The union times. (New Haven, Conn.) 1941-1948, 1942-11-28

lowing the war because OF eX'
tensive building to accommO'
date war workers is held by
New Haven and Hartford
building labor leaders. This
was indicated i'm statements by
William Zuckerman, business
agent of New Haven Painters,
Local l86, and by Sen.-elect
William A. Scott, president OF
the Hartford Central Labor
Union and vice-president OF
the Hartford Housing Au'
thOrity.
Zuckerman and Scott commented
on the statement made by mem
Der of the Bridgeport Housing
authority that erection of extensive
housing for war workers might
lead to surplus of low-cost perm
anent housing for the peace time
needs in the postwar period.
Neither could see the posi-
bility of overbuilding, and both
agreed that following the war, a
surplus of low-cost permanent
housing for the peace time needs
i'm the postwar period.
Zuckerman is one of the orig
inators of the movement for better
low-cOst housing i'm New Haven. In
1888 he made an extensive per-
sOnal survey of the picture, and to-
day stated that the government
would have to erect ten times the
number of war housing units that
have gone up i'm New Haven to date
to care for the normal peace time
needs, using 1888 as basis for
decent low cost housing. This
figure, Zuckerman said, is appli.
cable on the basis that a sub
standard housing unit be torn
down for every permanent govern.
aided housing unit constructed.
In 1888 there were 1000 sub stand
and dwellings in New Haven. Against
this LOO slum clearance housing
units were erected, but the sub-stand-
ard houses were not torn down owing
to the war emergency, he said. Since
the start of the war about $500 new
houses for war workers have gone ul
in the New Haven area.
Assuming that the city would de-
molish the 100 sub-standard units
there would still be around 5000 Stun
area units to be replaced by good
1ow-cost housing. There is no danger
to surplus housing in New Haven
after the war;" declared Zuckerman
These figures represent the popu-
1ation needs of four years ago before
war production got under way. With
the natural growth of population since
1888 and if sizeable portion of the
new workers in war production re-
main the housing situation will be
as it is now, more serious than Is
indicated by these figures"
s'There are $4,000 more people
i'm Hartford owing to the war work
here" said Scott, who is also a
member of the Conn. Emergency
Housing Commission. although
the government has built a great
many war-worker homes and pri-
waite industry is putting up good
number in this community, there
won't be too many good homes
here after the war, assuming thai
all war workers would leave fol
lowing the war.
ssNobody knows what is going to
happen after the war. Perhaps
most of the war workers will be
employed making peace-time prod
ucts. But / do know this: Housing
conditions in Hartford are very de
pIorabIe. There is a great need to
tear down slums and to replace
them with permanent dwellings
The housing that is being built nov
by the government is not perma
nent. There is not enough good
material available for the govern
ment to erect durable homes now
Walter Davis Comments
Walter E. Davis, treasurer of Elm
Lodge 42O, New Haven Machinists
says:
"Your editorial, More Housing
Or Less, was of interest to me be
cause of the fact that l have taken
trips through a number of the
Eastern States during the last three
or four years and from my observa
tions / find that it would be inn
possible to come up to the housing
needs of the United States i'm the
next five or ten years going at full
speed. just look out the back win
dow of the Labor Temple on COTE
St. and judge for yourself what il
needed i'm that one vicinity.
Gas you ride by the back yards
of our cities on the trains from here
TO Washington, you will see the
great need for more Housing anC
not less.
ssThe workers need more and
more and then some-MOre better
and better housing and that i.
what organized Labor should strive
for all of the time"