Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-09-26
SUBMITS HIS REPORT
Inspector of Buildings Reviews
Last Fiscal Year.
URGES SOME IMPROVEMENT
Recommends That Architects and
Builders Be Licensed.
GIVES SUMMARY OF PERMITS
Sets Forth Distribution of New
Structures in Different Sections
Of the District.
URGES SOME IMPROVEMENT
GIVES SUMMARY OF PERMITS

In the annual report of the inspector of
buildings it is set forth that during the
year ended June so slump occurred in
building operations in the District of CO.
lumbia Permits were issued for $500
buildings. estimated to cost So. l11,'II.
During the preceding year 9,s62 permits
were issued for buildings estimated to
cost S12 71447o. The figures do not include
the government work.
Among recommendations for improve
ments the inspector of buildings urges
the licensing of architects and builders.
He is of the opinion that there are build
ers and architects doing business in this
city who are not properly qualified ana
equipped He recommends that board
or committee be appointed to pass on the
qualifications of persons claiming to be
architects or builders and limiting or re-
stricting the responsibilities OF such CHAR
aCter of work to architects or builders OIL
established reputation or evident qualif1ca-
ton.
Urges Discontinuance of Practice.
The inspector of buildings advises the
Commissioners against the practice
which has sprung up in recent years In
some of the District departments In max
ing their own estimates for cost OF
building" instead of setting forth the
needs and description Of the building de-
sired in detail and leaving the cost to be
determined by the building department.
The practice. he contends, resulted in
lowering the standard of work the past
year and enforcing a reduction in the
size and character of the buildings to
keep within the appropriations. He claims
that the department heads do not use
good judgment in selecting sites for the
buildings to be used in connection with
their respective departments.
The result is the inspector remarks
''the remote and squalid section of the
city gets a fine building and fair-sized
site, while the improved section must be
content with brick factorylooking build
ing on a smaller site. l would recon-
mend that all requests for sites be pooled
and lump sum asked to acquire all the
sites one year in advance of the appro-
priation for the buildings. and that al
sites be advertised for or acquired at
one time. In this way real estate brokers
and others would not be able to ascer-
tain what proportion of the lump appro-
priation would be allowed for the Severa
sites. AS it is now. they always leave
an insufficient amount for the buildings
The site might be easily enlarged after
the building is up. but the character and
design of the buildings cannot be changed
without great expense"
Summary of Building Permits.
In a summary of the number of build
ing permits issued during the year and
the estimated cost of the operations 1t is
shown that the largest individual class
was brick dwellings, for which 625 per-
mits were issued for buildings estimated
to cost 81 973,94O Other prominent ones
were 1,414 permits issued for brick re-
pairs and additions estimated to cost
1919, $40; 500 permits for frame dwellings,
estimated to cost 81 ,6SS,S9 and twenty
two permits for machinery, estimated to
cost 1874 500.
During the year fifteen permits were
issued for District of Columbia govern
ment buildings estimated to cost SAL .S26
The following summary shows the
distribution of improvements in the diff
ferent sections of the District and the
value of the same: