Evening star., 1936-03-18

scrub forest land they are giving the
county an up-to-date, ready-made
city. From the outset, with popu-
lation of approximately 5000, it will
be the biggest town in the county.
If it expands, as is expected, there
will be population of from $4,000
to 10000. There is room on the fringes
of the plateau for 5000 houses.
The rent also will pay for water,
electricity, heating, sewerage, schools,
police and fire protection, etc. Every
house it to be heated by oil, with a
central heating system for each block.
Oil is to be purchased by the corpo-
ration wholesale and distributed to
the blocks. Various other COM
munitty projects of this sort are con-
templated. including the renting of
concessions for the lake resort.
The Government expects to get its
money back in about rs years and the
corporation will have to fix rents ac-
cordingly. The price to be asked will
be shaved, however. to make the rents
such as will be feasible for the eco
nomic class for which Greenbelt is
being erected 1t is intended for
Washington Government clerks. etc,
whose salaries range from $1,000 to
$4,000 a year. 1t is considered sound
to expend about fifth Of ones salary
for housing, heating, etc. Conse-
quently, it is probable that the
monthly payments will range from
| S25 to S35 or $40 a month. Leases
will not be made to persons getting
less than $1,000 a year, because such
could not possibly be expected to keep
up the payments. Only in excep-
tional cases of Government employees
at the nearby experimental farm will
they be made to persons getting more
than $4,000, who can afford better
accommodations. Families are ex-
pected to move out of their own voli-
| ton and buy homes of their own as
| their income increases.
Boon to Developers.
The Resettlement Administration
officials claim that they are handing
an enormous boon to suburban real
/ estate developers. They are accus-
toming families to houses of their
own and, by low rentals, they are
making it possible for them to save
enough to make first payments. They
envision-and this is the primary
purpose of the monstration-Wash-
ington surrounded by "Greenbelts. p"
some much more elaborate and cx-
pensive and some less so.
The Greenbelt ownership plan can
be compared most closely to that Of
the cooperative apartment house
but applied to town and not to a
single building. Holdings will be on
the "99-year-lease" plan. Every house.
holder will own his proportionate
share of the property when the Gov
ernment mortgage is paid off.
The town will be prettily Handicapped
with native shrubs. A large nursery
already is in operation Each house.
holder will have his own front and
back yard, which he will be permitted
to develop individually with lawns and
flower gardens. Vegetable raising
however, must be restricted to the
assigned garden plots on the outskirts
There will be belt highway. con-
Meeting with the road to Washington,
around the town, and three or four
croSs-highways cutting through it. so
as to make each house accessible.
Otherwise the houses will not be on
streets" They will be connected
with the highways, and with the stores
and schools, by network of lawn
fringed sidewalks. There will be un-
derpaSses beneath the highways to
make the community safe for children
and pedestrians. No sidewalk will
parallel street. Folks will not have
street addresses in Greenbelt.
The name "Greenbelt" for the new
town was decided upon after consid-
| cradle debate. At first the settlement
was popularity dubbed "Tugwelltown. {"
DR.. Tugwell didn't like it. Greenbelt
was expressive of the foreSt-fringed
city. but it smacked of artificiality.
It was found that about all the per-
sonal names associated with the early
history Of Maryland-such as those
of the Calvert family-already were
appropriated. Mr.. Richards delved
into the Indian history. The tribe
which once occupied the section was
the Conoys. The term couldn't be
fitted into an euphonious town name.
The name of Little Paint Greek was
an Algonquin expression for Big
beaver sitting-in-the-mud." That
didn't sound so hot, either. So
"Greenbelt" was picked as the least
Objectionable.
Already. with practically no details
announced and with nobody knowing
what the cost will be, Mr.. Richards
has more than 1000 applications for
leases. He expects to have more than
$4,000, he says, by next Christmas.
The families to whom these first
thousand houses will be leased are
to be hand picked. Prince Georges
County needn't worry, Mr.. Richards
says, about a disreputable community.
The Resettlement Administration will
take no chances on the experiment
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