Evening star., 1942-02-21
Meeting Called.
For All Housing
Officials in D. {.
EIIender. Sets PorIey
For Tuesday, Hopes
To End Conflicts

ers and all Government of1cials con-
nected with defense housing in the
District regarding ways the $50 0,000,-
900 authorization in the Lanham
bill can best be spent to meet the
emergency were tentatively set to-
day for Tuesday by Chairman FL
lender of the Senate subcommittee.
The subcommittee will winnow out
conflicting testimony before the bill
is acted on by the Senate Commit
tee on Education and Labor.
Senator Ellender said today he
planned to bring together all hous-
ing heads for a round-table dis
cussion at which they can cross-ex-
anime each other with the subcom-
mittee acting as arbiter. Out Of the
discussion he hopes to obtain def
mite statement on how the housing
authorities believe the money can be
best employed. The subcommittee
will then act on such recommends
tions.
Senator Ellender said he particu-
larly desired to hear from Brig. Gen.
Philip Fleming, Federal works ad-
ministrator, and Charles F. Palmer
of the Defense Housing Corp. He
expressed the desire to learn how
the various agencies have handled
the housing program, and that in
cludes, he said, the Alley Dwelling
Authority. John Ihlder, executive
officer of the A. D. A., will be invited
to the conference.
A. d. A. May Be Included.
"If we find that the Alley Dwell
ing Authority has done its job well,
we will be inclined to allocate to
that authority some of the defense
housing projected under the $50
100000 fund now being considered.
Senator Ellender said.
Handling of the bill was referred
to Senator BLENDERS subcommittee
yesterday after Chairman Thomas
of the full committee closed two
days of public hearings, which
revealed varying opinions as to
how much should be set aside for
housing, for hospitals, schools and
other needed facilities.
Shortly before the hearings ended,
Senator La Toilette, Progressive, Of
Wisconsin, also reflected the de-
sire to have the program clarified,
by asserting:
II am never going to consent to
reporting this bill until somebody
or everybody connected with the
bill tells us what they are going to
do with it."
Temporary Building Urged.
When the bill passed the House,
the general impression existed that
SAC, ,O00, 900 would be for housing
and $4,000, 900 for the related ia
cilities, including hospitals and
schools.
Several more witnesses appeared
Yesterday afternoon to urge that
Government housing for the war
period be confined. as far as pos
sible, to temporary construction, so
that Washington would not be left
overbuilt for a long time after the
war.
M. C. Hines of the Alexandria,
Arlington, Fairfax Real Estate
Board, said he was not opposed to
the bill, but expressed the view that
the Government should build only
the housing needed for the emer-
gency, over and above what private
industry can provide.
Waverly Taylor OF the Home
Builders Association of Metropon-
tan Washington and former head
of the Washington Real Estate
Board, also pictured problems likely
to confront the private building in
dustry after the war If the Govern
ment goes in extensively for perma-
nent-type projects to house tempor-
ary war workers.
Warner Gardner, solicitor for the
Department of Labor, who was
called in to give the committee in
formation on the variation in wage
scales in Washington on Govern
ment housing projects and on pri-
vate developments financed with
F. H A. insurance, testified the
gap between the two scales is
steadily closing, with the lower pri-
vate scale rising.
Mr.. Gardner said the situation Is
"rather complicated" here because
there are several types Of rates for
building trades He described as
class A, the highest rate scale paid
on commercial buildings, such as
office structures and hotels. Next he
described the class B rate, from
one-fourth to one-third lower, and
said 1t was rarely applied to con-
struction projects requiring all the
trades. He said he understood 1t
was set up a few years ago to or
ganize the labor on small jobs. In
addition, he said, there Is the non
union rate, not fixed, but repre-
senting bargaining between con-
tractors and their men.
u. s. H. A. Rate Usually Higher.
He told the committee U. S. H. A.
housing projects were considered
analogous to the large type Of pri-
vate building, and are usually built
by large contractors who have con-
tinuous agreements with the unions
at the regular high scale. At the
other extreme, he said, is the pri-
vate job, financed with F. H. A. In
surance.
Senator Ball Republican, Of
Minnesota, suggested that the men
working for a small builder, al
though getting a lower hourly rate,
may earn as much in annual salary
as the men receiving the high union
rate on big projects. If they are
kept steadily at work.
Mr.. Gardner agreed there is less
disparity in total yearly income Of
the two groups than appears from
the variation in hourly rates. Mr..
Gardner also testified that recent
statistics indicate the lower scale Is
rising gradually toward the regular
union scale. To illustrate, he said
that on one private housing develop
ment of the F. H. A. insurance type,
the scale for unskilled labor at the
start was As cents an hour. For the
latest work done the rate was so
cents, and he said he had been in