The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-01-30

not been well presented to Congress
or to the country and all efforts to
bring into agreement the various
points of view of the several hous-
ing agency chiefs have been I'M
availing. Housing, in other words
has been built on foundations OF
shifting sand and right at the edge
Of the sea where every tide of opin-
ion can do the most damage.
The general Interpretation of the
congressional point of view is that
none of the defense housing should
be used as Stun clearance. The SEN
timent of Congress is to get the
government out of the housing bus
mess and restore it to private real
estate operators. Such houses as the
government does build, Congress
wants sold. To whom isn't specified,
but the inference is that the houses
should be sold ultimately to the
| people who live in them.
CREAM FOR
PRIVATE BUSINESS
Charles F.. Palmer, defense hous-
| ing co-ordinator whose office should
be shaping the policy on this whole
program, represents the point OF
view OF the established real estate
| dealer. This view is that the govern
ment should build all the temporary
shelter for defense workers, the
transients, the poor risks. The cream
OF the housing business, however,
the permanent houses, the good
risks - should under this theory be
left to private capital. Real ec tie
people are sincerely worried a..ut
what the effect of all this govern
ment housing will have on the realty
market in the postwar period.
Realtors want government COMPETE
ton eliminated.
Tied in with this is the point Of
view of the Federal Housing Ad-
miniStration undo Abner H. Fergu-
son, and all the related mortgaging
activities like Home Loan Bank and
Defense Homes Corporation under
Jesse Jones's Federal Loan Agency.
These agencies hold mortgages and
mortgage insurance all over the Uni
ted States. If other government
housing agencies go into a commun-
ity where FILA has big investments
and if these other agencies build
new housing, the value OF the FILA
holdings Is threatened. The interest
of FILA, therefore, inclines toward
seeing that there is not too much
new government housing built which
would compete with or impair the
value Of FILA loans.
United States Housing Authority,
headed by Nathan Straus until his
recent resignation, was set up Or
iginally for the avoWed purpose of
building slum clearance projects.
Having established an efficient or
ganization, USHA, was originally
given part of the defense housing
job to administer, But with Con-
greSs stone-cold on Stun clearance,
there has been definite pressure to
keep USHA from getting further
assignments. Part of the trouble
may have come from Administra-
tor Strauss talking too much about
how USHA defense housing projects
would be useful after the war as
SUM clearance projects.
CLEARS
RURAL SLUMS
Farm Security Administration S
housing activities are similar to
those of USHA, F'SA is interested in
clearing rural slums, but while
USHA projects are for rtneers,
FSA builds more with the idea that
the occupants will ultimately own
their dwelling.
Final interest in all this confusion
is the Public Buildings Administra-
ton, oldest organization of the lot,
which has for years built all the
postoffices and other government
buildings. Its experience in hcNsing
projects is recent, but Yah its ex-
cellent organization and experience,
it is able to build anything assigned
to it. PBA has handled Nose of the
Army housing projects, other than
the environments built by the quar-
termasters and the engineers.