Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-17
VOLUMES EXPOSE
BUILDINGS STUDY
President Presented With
Two Books on Commission
Planning Just Off Press.

President Hoover late yesterday was
presented with two specially bound
copies of supplement to the 1928
report of the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission to give the Chief
Executive an opportunity to study the
genesis and program for Washington's
future.
While Washington still houses 6l.7
per cent of its population in row houses,
the supplement which has just come
from the press points out that this re-
lation is rapidly changing in favor OF
the apartment house.
"Six and one half years of building
from July /. 1920, to December 81, 1926,
brought about an increase in apartment
house accommodations of not less than
1912 per cent, while the row house was
bad fourth with only 1873 per cent,
the report asserts.
During this period the apartment
house has approached closely the rank
previously held by the row house as a
means of housing the population.
In order to show how adequately
the housing accommodations meet the
demand upon them, several factors en-
ter which are beyond the scope of this
report but to which attention will be
called in passing. One is housing &C
commodations provided by hotels and
lIlSllluLlOTlS. AuOlIlCT IL IiOJlSe NdCdilCy.
I'm 1920 there we're few vacant habit
houses built on speculation and still
unsold. In 1927 the proportion of va
cant houses, both old and those still
carried by the speculator-builder, was
much larger.
"A third factor is the conversion of
one-family houses into one, two or
three or four family houses, OF which
there are but scant records but which
must have assumed considerable i'm
portance in Washington during the
years of house famine.
For the purpose. therefore, of estab-
fishing the actual population the tables
do not furnish all data, but they analyze
the permanent conditions of housing
accommodations for growing popula
ton.
Apartment House Increase.
1.-THE rapid increase in apartment
house construction apart from its social
significance, has an important effect
upon the real estate situation" the
report continues. Apartment houses,
with a population of 37,785 and built
during the SIS years under consider
alton, occupy lot area of only 99.7
acres, while the detached houses, with
q population larger by only 4,741, occupy
a lot area of 996 acres-10 times as
large. Add to this the necessary street
and alley space and the disparity be-
comes still greater.
Important as the site question Is,
there are other facts of vital 1mpor-
tance-the parking Of the automobile,
now necessity; the landing platform
of the aeroplane, which will be neceS-
sity during the life of the present build
ingS: street traffic, water, sewer, air
and, as standards of living change,
privacy. These are problems before
which the individual household group
is defenseless and the real estate func-
tionary in most cases powerlesS. Both
are shifting the problems to the
shoulders of the city planners and
zoners."
Areas Included.
Turning to a consideration OF the
uses of land other than residential, the
report asserted: 1.-The proposed parks
include areas intended for park and
liar uses The total-2,533 acres
will increase the present park system
about SO per cent"
Looking out beyond the confines OF
the District of Columbia, the report
provisions the suburban population In
1850. Commenting on this phase 1t
says: 1.-The likeliest areas for the growth
of urban communities outside of the Dis
trict limits have been indicated on
map showing the topography of the
country and the arteries OF travel.
These shaded areas cover approximately
40 square miles. They lie within dis
trict measuring 200 square miles which
in 1920 had population OF 64,534."