The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1910-08-12

INTERESTED
|NPR0blEM

The problem of providing a way for
workingmen to own their own homes
IS one vital interest in community
like Hammond where the influx of the
population is so great that it is i'm
possible to provide shelter for the
poore people.
F. S. Betz. of the F. S. Betz company,
believes that he has salved the prob
lem or rather he believes that he has
run across a solution of the problem
in the plan that has been adopted in
the city of London.
Briefly Belts theory is that the or
binary workingman can build a home
| 70 rhimself on the unit plan if he so
desires. Betz would have the work.
| ingmen build his home as hes builds
his library with units of bookcases.
| Bets bookcases are constructed on
the unit plan. Every time he gets a
new lot of books he simply buys a few
more sections of cases in time he ex-
poets to have a library.
Make A Small start.
| Betz idea Is that the young mar
ried workingman does not want big
houses at the very start. He could not
| afford to build one if he did And yet
he must have a house of his own. His
fir ancial independence depends upon it
and the community's welfare is
HANGED by his owning a home. mat
ter no whumble it is So the Ham
mond manufacturer said, why not
build homes on the unit plan just as l
have built my library.
/ Three rooms are absolutely neces-
sary to any home a living room. a
sleeping room and a kitchen. So any
plan that could be adopted would have
to include in the first unit these three
| &c oms.
They can be cheaply constructed at
small cost and together with the lot
three-room house need not cost more
than $500. That is figuring $500 for
the lot and $500 for the house.
First Build CheapIy.
| The house. indeed will be nothing
more than a shack. 1t may be covered
with pine weather boarding, or it may
he simply covered with tar paper The
roof may also be covered with tar. The
interior may or may not be plastered
The point is that for an original
outlay of $500. of which $3.50 may be
accumulated and $3.50 borrowed the
lyoung married workingman with wife
and not to- exceed one child, may be
comfortable in a home of their own.
After the lot and the first three
rooms are paid for then the young free
holder may begin to plan for a more
beautiful and more room home. BY this
time his family may have increased to
two and he will need more room.
He goes to his banker and points to
the fact that he has a home worth $500
tfree of all membranes. The fact that
he has been able to save $500 is a
recommendation to the banker and he
has difficulty in borrowing another
$500.
Completes His Home.
With this he at once builds two adj
. ditional rooms in front of those which
have already been built. These rooms
are more substantially built They
have a concrete foundation under them
they are weather boarded and shingled
the walls are plastered and the place
} takes on all of the appearances of q
comfortable home. Even a small porch
may be constructed in front of this
residence.
And what becomes of the first three
rooms that were built? They become
the kitchen. the dining room and the
pantry of the enlarged house. In Other
words the second unit has been added
= to the first in the construction of {
model home.
Saves Paying Rent.
All of this time the workingman ha
been free from the necessity for pay
ing rent. 1t is true that he has ha,
to pay his taxes and the interest on tn
first $3.50 he borrowed. That woul,
amount to only s25 year. But he ha
saved 800 year or more that he wa
formerly pay out for rent. With
! start of $3.50 the saving in rent alon
would pay for the first unit of TIL
house in two and one-half years an
the chances are that the average ma
would pay for the first unit of his hous
in from one to two years and the sec
ond unit in from three to five years
In five to seven years the workingma
q would be emancipated from the payfn
CT rent and woul dbe free holder
This gives but small idea of TIL
possibilities of the adoption of the uni
system to the building of working
mons homes. 1t may be developed unit
ii will eliminate the tenement district
of the large cities and it will certainl
make better citizens of the people G
the Calumet region for the hometown
. ing citizen is the law abiding either