Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-02
INDUSTRIAL VALUES
CHARTED BY EXPERT
Factors of Transportation,
Labor and Accessibility
Pointed Out by BeardsIee.

The influence of industrial property
values flows through all real estate
values and affects the price Of stores,
apartment sites and homes, it is de-
clared by Louis B. Beardslee of Chicago
in the weekly bulletin issued by the
National Association of Real Estate
Boards.
What makes a manufacturer locate
his cranes and derricks and ovens on a
particular site and thereby render profit
to the owner of the land and to the
owners of adjoining lands for many
miles?
Three Fundamentals Cited.
among the things that industry must
have today to be successful there are
three outstanding Observation-Disclosures
portation or railroad facilities. accessi-
bility and labor" says Mr.. BeardSlee.
And land that can offer these things
has high value, but so important is
each of these factors that the absence
of any one of them in an industrial
location will usually ruin an enterprise.
1T is the degree in which each OF
these fundamentals is present in an
area in which an industrial site IS
located that influences the value of that
site. In other words, many industrial
O
facilities, which means railroad facili-
ties for the delivery of raw materials
or distribution of finished products, or
BOTH but some sites, or perhaps one
site, may have better transportation
facilities than other sites.
THE reason for the importance of
all these fundamentals in creating in
dustrial property values lies in the i'm
portance of overhead in modern bust
ness. Every expense connected with the
manufacture of any product increases
the overhead, adds to the cost Of de-
livery to the consumer and cuts down
on the profits of its makers. And with
the sharp competition that now exists
in almost every industry manufacturers
must keep down costs or be undersold.
THE cost of distribution of product
is becoming more and more a determln-
ing cause Of success or failure of in
6ustry.
IF a site is inaccessible to railroads
and a manufacturer locating on it must
pay trucking charges to have his raw
materials hauled from the freight sta
ton to his plant and the finished prod
uct hauled back for distribution, then
these costs show up in the cost of his
a site directly on a railroad or with
switch track facilities to railroad has
a higher value than inaccessible prop
erty
ut is well to point out here that all
property fronting on railroad is not
necessarily switch track property. 1t is
not always possible from an engineering
standpoint to serve a site with a switch
track though 1t is close to railroad.
ut is the high freight costs that have
made industrial locations valuable that
are strategically located in reference to
raw materials and markets, so the COM
bined costs of producing and distribute
ing to the consumer are as low as pos
sible.
Highway value Stressed.
"The second important factor that
enters into the value of industrial prop
erty today is accessibility. Properties
from which product can be economi-
cally and advantageouSly distributed by
automobile truck have high value. Such
properties must front on or have easy
access to paved streets or paved arte-
rial highways.
Labor is the third factor that makes
for high industrial property values. The
owner of site in locality that has
both railroad facilities and accessibility
and cannot furnish labor will find the
presence of the other two elements of
OuipHAdblfGlg lltLlE value. ILLS GULL
nection it is well to point out that the
presence Of parks, amusements and
generally desirable living conditions in
a city have much to do with attracting
labor. and by bringing in the third
essential consequently add to industrial
property values.
And many other things, such IS
municipal facilities, the fuel supply and
general business conditions in locality
influence the value of industrial prop
erty. The layman might regard piece
Of property located on railroad and
believe it to be a suitable site for
giant factory, but it isn't if the city has
not put in a sewer. 1t might be used
for lumber yard, but not for a plant
requiring water.
Bring the right industry to town
and you bring it prosperity. You bring
it a permanent pay roll and you raise
the value of every little bungalow in it.
But bring the wrong industry and you
cause not only great loss and sometimes
ruin to the manufacturer, but you de-
crease property values in the unfor-
tunate city in which such an error is
made"