Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 6, 1991 TAG: 9102060660
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B8 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
A sometimes caustic congressional hearing Tuesday made clear the decision to build the annex at Dulles International Airport in Northern Virginia cannot be considered final even though the Smithsonian's Board of Regents reaffirmed its choice of that site Monday.
The regents chose Dulles last year, rejecting competing offers to put the annex at Denver's Stapleton International Airport or at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.
Congress still is evaluating whether the annex should be built in light of current financial restraints.
Rep. Sid Yates, D-Ill., said his Interior appropriations subcommittee also will consider whether the Smithsonian should spread some of its wealth by locating the annex or other collections outside the Washington area.
If so, the Smithsonian may be asked to reopen the bidding for the annex, which is expected to attract millions of tourists and millions of dollars to its host region.
"I think Maryland's hopes are still alive," said Rep. Ben Cardin, D-Md., after the hearing. "I'm encouraged that there will be a process whereby the best bid will win. I don't think the Smithsonian did that."
"My impression of the hearing is that Congress and Rep. Yates are going to follow the GAO recommendation and take a thorough look at the site-selection process," said Chris Duercks, who works with a group hoping to bring the annex to Denver.
The fact that the site-selection process is not over was underscored by the presence throughout the hearing of Reps. David Skaggs, D-Colo., and Frank Wolf, R-Va., as observers. Both want the annex in their home states.
Sens. Charles Robb and John Warner and the rest of the Virginia congressional delegation sent a letter to Yates urging funding to plan an annex "within reach of the Mall" and stressing Virginia's "longstanding commitment to easing (financial) pressure" created by the project."
GAO analysis, done at Yates's request, concluded that the "only fair and reasonable way to convince Congress and the public that it has selected the best site ... would be for the Smithsonian to use a more formal, systematic and cost-conscious process."
The testimony concluded that "Dulles might possibly be the best site, but the Smithsonian's process cannot be relied upon the objectively defend the selection of Dulles."
The GAO found that there "has been no thorough cost analysis of the BWI, Dulles or Denver proposals."
The Smithsonian did not adequately define its requirements for the annex, adequately identify potential sites for the project or communicate its needs to possible bidders, the GAO said.
by CNB