Evening star., 1933-07-20
PRESIDENT AGAINST.
ARMY WORKS PLAN
Roosevelt Reported Strongly
Opposed to Dern Proposal,
Siding With ICkeS.
By the Associated Press.

BY the Associated fTeSS.
President Roosevelt was reported in
official quarters today to have taken
strong position in support of his pub
lie works boards opposition to includ-
ing a big Army housing program in the
public works plan.
The Chief Executive was understood
to have indicated plainly to officials of
the Public Works Administration that
he was not in sympathy with the big
Army housing and mechanlZation eSti-
mates submitted by the War Depart
ment for inclusion IN the construction
program.
A disagreement between Secretary of
the Interior Ickes public work admin
istrator, and Secretary of War Dern
over Army's estimates has come into
the open during the last few days.
Asked Deferred Action.
Ickes told newspapermen Dern had
withdrawn the estimates. but the Sec
retary of War in a formal statement
said this was misleading" and asserted
he had only asked the board to defer
action
Ickes came back with a statement
yesterday reiterating that Dern had
Withdrawn the estimates for revision.
There have been reports that the
disagreement would be carried to the
White House, but officials of the Public
Works Administration said today the
President already had made his views
known and that they were in accord
with the attitude of the board, which is
understood to be unfriendly to the
Army proposal.
When neWSpapermen called DernS
formal statement to Ickes' attention
yesterday the Public Works Admins
TRAITOR replied:
IckeS ReiterateS Statement.
Il repeat, informally, that the Sec
retary of War said he wanted to with
draw the estimates for further conSid
Grafton. and I expect he will bring them
in again when he is ready
With this dispute still in progress.
the Cabinet Board in charge Of the
program yesterday worked for two
hours over public buildings program
without reaching a decision and it went
over to the next meeting.
Organization of the Public Works Ad-
miniStration was almost completed.
however, with the creation of a housing
division to study and encourage low
cost housing projects and a planning
DOd!u " CO-OIU4 Tile pubic WOIkS
program with the future in mind
Two small allocations were announced
during the day. 1851 900 for a prison
building program and S67500 for con-
struction in the Panama Canal Zone.
Building Program Submitted.
A curtailed program for Federal
building construction vas submitted to
the board by the Budget Bureau Presi-
dent Roosevelt has indicated that this
part Of the public works program would
be small, but the original estimates ran
into the hundreds of millions
Ickes announced Robert D. Kohn of
New York, former president of the
American Institute Of Architects, would
head the housing division with N. Max
Dunnlng, now with the Reconstruction
Finance Corporation, as assistant direc-
tor
Eugene Henry Klaber of Chicago was
named as chief of the technical staff.
with the following consultants: Henry
Wright New York: Mrs. Edith Elmer
Wood. New Jersey; F. L. Ackerman.
New York Jacob Crane. jr., Chicago;
Woodbury., Chicago; Harold D. Hynds,
New York. and Tracy Augur, Detroit.
In addition, coordinating group
was selected to serve on a per diem
basis. On this were Howard Green,
Cleveland Alfred K. Stern, Chicago
and Mrs. Mary K. Simkhovitch New
York.
Frederic A. Delano, chairman of the
National Capital Park and Planning
Commission. was named to head the
planning board, with Wesley C.
Mitchell, Columbia University econo-
mist and Charles E. Merriam. of the
University of Chicago. Charles w
Eliot. 3D., of Washington and Boston,
director of planning of the National
Capital Park and Planning Commission,
was named executive secretary