Evening star., 1939-03-04
Nation S Building
Gains Is Per Cent
Over December
Residential Construction
Brightens Picture
For January

A gain of 13 per cent over De-
cember in valuations of new resi-
Dental buildings featured January
permit reports, Secretary Frances
Perkins reported today following
completion of the Labor Depart
ment's survey of the national con-
struction picture.
This increase, Miss Perkins said,
was spread over six of the nine geo.
graphic divisions of the country.
There was also rise of IL per cent
in permit valuations for additions,
alterations and repairs over the
same period. Total dollar volume of
construction was 6 per cent higher
in January than in December. How
ever, non-residential building showed
a decrease of per cent.
Big Gain Over 1898.
Building permit valuations for
cities excluding New York were 78
per cent higher in January this
year than in the same month 1898.
This gain was brought about by an
increase of ITO per cent in indicated
expenditures for new residential
buildings, 80 per cent in indicated
expenditures for non-reSidential
buildings, and 26 per cent for addi-
tions, alterations and repairs.
Miss Perkins explained that new
building code became effective in
New York City on January % of last
year. This caused large influx of
applications for permits during
January, 1888. Therefore, in study
ing comparisons of the month this
year with January, 1898, the data
excluding New York City are of
much greater significance than are
the data for all cities including New
York. When the New York figures
are included, there is a decline of
l3 per cent in total building con-
structlon, over the year period.
Residential construction, including
New York, showed a decrease of %
per cent, although all geographic
divisions, except the Middle Atlantic,
registered gains of from 63 to $50
per cent.
Government Construction Gains.
The data collected by the Bureau
of Labor Statistics show, in addi-
ton to private and municipal con-
struction, the value of buildings for
which contracts were awarded by
the Federal and State governments
in the cities included in the report
For January, 1899, the value of these
buildings amounted to S24 4,977 900,
for December 1888, to S14,029,OOO,
and for January, 1888. to $2,1180OO
Permits were issued during jan
uary for the following important
building projects: In Maiden, Mass,
for school buildings to cost over ST.
100000: in New York City-in the
Borough of the Bronx, for multi
family dwellings to cost over $8,000,-
900; in the Borough of Brooklyn, for
apartment houses to cost nearly 81
100000; in the Borough of Queens,
for one-family dwellings to cost 81
100000 and for apartment houses to
cost approximately $3,000,0O0; in
Buffalo, for low-cost housing prof.
ect to cost approximately 5000 900;
in Syracuse, N. Y. for a low-cost
housing project to cost approxi-
mately $1,600OOO: in Bronxville, N.
Y, for apartment houses to cost
S850,OO0; in Garden City, N. Y, for
public buildings to cost over $2,OOO,-
900: in Lockport, N. Y, for school
buildings to cost approximately ST.
100000; in Long Beach, N. Y, for
school building to cost nearly
100000; in Allentown, Pa: for a
loW-cost housing project to cost
over ST 100000; in Bloomington, Ill.
for an office building to cost over
100000; in Chicago, for a hospital
building to cost over $10O0,OOO; in
indianapolis, for building at the
State Fair Grounds to cost nearly
$750,000; in Terre Haute, Ind, for
school buildings to cost over $780,
600; in Detroit, for one family dwell
lngs to cost over S2,30O,OOO; in Sagi-
nav, Mich, for a high school build
Ing to cost over $110O,OOO.