Evening star., 1938-04-17
Moving Day Scheduled for
April 30-RentaIs From
$3.50 to $31.85.
274 FAMILIES TO OCCUPY
NEW HOUSING PROJECT
Selections for $1.864,900 Slum
Clearance Units Made From
1854 Eligibles.

areas in Washington yesterday began
selecting their new homes from the
274 choice dwelling units at Langston.
the Governments $l.864.946 low-rent
housing project on Benning road. at
Twentyfirst street NE. Moving day,
due to some unarrived equipment. has
been set back to April 80.
The 274 tenants are now being
selected from a sifted list Of 1854
eligible colored families who were
able to show the greatest need for
rehousing. They will pay the Gov
ernment monthly rentals ranging
from 1890 for two-room apartments
to a maximum s3l85 for five-room
house. with all essential utilities in
cluded in the rent.
They are able and eager both to pay
those rentals to escape their present
living conditions. Many of them are
now paying nearly as much or mors
for overcrowded rooms and houses
which careful Federal investigators
have found to combine factors detri-
mental to safety. health or morals"
First Tenants Arrive.
As rapidly as the selections are
made. Franklin Thorne, the Langston
manager. is inviting the new tenants
to come out and pick their homes.
The first to arrive yesterday were
Alfred Tillman, young truck driver,
and his wife. They have two chill
dren. one 2 years and another 4
months. They we're given one of the
choicest of the four room apartments,
which rent from s2625 to $2825 Per
month.
For single room with cooking priv
ileges they now pay 50 week. The
young man makes good wages and
has steady employment, otherwise he
never would have been accepted" by
the management. Persons on relief
are ineligible for homes at Langston.
300 Applicants.
The Tillmans are "betWiXt and be-
tween" the general class OF tenants for
Langston. Visits made to the homes
of some Of the families accepted as
tenants showed various degrees OF
living cOndltlOnS.
Others were found in overcrowded
rooms. occupying houses with two or
three other families Some OF these
homes had no running water or even
gas A few had only outdoor toilet
facilities. Monthly rents being paid
at the homes visited ranged from ap-
proximately $40 per room to $50 for
an apartment and sometimes as high
as $50 for house
The Government has laid down hard
and fast rules for the selection OF its
tenants. When the United States
Housing Authority recently took over
Langston from the Public Works Ad-
ministration which built 1t. there
were pending 5000 registrations for
homes. Since then 789 more families
applied.
Letters stating the qualifications set
forth by the Government were sent to
all the families with a result that 1919
voluntarily withdrew their applica-
tions. admitting their ineligibility. Out
Of the remaining 2.27O applications,
the management decided 367. had too
much income. ia had too little income
and many others did not qualify for
other reasons. After weeks OF investi-
eating the number OF eligibles finally
was reduced to 1854. Now these are
being sifted carefully for only 274
families can be accommodated.
Model Tenants.
OF one thing the Government land
lord may be sure When the final
selections are made, Langston will
have model set of tenants. No family
will be admitted who cannot afford to
pay the rent. Their budgets will be
subjected to the closest scrutiny. With
so many to choose from, qualifications
for honesty, sobriety. reliability and
steady employment will be the final
test.
The two rules governing income are
specific. They are:s
Every tenant shall have an income
which is sufficient to pay the rent and
provide for necessary living expenses.
The dwellings shall be available
solely for families whose net income
at the time of admission does not
exceed five times the rental Gncluding
the value or cost to them Of heat,
light. water and cooking fueD Of the
dwellings to be furnished such fam
lilies, except that in the case Of families
with three or more minor dependents,
such ratio shall not exceed 6 to l."
Right now Langston's IA acres are
barren of grass. shade and landscap-
ing. Contracts have been let, it was
said. and topsoil will be applied soon.
There never had been a definite date
set for occupancy. although U. S. H. A.
officials had anticipated April Is. Some
of the needed equipment, however. such
as window shades. had not arrived by
that date So moving day" was fixed
yesterday as of April 30. BY then all
Of the tenants will have been selected
and dwellings assigned.