Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-17
INQUIRY YBEGUN|NT0
Communicating
FOR WAR HOUSING
141 Properties in All Req
uisitioned, Is Report to
Committee.
PROGRAM HALTS WHEN
ARMISTICE is SIGNED
Home Comforts Bureau Provided
Caused Many Workers to
Stay in D. G.

grounds subcommittee which has been
investigating the operations of the
housing bureau.
William E. Shannon, head Of the real
estate and Communicating section Of
the bureau, was on the stand. He pre-
sented a report on house commander
ing in Washington
In this report it was shown:
What Report Shows.
Altogether 141 properties have been
requisitioned. OF these properties thir-
teen were released, prior to the armis-
tice, as unsuitable or found to be occu-
pied, and sixty-four were released to
the owner or lessee upon agreement that
all vacant bedrooms, not needed for
actual use by himself and members of
his family. should be used for housing
war workers with or without their FAM
lilies. After the signing of the armistice
nineteen more properties were released
to their owners owing to the anticipated
decrease in the number of war workers
in the city.
Twenty-one properties have been re-
tanned and have been leased to persons
appointed by the bureau for the purpose
OF housing war workers Twenty-Five
houses have been put in charge of sala-
r1ed matronS to operate the houses as
boarding houses for woman war work
era
Houses Put in Repair.
'.The houses leased by the bureau
and those put in charge of matrons
have been put in good repair by the
bureau prior to occupancy or during
occupancy. The houses in charge of
r,atrons have been supplied with furni-
turc by the government and are operat-
cd in a manner similar to that planned
to be employed in the residence halls
on the plaza site.
Altogether approximately 643 per-
sons were housed in released houses on
December =, ana on December IA. there
were 33l persons in the leased houses
and 4O6 in the houses operated by ma
irons. The total number OF persons
housed in houses which had been
requisitioned by this bureau is ap-
proXimateiy 1856.
Eleven of the properties which
were released at the time of the sign
ing of the armistice and which are
still vacant would have provided for
housing 63i more persons, and the
committee made arrangements for
taking over the Hotel Gordon in Feb
ruary, which would have housed 500
more persons.
Range of Rates
''1n the houses operated as boarding
houses for girls the rates range from
S32.50 to $40 per month with board,
with the exception of a few houses
for higher paid workers, in which the
rates are from S45 to $50. In three
AouseS assigned to executives the
rates are higher. The rates in the
houses leased are about the same but
the tenants are not obliged to furnish
meals"
In another part of the report. Mr.
shannon said:
AT first houses were leased to per-
sons who agreed to take war workers
as lodgers. That was satisfactory in
many cases, but the policy of oper-
ating houses was later approved be-
cause it would give more opportunity
for supervision and the power to
meet the needs which seemed great
est Therefore, matrons are now en-
p!oyed to manage the houses which
have not been leased, and an expert
enced hotel man advises and assists
them in securing servants and in OBJ
tanning food at the most reasonable
prices.
There are woman inspectors who
keep in touch with the houses and
see that they are kept full and that
the girls are receiving proper atten-
fion' and there are men to care for
the running repairs, the collection
of rents and the keeping of accounts.
In the cases of these operated houses
the matrons are bonded and small
amounts of money are advanced to
rover the necessary initial expenses
The rates of board charged vary in
The different houses.
Armistice Ealts Taking Over.
''The armistice was signed about ten
weeks after the communicating pro-
ceedingS were begun and ended the
emergency, SO that further proceedings
were stopped. Eighteen houses which
had been recently taken or on which we
had not started repairs were released.
We kept twenty-five houses which we
had leased to war workers and twenty
two which were either being operated or
for which full plans had been made. All
Of these are now occupied and the re-
pairs on all but one are practically COM
pleted. The one exception has proved to
require more repairs than were at first
anticipated and latent defects are now
appearing in the other houses, which are
keeping our repair men busy. One house
that We had leased to war worker has
recently been released to the owner, who
accepted our tenant.
Comforts Hold Workers.
The houses. without exception, are
giving comfort to the occupants and
rooms in them are still in demand.
Girls who had become discouraged
when living under uncomfortable
conditions and were ready to leave
Washington were induced to remain
Ind their increased comfort has
doubtless been reflected in their in
creased efficiency,
I'm general. the government depart
ment to which a house has been as
signed chooses the employees who are
to board in it AS these departments
decrease their number of employees
the houses will be assigned to war
workers generally, preferably to
women, but will be released to the
owners as soon as we are satisfied
that the workers can be comforta-
bly, housed elsewhere.
The Communicating of these
houses has, in three months time, re-
suited directly in housing 1900 work
ers and indirectly in making better
housing conditions In Washing gto1
generally. 1t has stopped before the
full results expected have been
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