Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-26
Growth of the City-Some
Recent Tran sactions in
Property in Various Sec
tions-Proposed Census.

Active building operations in the District
of Columbia have commenced this season
fully a month earlier than in previous years.
and the officials of the building department
are confident that there will be notable
increase in improvements throughout the
District during the coming season. In for
mer years the building operations have be-
gun abou. the middle OF April, but this
year the builders started In about the 18th
OF March, hardly waiting for the frost to
get out of the ground before they COM
menced excavations for structures.
In the opinion of Building Inspector
Snowden Ashford a big "boom" in
building operations Is now under
way. He bases this opinion on
the fact that the building season has
started fully a month in advance of former
years. and that the builders seem to be
eager to get to work. owing to the press
OF business and the prospects for future
contracts. In addition to this argument.
Mr.. Ashford states that large number of
applications for permits to build have been
fled in the building Office. and the work
of the office Is constantly increasing. and
besides he gathers from the conversation
OF contractors that they have in prospect
an unusually large number of contracts to
be executed or begun during the season
Just opened.
The fiscal year ended June 80 1904 was
the banner year for building operations in
the District since Washington was founded.
The records of the building Office show
that up to March % (last Wednesday, the
number of permits for building operations
issued by the department exceeded by near
ly 500 the number issued up to the same
time last season. The increase in the num-
Der of permits which has been noted up to
this time. 1t Is believed. will continue on
through the remainder Of the present fiscal
year. The total value of the improvements
may not be so large this year as last, ow
ing to the fact that last year the union
station permit added 100000 to the to-
tai cost of the improvements. No such
large improvement has been started this
season, but the number Of permits will be
much larger and the cost of the operations.
proportionately, will be larger than last
season.
The increase in building operations at this
time Is more noticeable In the county and
In Northeast and Southeast Washing
ton. The southeast section of the city has
been developing quite rapidly within the
past four of five years, according to the
building office records, and Mr. Ashford be-
lieves that the railroad terminal improve
ments in the northeast have given an i'm
petus to the building boom noticed in
that section. The opening of new streets
and their Improvement he thinks Is re-
sponsible in a measure for the increase In
Work Of Good Character.
The building office regards the construc-
ton work as of good character in general
The rows of houses built by real estate
corporations for speculative purposes, 1t is
stated. are of the usual type, designated as
safe" while the majority Of the dwellings
and buildings erected by individuals as res
licences are of a high character Of con-
cfrIfpt1oD A MIN Of no
licences will be built during the current
year, and 1t is thought that others will be
commenced before the season closes.
Il have been interested to find from an
examination OF the records that the Ameri-
can home in Washington is not giving way
to the advance of the apartment house, as
Is the case In New York and some other
large Cities said Building Inspector Ash
ford In discussing the character and style
OF building in the District. "Of course, the
large Increase in the number of apartment
houses here within the past few years
has had It's effect on the building of pri-
vate dwellings to some extent, but no
alarming advance has been made against
the individual homes of the city.
AN examination of the 176 permits is
sued for buildings from March l to March
q show that lib were for dwellings, eight
for apartment houses and three for store
buildings. The remainder of the permits
were for stables and repairs to structures.
! do not think that these figures indicate
any passing of the home. The number of
apartment houses for which permits were
issued this month is In excess of the aver
age"
The estimated cost of the eight apart
ment houses for which permits have been
or Will be Issued this month aggregates ST.
100000. 1t is stated that a great many
of the apartment houses, a large percentage
in fact are erected by out-of-town capital
lists. who let the contract to builders from
other cities. Outside builders are also Sc
curing a number of other large construc-
ton contracts. The opinion is expressed
that the nonresident contractors a rule
do not exercise as great care in their con-
struction work as do the local contractors.
The latter. 1t Is argued, have their local
regulations to maintain and exercise closer
personal supervision over work awarded to
them.
The law recently passed lowering the limit
OF the height of buildings in the District
from ninety to eighty feet, 1t Is stated, to
some extent has caused the building of
apartment houses of cheaper character,
Under the ninety feet limit an eight-story
building could be erected but under the
eighty feet limit the structure cannot be
more than seven stories in height. The
law requires that structures more than
sixty feet high shall be of fireproof con-
struction, and therefore a higher grade of
material is required for such buildings than
Is required In structures built of COM
bustible material
Since the construction of a seven-story
building necessitates fireproof construction
and considerably greater cost O number of
builders have adopted the plan of erecting
structures five stories high out OF non-com-
bustible material and at less expense
proportlolately, than is required for the
seven-story fireproof buildings.
Now Nearing Completion.
One of the largest single building opera
lions that has been undertaken here for
some time is now nearing completion. When
the fifteen two-story fiat buildings which
are now being built on Princeton and
completed the improvement of the entire
square will have been finished.
This enterprise was begun some two years
ago by Mr.. Bates Warren. He has erected
on this square about one hundred and
eighty houses. The square Is of unusual
dimensions. which made II possible to di-
vide 1t by running Dearborn street through
IL from east to west.
Both frontages of this street as well as
those of Princeton and Harvard streets
and Ith street and Sherman aYenue haya