Evening star., 1940-03-10
Alexundriu's SIums

AAoA anu CllCoul dSC-
ment are due the Alexandria Hous-
ing Authority in launching a public
low-rent housing program that even
tually may go far toward Kidding
that historic and tourist -frequented
city of the blight of many sordid,
health-menacing slums.
Now that a start has been made
through presidential approval of a
loan of 1899 900 for the erection of
two hundred and forty-four eco
nomically planned dwellings for
white and colored families, it is to be
hoped that the Alexandria housing
officials will go ahead speedily with
the execution of these plans En-
lightened public opinion, which
regards slums rightfully as a bur-
densome cost to taxpayers, as we'll as
a civic disgrace and health danger to
any community, may be counted
upon to support the local Housing
Authority within reasonable limits
in attacking this problem.
Presidential approval of the loan
came almost year and half after
citizens of Alexandria brought di-
rectly to the attention of the United
States Housing Authority the sub
standard living conditions of approx
imately one-third of the city's
population. In October, 1888, Admin
istrator Nathan Straus inspected
some of the slum areas in close
proximity to the route Of Mount
Vernon memorial highway through
the city and its suburbs He was
shocked at conditions and pro-
nounced them as among the worst
to be found in this country" Credit
for the initiation of legal steps re-
Sulting in the creation of housing
authority to assume responsibility
for the correction of such conditions
is due mainly to the Women's Club
OF Alexandria and the encourage
ment given it's efforts by the U. S.
H. A. The lapse of time until the
first loan was approved was no
longer than occurred in Washington.
Washington, some of whose inhab-
ltec alleys and back streets duplicate
housing conditions in Alexandria,
welcomes this initial step its neigh
Dor has taken. Slum conditions in
each city have attracted unfavorable
comment from the outside. Fortu-
nately, in the case of Alexandria, the
information about the number of
substandard dwellings and the i'm
provements needed to make other
dwellings more livable is more up to
date than that available to officials
in Washington. A real property sur
vey in 1888 disclosed that 2,494 of
the 8,177 dwelling units in that city
are structurally substandard-1,67
being unfit for habitation in their
existing condition and 819 standing
in need of major repairs. Of the
1875 unfit for habitation, 1851 were
without bathing facilities and 1,13O
had no indoor toilets. That is only
part of the sorry picture that the
slum conditions present. The other
side includes the increasing cost of
police and fire protection, juvenile
delinquency and, as in Washington,
a rapid expansion of population en-
tirely out of step with residential
building for families of very mod
crate incomes.
1t is interesting to note that the
slum clearance and low-rent hous-
ing program in Washington and
Alexandria will go forward simul-
taneously. With much the same sort
of problems with which to deal, the
housing officials of each city no
doubt will be able to benefit through
an exchange of views and mutual
cooperation in project planning.