European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 12, 1969, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Peg 6 the stars and stripes wedge toy february 12, 1969 the Little pentagon9 Forrestal building nearly Complete by Marc ii ets a Washington Bureau chief Washington ass a dream will become a pleasant reality for thousands of service men and government civilians in Early March when they begin to move into the James v. For Restal building named in Honorof the first Secretary of defense from 1947 to 1949. The move will also Delight countless washingtonians past and present who have Lon since grown tired of seeing the dilapidated tempos temporary wartime structures of Wood and stucco that once filled the Parks and open spaces Long after the fighting had ceased. Some of them still standing Date Back to the Early Days of world War 1. The first contingent to occupy the building will be the army s Provost marshal Gen eral chief of chaplains inspector general and data systems omd and the air Force s judge advocate Genera an director of civil engineering. In numbers the major ele ments to move in will be the air Force s director of Security police and special investigations and the army s chief of engineers and surgeon general s offices. In addition the army will also have the adjutant general Emer gency Relief communication Sand electronics explosive safety Board and the National boar for the promotion of rifles prac Tice located Here. The air Force will also be represented by its accounting and finance administrative serv ices Aid society chief of Chap Lains director of civilian person Nel frequency management director of military personnel Supply and services surgeon Gen eral and director of transportation. Over the next six months6,700 military and civilians will move in from 75 temporary and leased locations in the greater Washington area. Although most people Are glad to be making the move some have a certain air of nostalgia about their present spots like the sagging old munitions building one of the tempos that once housed the War department department of the army from the first to the Early Days of the second world War. Others will be leaving main Navy an other Tempo of the same Vintage that was at one time the nerve enter for the . Fleet. Once the move is Complete the general services administration will begin to demolish these Eye sores for a More Beautiful Washington. The Forristal buildings actually made up of three elements. One is a Long build ing spanning a mall. It is raised on columns that "float"30 feet above the ground. The building has four floors aboveground. Another eight Story Structure to the rear serves Ashe architectural foil to the longer one and on the other Side is a one Story cafeteria. Ail toe elements have base ments and sub basements. The design reflects sex presi Dent Johnson s interest in Federal buildings with architectural distinction. As a result construction involved coordination Between the architects and builders the Gas the commission of Fine arts the National capital planning com Mission the local District of Columbia government the re development land Agency an private developers in the Capi Tal s Southwest  focusing attention on the newly developed l infant Plaza the Forrestal building also creates an open government com plex with the smithsonian institution Headquarters the National air and space museum and other buildings  of its role and size largest of its kind in the nation capital the defense Struc Ture May some Day be know Nas the Little Pentagon but in reality there is no comparison with the five sided building across the Potomac in Virginia. The Pentagon was and still Isth largest in the world and still unique. For one thing the Pentagon has 3.6 million Square feet of floor space compared to the for Restal g 882,000 Square feet Anil about 27,090 people work at de sense Headquarters or More than four times As Many As in the building. Speed of construction also pro Vides an interesting comparison to show what can be done when the sense of urgency exists. The Pentagon was built in a record16 months with Crews working around the clock to finish the building on Jan. Is 1943. Lack ing wartime pressures the for Restal construction took some three and one Hal years fro the time ground was first broken Ian Sigust  Forrestal building will have Many advantages Over the Pentagon and other defense buildings in the area but it will also present some problems. One major headache is the Lac of parking. Even though the Pentagon has space for about 15,000automobiles, parking if a continuing source of trouble and frustration for workers and visitors. In the Case of the Forrestal building parking space is relatively Small with Only 882 spaces and the diminishing number of private lots in the neighbourhood offers Little Consolation since the will gradually disappear. Some Day of coarse defens officials say the District s sub Way will be built with a Stop virtually at the door of the for Restal building but the Stop an the subway itself Are a Long Way off. Until that Day comes and Noone in government will say when commuting will be by car Pool and bus. Forrestal building photo of Model of the Complex to House overflow of defense agencies from Pentagon starting in March. Beautiful but ugly . War dead rest in ardennes by de Freakley staff writer Liege Belgium is More than 5,000 americans Are buried on 90 acres of sloping ground 12miles Southwest of Here. Their gravestones form a Mas Sive Cross which nestles in the Middle of the ardennes Ameri can cemetery. It is Here one can sense the deadly realities of War often dimmed by today s movies Handwritten accounts of the Battles fought in this area 25 years ago. Sparkling Green grass an modern structures make the ardennes a Beautiful memorial Buta reminder of ugliness. Among the 5,310 dead buried Here Are 780 unknown soldiers. There Are also two medal of Honor winners and 11 pairs of  of the dead were airmen. Many of the soldiers inthe cemetery died in repulsing the enemy s final major counteroffensive in the ardennes in december 1944 and january 1945.Many of the others gave their lives in the Advance to the Rhine Zero defects Man ch1cksands, England Spe Cial s. Sgt. Clyde a. Fuller assigned to the maintenance mat e r i a 1 control Section 2167th communications so was Sele Tedas Squadron Zero defects airman for the fourth Quarter of 1968. And across Germany or in the strategic bombardment of Europe. The actual cemetery site first established on feb. 8 1945, was liberated by the 1st div on sept.8,1944. Those buried Here came not Only from almost every state in the Union but also fro Canada Denmark England France Germany Ireland the philippine islands and the Bri Tish West indies. The number in the cemetery is changing each year. This is the Only american cemetery in Europe which is still open for additional burials of remains which May be recovered in Europe. Last month the bodies of fou american servicemen found Over the last year were buried Here with military honors. About 5,400 other dead Origi Nally buried in this area were returned to the . At the re quest of the next of Kin. According to the superintendent of the cemetery Hadley Keathley 25,000 people visit her each year. About 2,500 of these Are americans. Two army colonels top foundations list Valley forge a. Spe Al two army officers one in Active service the other on re serve duty have been selected to receive top honors for out standing letters in the 1968 Val Ley forge patriots awards category of the 20th annual National and schools awards program of freedoms foundation at Valley forge. A entries were on the required 1968 subject a free ballot a free  foundation presi Dent Kenneth d. Wells announce that this year s defender of Freedom award for the armed forces letter awards program will go to . Army w. Col. William r. Ellis. He is with pro Maag the provisional military assistance advisory group in Korea. Ellis a native of Hugo okla., will receive the encased freedoms foundation George Washington Honor medal and $1,000.lt, col. Thomas g. Wright us. Array Reserve with the.384th Ca area p at Portland. Ore., won the principal award of11,000 and an encased George Washington medal in the newly instituted Reserve component category. Navy league asks for nominations Washington is the Secretary of the Navy Here has set March 15 As the deadline for commands Navy wide to submit nominations of individuals whose performance make them eligible for the Navy league s annual awards for Calendar year 1968. The Navy league presents six awards at their annual Conven Tion to Navy and Marine corp individuals who have made significant contributions in specific Fields of Endeavor. Commands Are advised to sen their nominations original plus six copies directly to Board of awards. Navy league of the United states 818 eighteenth st.,n.w., Washington . 20006. Awards will be made in Maya the Navy league National convention to be held this year i Washington . Queen to Honor . Flying school London is Queen Elizabeth ii will visit the Raf Central flying school at Little Tissington june 26, to present to it the Queen s  in 1912, the school is As old As British military aviation and us methods have been copied the world Over. It syllabus today is aimed at teach ing students to master the Artof instructing and to Fly training aircraft to their limits in a 11day and night