Evening star., 1922-11-19
SM0OT T0PRESENT
$3O,0()Q,O)O PLAN
FOR D. c. BUILDINGS
Government Would Save
Thousands in Rentals by
Smoot Housing Project.

A building program for the govern
ment in the District of Columbia will
be laid before Congress for its ap-
proval within a short time, Senator
Smoot Of Utah, chairman Of the pub
lie buildings commission. announced
yesterday. following a meeting Of the
commission.
The program. in the aggregate, will
cost $30.000.000. When completed all
the employees Of the federal govern
ment in the District and every gov
ernment agency will be housed In
government-owned structures. at an
immense saving to the government.
Moreover. the building program will
be 80 arranged as to provide for any
increases in the number Of govern
ment employees that may be made for
years to come.
. Senator smoot said that the build
ing program Is now in course of
preparation. He explained 1t was not
proposed to spend $30.o00,000 in any
one year, but that the appropriation
for government buildings here would
yeata ne said that as soon n the
program had been completed in all
its details he would lay it before
Congress and seek Its approval and
II approval was given, then estimates
would be sought from the budget
bureau.
Archives Buildfng.
While details OF the building pro-
gram were not made public. it was
said by Senator Smoot that un-
doubtedly one Of the first buildings
which would be erected would be one
for the Department of Justice. which
now occupies rented quarters here.
Other buildings in the program would
be for the Department Of Commerce.
the Department Of Labor and he
Department Of Agriculture The
building of the Department of Agri-
culture has never yet been complet-
ed-only the two wings have been
erected. A-national archives build
ing is also included in the program.
The public buildings commission
will ask that a supplemental esti-
mate of 100000 for the construc-
ton of steel fling stacks to hold
government records be sent to Con-
gress, the stacks to be placed in the
Pension building, Senator Smoot
said. This appropriation will be
sought Immediately as an emergency
measure. Senator Smoot said that
blue prints for constructing in the
open court of the interior OF the
Pension building a huge fling place
for government records had already
been prepared and estimate Of the
cost submitted.
If this plan is carried out, he said,
it would save the government prob
ably q million dollars, because of the
space which would be opened up in
the various departments for use Of
employees where records are now
stored.
It is estimated that in the court of
the pension building are four million
cubic feet of space. It is proposed to
use about q million cubic feet of
this space for the filing stacks. They
will be in sixteen stories. and so ar
ranged to mako it possible to reach
the files readily. The files proposed
will have 72s,s2s linear feet Of shelv-
ing. or about 1873 miles of shelves.
There will be 222.sss shelves, and the
cubic space will be s4s.soo cubic feet
To Save OAce Space.
Senator Smoot pointed out that the
pension building Is already heated:
that no additional watchmen will be
required, and that. the only additional
1ConfinnAd on Paea q. Column III