Evening star., 1934-03-24
S[UM CLEARANCE
HERE IS SPEEDED
BY j. S. RELIEF
Spring HousecIeaning Pro-
gram Mapped at Farley
of Leaders.
JOBLESS WILL GET
WORK ON PROJECTS
President Is Willing to Increase
Federal Sums for Alley
Improvements.

washington lOIB-ueldyeQ SlulH-
clearance program, which has won aA
ardent supporter in Mrs. Franklin D.
Roosevelt, may be given an early I'M
petus this Spring under Nationwide
"house cleaning" being planned by the
Federal Emergency Relief Admins
tration.
Plans for uniform procedure to ex-
pedite this program of tearing down
useless buildings and cleaning up Slum
areas are being developed at confer
ence at the Powhatan Hotel. Attend
ing the meeting are Federal repre-
sentatives, city officials, labor execu-
tives, house wreckers and others in
terested in housing.
After demobilization of the c. w.
A. on March 81, Administrator
Harry L. Hopkins is preparing to ini-
tiate such projects within six-polnt
program under the new-work divisions
in cities, designed to be of the highest
social value and benefit to local COM
munities. From 100000 to 100000
unemployed city workers will be given
work under this program. and is per
cent of them, it is planned, will be en-
gagged in general slum- and
se-wrecking projects.
President Approves.
President Roosevelt at his press con-
ference yesterday indicated he is
ready to make a substantial increase
in Federal appropriations for slum
clearance when real estate prices are
brought around to what he considers
a fair basis. The President made it
clear a chief difficulty in giving this
sort of Federal aid so far has been
exorbitant real estate values.
Hopkins has suggested that per
cent of the workers under the six
point program be employed on the
planning of State and local projects,
30 per cent in improvements to pub
lie property, Is per cent on housing,
10 per cent on the production and
distribution of goods needed by the
unemployed, z per cent on public
welfare, and 10 per cent on emer-
gency activities in public education,
the arts and research. The remain
ing 20 per cent, he said, would pro-
vide leeway for greater emphasis on
any of the fields the State admins
traitors wished
Under direction of the National
Capital Park and Planning Commits
sion, an extensive survey has been
made of alley dwellings in Washing
ton. The exact location of every alley
and every inhabited and uninhabited
alley dwelling has been carefully
marked on a series of plats 1t is
one OF the most complete surveys of
Its kind ever undertaken in a city.
The relations of the alleys and alley
dwellings to other houses on each
block is shown. and, going a step fur
ther, the survey indicates also the
relationship Of crime in the District
to each precinct. In this way it is
possible to make a rather accurate
check on the influence of alley life to
crime.
Various Methods.
Some idea of how the Federal
Emergency Relief Administration in
tends to tackle this great problem of
the cities was given by Assistant Ad-
ministrator Jacon Baker in a state
ment to the demolition conference.
Various agencies of the Govern
ment, Federal, State and local, are at
tacking this general housing problem
In various ways" Baker said. 1T is
our desire not to set up any competi-
tive establishment, but rather to use
the man-power available on relief in
ways that are socially and economi-
cally useful and that will help to i'm
prove the housing of the American
people.
I'VE have called this conference to
consider one phase of the general
problem: Demolition. This is the
place we have to start. Demolition is
the forerunner of both rehabilitation
and new building. One reason so many
OF our towns and cities are cluttered
up with WORKOUT buildings is that
our system of getting rid of useless
structures has been so imperfect and
unsatisfactory"
Under the C. w. A., much expert
ence has been gained in handling this
problem and this will be put to use
when the new set-up in urban areas
takes over relief activities. This ex-
perience has shown Administrator
Hopkins, for one thing, that emphasis
should be placed on work in housing
and community betterment. A pro-
gram OF systematic and demolition of
useless and insanitary buildings is the
start.
To Aid Unemployed.
With hundreds and thousands of
unemployed workers available in every
large town and city, the Relief Admin
istration is in an advantageous posi-
ton to expedite this program.
we know that by using this labor
10 remove eye-SoreS, fire traps and
disease-ridden slum dwellings, we i'm
prove our towns and cities at once"
Assistant Director Baker said. 1T is
highly desirable that our Spring
housecleaning program this year
should include widespread municipal
housecleaning of this larger sort"
In addition to its survey of alleys.
the National Park and Planning Com
mission has undertaken second sur
vey to include useless and insanitary
buildings outside the alley areas of
Washington. Many scores of such
buildings. most of them regarded as
civic eye-sores, are understood to be
listed.
In addition to the Federal Relief
Administration, funds from the Emer-
gency Housing Corporation of the
Public Works Administration are ex-
pected to be made available for slum
clearance programs in Washington.
The principal project of this kind
planned is in the Southwest section.