Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-01-29
Circulation Every 1A0E0
Evening Yesterday i fLOL
THURSDAY. JANUARY %. 1920.
The Need Of More Dwellings.

Very interesting, and also very inn
portant, is the report, made public thus
week. of DIR. Joseph Fl. Odell, director oil
the Service Citizens of Delaware. on the
need of more dwellings for the reasonable
to say the least--accommodation OF
the people of Wilmington. 1t covers
large amount of ground, and reveals
conditions due TO the lack OF adequate
housing facilities which are anything
but complimentary to the city. 1t tells
about the city's "slums," and their evil
effects, while its comments upon the
crowded conditions resulting from the
great scarcity of dwellings should arouse
the moral sentiment of the community.
For surely, nothing could be more IN
sdiousiy productive of immortality than
the situation of human beings, even
though members Of the same families
men, women. boys and glrls-being SO
crowded in living quarters as TO ntrude
upon any pretcnce of privacy
According to this report there is need
in the city of Wilmington today OF LOO
dwellings for the accommodation of 1,soo
persons. This means that this number OF
people are living amidst the crowded
conditions to which we have alluded
20 the great detriment of morals and a
most aggrav ting sacrifice OF personal
comfort and convenience. Msnnestiy,
the solution Of the social problem involved
ia. of itself, very simple matter--the
erection Of at least 500 dwellings of
nze and character to provide fair accom-
u,odations for at least $500 persons.
But how can this apparently simple
solution be applied? That is the ques-
ton, and the answer is that under pre-
yaihnc economic conditions IT rs prae-
tically impossible to apply it. From an
investors point of view the proposition
is not attractive. Notwithstanding the
imperative demand, there is no cpncerted
movement towards making the supply
adeouate. Hall a century ago ere was
much building activity in Wilmington.
and houses were built In advance Of the |
immediate demand, the builders trusting |
conf entity TO the future to bring them
adequate returns. Nor were they dis
ap,e inted For while no dwelh gs IN |
those dayr we're rented from building
plans sometimes before the breaking |
of grounds is the case today-they /
70 nd ready sale or rental soon after their
completion
But building enterprises of tins char
acter are no longer profitable. as IS pointed
out DR.. Cd, ll's report, and this fact /
= of general knowledge. Building costs
too much. BY reason of the high cost of
labor and materials 1t is not possible
to build houses or apartments tor rental
in these VS. and dispose Of the use to
tenants in acc rd with the o. established
rule Of not more than one weeks wages
for one months rent In view OF the
extraordinarily high range of wages this
condition seems deciedly abnormal. but
IL is set down as fact. And eve1 some
Of the rent charges that seem Ike deliber-
ate profiteering appear really reasoabien
when all the conditions are taken
into consideration. Prohteering N
rents prevails of course, In some
instances to an outrageous extent;
but almost generally the rental charges
are about on a level with the charges for
other necessities of living In these unusual
times And occasionally. even with
dwelling places in extraordinary demand,
the worn will turn in resistance to.
what is looked upon as renfo extortion
There are two very desirable apartments
less than a mile from Every Evening
Office which have been vacant for more /,
than six months III succession, because
the owner insisted upon an advance In
a rental charge that was deemed plenty
high enough. The tenants then In
moved out and none have possession
since moved in.
Still. the remedy remains TO be consider
ed and applied DIR. Odell's report sug-
gests the formation of "Million Dollar I
Housing corporation" TO take up the ,
work of meeting all the necessities of the Z
dwellings and the sub
stitution Of decent habitations in place
Of the discreditable and dangerous tslums.'' !
Other reforms, especially in the direction t
Of facilitating real estate transfers and
simplifying mortgage arrangements. are I
suggested. But success of this or any
other plan depends upon the hearty CO.
operation of citizens generally. especially 7
If the usiness and official agencies. /
But there is no reason why this plan {
should not succeed. And it is equally y
certain that tie interests Of the entire
viii suffer seriously unless
some practical steps IN the direction Of t
solving the problem are taken before this 4
1ear comes to an end. If