Evening star., 1934-07-12
FEDERAL HOUSING
UNIT GETS INDIAN
AFFAIRS OFFICES
Assignment Of $4,000 Feet
Solves One of Knottiest
Space Problems.
SMALL PORTION LEFT
TO INDIAN BUREAU
New Communications Commission
to Occupy Enlarged Quarters
Of Old Radio Commission.

One of the knottiest of Government
housing problems-the placing of the
Federal Housing Administration in
the new Post Office Building, where
James T. Moffett was determined to
go-has been solved at the cost OF
ousting the Bureau of Indian Affairs
from most of its palatial quarters.
Secretary of the Interior Ickes,
whose job it is to find accommoda-
tions in Washington for the rapidly
increasing new deal bureaus. then cut
another Gordian knot by expanding
the space in the Post Office Building
occupied by the old Radio Commits
sion for the new Communications
Commission. That commission will
spread out also into the new Inter
state Commerce Commission Building
to the disappointment of two prospec-
tive tenants. the Subsistence Home
steads Division and the Tennessee
Valley Authority.
In the shuffling of Office space, the
old bureaus were compelled to yield
to the new and thereby more favored
organizations. AS a result the In
dian Bureau now will occupy what
little remains of its offices in the Post
Office Building and grab what space
it can in the Hurley Wright Building.
Administrator Moffett thus acquires
25 900 square feet in WaShingtonS
most coveted Government building
leaving the Indian Bureau a scant
10000 feet of its existing sccommo-
dations.
Own Bureau Crowded Out.
The irony of the situation lies in
the fact that Secretary Ickes-who
is supposed to be the supreme boss
over the division of Office Space-had
to vacate one of his own pet bureaus
to find space for the new Housing
Administration Mr. MOffett had his
own ideas of the kind of quarters he
wished to set up house in, and these
ideas focused wholly and determined
ly upon the spacious building where
Postmaster General Farley presideS.
He had looked the town over with
A. E. Demaray. associate director OF
the National Park Service, who
showed him all the available build
ings and some that were not innle-
diately available.
So late yesterday Secretary Ickes
signed the order. The Indian Bu-
reau, one of his own favorites. was
notified it would have to give up
rs 900 good square feet of office space.
But as some wag official remarked,
"the Indians are used to being
showed around"
The Bureau of Education is now
quartered in the Hurley Wright Build
ing. where the Indian Bureau will
take over some $4,000 feet of floor
space.
The balance of the Indian Bureau
space in the Post Office Building, and
the space in the new Interstate
Commerce Commission Building pre-
viously assigned to Subsistence Home
steads Division and Tennessee Valley
Authority were assigned to the new
Communications Commission.
AS a consequence, the T. V. A. will
remain in temporary building F. much
to its own discontinue, while sub
sistence homeSteads will remain in its
present quarters in the architects
building.
New Building Awaited.
The various Interior Department
bureaus now in temporary quarters
will remain so located until the new
Interior Department building is con-
Structed. That is a dim prospect,
officials admit. for although Secretary
Ickes has provided a 100000 allot-
ment for it, building operations may
not actually begin for another year.
In allotting the Federal Works Ad-
ministration $4,000 square feet, OH
cials realize that another demand soon
may be made for additional office
space for this bureau. When the
Public Works Administration started
a year ago, it was given a corner of
the Interior Building. The youngster
expanded so rapidly it soon occupied
the major portion of the building
Now, after one year. it has just about
crowded out the Interior Department,
requiring Secretary IckeS TO plan hur-
rledly for new building.
With estimates that the Federal
Housing Administrs ton eventually will
be employing upward of 1000 workers,
housing officials are prepared to let
Postmaster General Farley lie awake
at night thinking the problem over.
The revived Mexican American
Mixed Claims Commission yesterday
was given quarters in the Garry
Building. 927 Fifteenth street, Harold
A. Candland, head OF the division OF
Government space control, National
Park Service, announced.
The move OF the Agricultural Ad-
justment Administration from the eX-
tensible building into the old Post
Office Department Building has been
completed, regular Department OF
Agriculture agencies, housed in Tempo
rary Building c on the Mall, being
moved into the extensible building.
The taxes and penalty unit OF the
Department of Justice is being moved