they do grow in the valley outside of Fairbanks and in the valley above Anchorage. Of course they have just scratched the surface, so to speak, in developing the land that is available for farm purposes in those two valleys. But they grow a lot of things. Maybe they grow them bigger in Oregon, but I want to tell you that the cabbage and lettuce and a lot of things that I saw up there, and a lot of root crops, are superior to anything that I have seen in the States. Senator CORDON. Are they superior in quality? Senator CLEMENTS. Well, they were good. Senator CORDON. I have heard it said that to some extent they carry too much water. Senator CLEMENT. I will tell you that I ate potatoes up there that I thought were as fine as I ate anywhere. And if anything would pick up water, the potato would. Senator CCRDON. You are not used to Oregon potatoes. Governor HEINTZLEMAN. Potatoes in the Tanana Valley, I think, are excellent. Certainly there is not too much water in them. Senator CLEMENTS. Do you mean in an area where you have 14 or 15 inches of rainfall a year, you can grow good potatoes? Governor HEINTZLEMAN. Yes, sir. Senator CORDON. We will recess until 10 o'clock in the morning, at which time we will have the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Incidentally, Governor, we expect to have those folks here to discuss the military reservations arount Anchorage. If you would like to be here, you are welcome to come. Governor HEINTZLEMAN. I don't think I can be here. Senator CORDON. We have in mind if those things can be cut down a little bit, there will be a lot of land that can be made available that seemingly should be available. I would like to discuss with you a subject with respect to the area north and west of Anchorage, along the north and east, along the Knik arm. There seems to be quite a bit of area there that is withdrawn that is on tidewater. I had in mind that we ought to make an inquiry into it. We will reconvene tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock. (Whereupon, at 4:05 p. m., the committee was recessed, to reconvene at 10 a. m. Thursday, January 28, 1954.) ALASKA STATEHOOD THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 1954 UNITED STATES SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRITORIES AND INSULAR AFFAIRS OF THE COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS, Washington, D. C. The subcommittee met at 10 a. m., pursuant to recess, in the committee room, 224 Senate Office Building, Washington, D. C., Senator Guy Cordon (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Senators Hugh Butler, Nebraska (chairman); Guy Cordon, Oregon (chairman of the subcommittee); Arthur V. Watkins, Utah: Thomas H. Kuchel, California; Frank Á. Barrett, Wyoming; Clinton P. Anderson, New Mexico; Earle C. Clements, Kentucky; Henry M. Jackson, Washington. Present also: E. L. Bartlett, Delegate from Alaska, House of Representatives. Present also: Kirkley S. Coulter, chief clerk and staff director; N. D. McSherry, assistant chief clerk; and Stewart French, professional staff member. Senator CORDON. The committee will come to order. As the hearing progresses, if the speakers will give their names before they start into the discussion, it will be helpful to me as I do not know all who are here. Gentlemen, the purpose of requesting your assistance here this morning is in connection with the efforts of the Interior Subcommittee on Territorial and Insular Affairs to get as much information as possible with respect to the extent of reservations of various kinds in the Territory of Alaska; the extent of them, the necessity for them, and so far as you feel you can help us in that respect, the extent to which they can be reduced. Senator Watkins has just arrived. This is Assistant Secretary Floete, of Defense. Senator CORDON. These other gentlemen represent the various divisions of the military forces. Of course, we would like to know with respect to all the reservations, so far as you can tell us, what plans may be in the mill now with respect to any releases. I assume here and there, some such plans are under consideration. If there have been releases recently that would not show on the map here, it would be helpful if you could tell us what lands were released and identify them geographically on the map. We have Assistant Secretary of Defense, Mr. Floete, with us this morning, whom I have requested to direct the presentation on the part of the whole Department, with respect to identifying those who will answer for the various divisions of the military. First, Mr. Secretary, for the record can you give us the gross area of military reservations within the Territory? 159 |