The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1920-05-06
1000 NEW WORKERS
TO LIVE IN TENTS
Population Increases And Tenements
Decrease While Rents Soar
Skywnrd


New York, April 19.-Thousands
Of New York families, some of the
1914 registered as "homeless" BY
the tenement house department, are
epected to live in tents furnished by
the United States army until the
present housing dearth is rcmedied,
according to men interested in the
building trade here. Just where
they will locate their new domiciles
has not yet been decided, although an
army of real estate agents "nobil-
ized," as it were overnight in Great
er New York, has vast aceagcs of va
cant land to lease in four Of the five
burroughs
From 1900 to 1000 families will
live in tents i'm Pelham Bay Park
alone" declared Walter G. Martin,
superintendent of the I:ronS Tene-
ment House Department, land lave
no doubt that many other sections
Will have whole colonies O; tent
dwellers after May l. In view of the
anticipated increased demand for
tentage, especially by evicted fami-
lies, shall write to the War Depart
ment for Griic,ent canvass to meet
all possible reed in the Bronx"
On top of the present hou ing
shortage looms the prospect of the
usual horde Of pleasure eekers
many Of them with abundant war
profits or earnings who are coming to
the metropolis for their summer out
ing. Some of thcn will off r land
lords attractive prices FOR temporary
quarters and, where tenants arc oc-
cupT!ng apartments from month to
month and paying exorhitant rents,
the rule is expected to be AN increas-
81 number of cvictions on May / and
June l.
Evasion of the anti-rcnt profiteer-
ing laws recently passed at Albany
is common charge in many cases
against landlords up for trial in the
municipal court5. Thousands of ten
cment "ownera," to circumvent the
law which compels the landlords TO
prove their rights to raise rents more
than % ncr cent. i year, have Motif
ed tenants TO vacatc their proycrlv bv
September /. Then they plan to rent
thc apartments to the highest bid
ders.
An indication of the competition
FIR shelter III New York is afforded
by the tenement house department
figures, which show that, due to
light building and the remodeling of
onc-.ime tcncm>nta into more profit
able business structures, there are to-
day actually fewer apartments I'M the
city than there were this time year
ago. On January |, 1919, there were
9o3,l33 living apartments in New
York, large enough practically for
3,33l,7O4 persons, Under the law, it
must be remembered tenement"
may mean building on Riverside
Drive as well as i'm the lower East
Side. Sisce January | the city has
had an estimated increase Of 53S,-
6O4 in population, but the building
construction which has been done
since that date is sufficient to house
only 465,49O persons, according to
the real estate board.
Meanwhile, the war is over and
train loads Of oil, steel, lumber and
automobile men and thousands OF
other prosperous Americans are said
to be planning to invade the Great
White Way Train loads already boyo
rrrived. For most of them it will be
no short vacation. Many are bringing
;heir families and are prepared to
pay fancy prices for Accommodations.
All Of which gives JOY to the land.
lord and real estate dealer, who see
visions Of a bountiful harvest.