New-York tribune., 1919-05-20
Builders Say Banks, Title
and Insurance Companies
Are Holding Back Money
Needed for Operations
Charge Control by Few
General Staff's Officers to
Urge Construction That
Soldiers May Get Jobs

yesterday took steps to relieve the
housing situation. A number of build
ers met at City Hall by invitation of
the Mayors Committee on Rent Profit
eerlng and offered suggestions for ac
celebrating building. In the Abercrom
ble-Fltch Building, army officers dele
gated by the War Department to CO.
ordlnate the various employment
agencies, planned campaign to stim-
ulate construction. Major Elihu
Cunningham Church, of the general
staff, who called the conference. said
ne proposes to make "a job for every
fighter" in this way, superseding the
present fight for every job"
At the City Hall meeting presided
over by Mayor Hylan, Elias A. Cohen.
builder of 2o6 Broadway, said he
had built eighty-two tenement houses.
but did not intend to construct any
more under present conditions. He
charged insurance and title companies
and savings banks sare withholding
their money.
Building Control Charged
He also said three or four apprais-
ers, working for a majority of the
larger companies, are virtually in con-
troll of the building field and are dis
couraging builders. He advocated =
system whereby builders, instead of
being required to pay up MORTGAGES in
from three to five years, should be
gwen thirty years, the loan to be paid
Gil at the rate of Z per cent year.
There is two billions of dollars in
savings banks and two billions in in
suiancc companies" Mr.. Cohen de-
dared. The savings banks say thew
cant lend it because it is call money.
us joke. In two years savings bank
deposits have doubled"
Nathan Hirsch, chairman of the
Mayors Committee on Rent Protiteer-
ing, who presided at the meeting, asked
Mr Cohen to repeat his statements
when the Mayor returned.
ION the boards of the Mutual
Equitable and other life insurance
companies and good many trust com
panies,' Mr.. Cohen said, "you will
ind representatives Of three or four
real estate firms, active brokers in the
city in generations gone by and by
reason OF their respectabiity, financial
and church interests, in close touch
with men put there. The firms are
Horace S. Ely & Company, the Douglas
Robinson, Charles S. Brown Companv.
Cruikshank & Company and Charles S.
Noyes g. Company
Would Lift Restriction
Former Representative Jefferson NJ
levy, who is a builder, suggested that
the laws be amended to permit build
ing without the drastic regulations
now IN force. The numerous depart
ments of the city having jurisdiction
over building operations are dis
courag'ng construction, he said.
Franklin S. Petit, a abuldeY said
little or no money could be obtained
from the usual sources for building
purposes. The large life insurance
companies he asserted, long the chief
lenders to builders, will not make
loans at a rate Of interest that viii
interest the builders
Tenement House Commissioner Frank
Mann said that 25,000 to 10000 new
apartments arc needed annually to
keep pace with the city's growth. He
urged savings banks chiefly should be
interested in the building of quarters
for working people. Joseph l.. Butten-
wleser recommended a system of home
loans by the government to encourage
builders
drive for improvements on old
buildings, as we'll as new construction.
was discussed at the conference called
by Major Church. The officers who
met with Major Church are aids de-
tailed to work in various parts of the
huge area under the Majors iurisdic-
tion, all of the United States east of
Ohio. These officers included CAPTAIN
Robbins, in charge of the PITTSBURGH
section; Major Rutledge, Philadelphia;
Lieutenant Caswell, Erie County and
Buffalo and Lieutenant Craig. Central
Pennsylvania
Major Church is q civil engineer. He
Is convinced the dollar is at its normal
value right now and prices VIII not
descend He asked that this be tho
Keynote of the pleas of his aids for
greater construction in their respcc-
tive districts.
We recognize both the need of
homes and the need of jobs,' said
Major Church, after the conference.
We intend to make these homes and
these Jobs simultaneous. We are de-
termned to convey this spirit to all
with whom we come in contact
Our drive is to be known as the
Spruce Up Campaign in which we
will ask for houses to decorate choice
lots and for ardelayed repairs to be
made. One thousand repairs at $50
each mean better living conditions and
$4,000 worth Of employment Build
ing seems an unpopular investment
now, but some common sense propa-
ganda might stimulate it-and find
Jobs for the fighters, who deserve
Them