Evening star., 1942-01-18
Population Rise
0f250,000 Seen
Here This Year
Budget Director Says
$4,000 More Workers
Will Come to D. 6.
BY J. A. FOX.

The Government is planning
to add $4,000 employees to the
Capital staff during the current
year-a program calculated to
expand the population of the
Metropolitan Area by "at least"
$50 ,000-Harold D. Smith, bud
get director, said last night in a
statement. designed to justify
the removal of regular agencies
from Washington to make way
for the emergency force.
Mr.. Smiths figure doubles previ-
GUS estimates as to the probable
number of war workers to be
brought in here this year. and would
raise the executive agency personnel
total as of next January / to ap-
proximately 5000, or more than
two and one half times the size Of
the peak force of the First World
War-118000.
Explaining that his statement was
intended to show the conditions the
District may face" as the result OF
the prospective expansion, Mr..
Smith said they would be the same
as though another city the size Of
Akron or Birmingham pressed down
on overcrowded Washington" His
survey pictured public services,
housing and Office space as totally
inadequate to meet the new
demands.
$1,000 Plus 42,5oo More.
The Smith statement did not ex-
plain where the new employees would
be assigned, but said that data
gathered by the Budget Bureau
indicates that approximately 5000
employees will come here between
now and July /. and 10000 in the
last half Of the year.
Experience shows the state
ment continues" that even under
conditions such as exist in WASH
ington today, these $4,000 new Gov
eminent employees will draw an ad-
ditional 42.500 workers to serve them
and their families as clerk, crafts
men, telephone operators, city en-
ployes and in other capacities. These
new Government workers and
private workers. together with their
families, are expected to bring the
total of new residents this year to
approximately 25o, 1000 by next Janu-
ary /.
This increase is equal to more
than half the total of the Districts
population in 1880, which was 49,
600; it is approximately equal to
the total population of Akron or
Birmingham, according to the latest
census. Furthermore the increase
will come after many months OF
constant growth, which has already
exhausted the leeway for expansion
of population and services formerly
possessed by Washington in COM
mon with other cities.
Many Thousands More Will Come.
In addition to this quarter of a
million people who will arrive in
Washington. there are many thou
sands who are now waiting to come.
A recent survey showed that of the
$500 families who moved into
Washington between October |,
1910, and November, 1941, one-quar-
ter of them left spouses or de-
pendent children behind them. OF
this number of families. 80 per cent
are now sharing a dwelling with
others, many of them because they
are unable to procure other accom-
modations.
Rental vacancies ready for oc-
cupancy are now reported at less
than one half of one per cent in the
District-which for practical pur-
poses represents complete absorp-
tion. The public and private build.
ing programs, either now under way
or recently planned, will provide
adequate facilities for little more
than the existing demand. Esti-
mates indicate that approximately
$4,000 family units would be re-
quired to care for the $4,000 new
Government employees and the a.
500 private workers and their FAM
lilies. The total cost Of this housing.
if it were possible to provide it.
(See DECENTRALIZATION, A-l03