Evening star., 1941-05-15
.0.P. M. Official Urge!
Removal Of Some
Agencies From D. {.
Facilities Are Being
Overcrowded, Nichols
Tells Institute

ply section, Production Division,
Office of Production Management,
suggested today at a national con-
ference on home building at the
Mayflower Hotel that certain nom
defense Government agencies be
moved out of Washington to relieve
the growing congestion of the
Capital
Mr.. Nichols declared:
1--WE are dangerously near losing
the sacred government character of
our city, Capital City worth fight
| ing for"
Mr.. Nichols told the conference.
sponsored by the Home Builders
| Institute of America, a new profess
sional branch of the National As
sociation of Real Estate Boards, that
Washington could not digest within
year a resulting increase of some
100000 in population"
Pointing out that for Is years he
had been member of the National
Capital Park and Planning Com
mission, Mr.. Nichols said that al
ready the defense program was con-
centrating some $500 employees a
| month here. This, he said, lis over
loading our water and sanitation
systems, our schools, playground fa-
cilitieS and our public utilities and
creating traffic congestion far be-
yond our street capacity"
Suggests Scattering Agencies.
Mr.. Nichols explained that the
Government already owned about
one-fourth of its property outside of
Washington and he suggested that
certain non-defense agencies be
scattered through 100 large cities
which have ample office space.
Let us not" he added, "use
money needed for defense in the
erection of unnecessary buildings in
Washington"
John M. Carmody, Federal Works
administrator, who spoke next. al
luded to the congested situation in
! Washington in his opening re-
marks. Recalling that he had sug-
gested, even before o. P. M. was
organized, moving some Govern
ment offices away from the Capital,
Mr.. Carmody indicated it was not
a simple problem, because so many
Government workers had moved
their families here and built or es-
tablished homes.
/ 1t would mean, he said, mot tear
/ ing up roots, but trees" He added,
however, it might prove to be the
only way out.
Both Mr.. Nichols and Mr.. Car
mody pointed to the need of intelli-
gent planning in providing defense
housing throughout the country.
| Cites Need for Haste.
Mr.. Carmody, whose administra-
ton is charged with carrying out
housing recommendations of the de-
| tense housing co-ordinator, said he
! did not want to see Uncle Sam
waste dollar by building houses in
| the wrong places" He indicated the
Government would build homes only
when private enterprise was unable
! to do so.
"The great difficulty about defense
housing" Mr.. Carmody said, "is the
terrible need for haste. No matter
what we do, we will not do it soon
enough, and no matter how we do it,
it will not be done well enough"
Philip W. Kniskern of Philadel-
phia, president of the National As
sociation of Real Estate Boards, said
it was important in the public in
terest that home building and re-
conditioning not only go on but that
1t increase in volume"
David D. Bohannon of Los An
geles, president of the Home Build
ers' Institute, said home building in
America mot only is faced with
challenge to meet with speed and
efficiency the housing needs of an
unprecedented industrial mobiliza-
ton but also may well be destined
for major role in cushioning the
/ post-defense let-down, since there
is constructive use, in needed homes,
for billions of dollars in capital and
for labor by the millions"