DELAY ON DC ARENA PLANS DRAWS EDITORIAL ATTENTION

     Editorials in this morning's WASHINGTON POST and WASHINGTON
TIMES comment on the delay in plans for a downtown area in
Washington to further review the proposal of BET President Robert
Johnson.  The WASHINGTON POST urges the city to go with the
proposal put forth by Abe Pollin and the National Capital
Development Corp. (NCDC):  "The original proposal includes one
essential factor that is so far missing in Mr. Johnson's
counteroffer: the Bullets and the Caps" (WASHINGTON POST, 11/15).
The TIMES credits the city for "prudently put off making a final
decision" on the arena, adding that Pollin's proposal to bring
his teams into the city in a publicly financed arena "leaves the
city wide open to unpredictable costs and other problems. ... The
one thing the District can afford to do is take its time creating
more debt for itself" (WASHINGTON TIMES, 11/15).