The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-03-26
Expanded Pa$rOlIs Boon to Business in General;
 Depression Routed


 established. These undertakinRs, while by-products of a plan to meet Q national emergency, were de- signed to fill long recognized social needs whose fulflllrnent had been delayed only by the lack of neces- sary funds. Built in time of an emergency, they became distinctive enduring additions to Americas na- tional wealth. Practically every sizable community in the United States shared in the dual benefits of this program. The Immediate reed of providing employment of jobless workers was met, aiid men given work either in the construc- tiofl of . project or in supplying materials for the undertaking. Be- yotd that, the community gained a substantial, durable addition to its civic assets in the form of new utilities, new schools or other es- tSbllBhrlerits for public service. The stories of many of these undeftak- ings are known to every school boy, to every newspaper reader in the land. The great dams in the west -Boulder, Fort Peck, Grand Coulee and Bonncyille-conpleted or in- augurated with public works funds, have impressed the entire country by their magnitude and by their promise of service to hundreds of thousands of our people, but the significance of Boulder Dam Is no greater than that of the smallest crossroads schoolhouse, than the least pretentious water system con- structed by PWA.
 The provision of modern educa- Lional facilities for 2 half f-hundred farmers children may definitely al- ter the course of their lives. The establishment of g pure water sup lply to community, which had lived in the constant dread of water born sickness, has It's beneficial effect on public health more limited than that of the great dams in the num- Der of individuals benefited but of no less importance to the people of the community served.
 Undertakings Financed In addition to financing some l5,500 undertakings of departments of the Federal government, PWA provided funds for and directed the construction of more than 5000 projects proposed by states and les- ser governmental bodies. The suc- cess of the program, the wide spread acclaim that has attended the progress of PWA were due in no small part to the fact that all of these rlon-Federal undertakings were initiated by the communities benefiting from them. And in each instance the community backed its selection with hard cash by deciding to assess themselves locally for the major part of cost of the PWA im- provemeht. This automatically brought projects of unchallenged worth into the program for PWA undertook no work which did not enjoy complete local backing. No distant board or commission decided arbitrarily that such and such an Improvement was needed by a community; the community itself, which was naturally iil position to know best it's own needs, pro- posed the project and received Fed eral government aid in carrying it out.
 Tn non-Federal construction, PWA has financed some 2,800 utility prof eCts-sewer and water systems, gas plants and electric power systems and disposal plants. It has constructed upward Of 5000 educa- tional buildings, spreading its funds for the establishment of necessary Improvements in elementary and secondary schools, in colleges and universities, in libraries and other educational institutions. The treat E)cnt of state and city wards has been substantially advanced. More than 250 hospitals and homes for the care of the sick, the insane and the aged have been built and equipped in accordance with the standards of modern Institutional practice. Nearly 1000 undertakings. looking toward the Improvement ot transportation and the provision Of further safeguards against acci- dents, have been financed with PWA allocations. Tn addition to vast sums made available for q Federal road-building program, PWA has provided funds for streets and highways, for grade separations, for viaducts and bridges and for many other types of traffic Improvements, ranging from the great T'rlborough bridge and tho Midtown Hudson tunnel in New York to the grading of streets in small rural commu- nitics.
 Jobs Prove Monuments
 All of tbesc undertakings stand as monuments on a battlefield which witnessed the Yout of 8 major industrial depression by tho agen- cies of . planned economy. They have fulfilled their major objective in creating three years work for 3,oo0,o00 Jobless Americans. They have demonstrated the value of public works in . campaign against hostile economic forces and have shown an effective line of attack to be followed against depressions of the future. Built first as fortressoa in @ war against unemployment. they remain not merely as orna- mental monuments of the PWA pro- gram but as implements of service to the people of our own and future generations.