Evening star., 1944-05-20
War Housing Needs
OF Metropolitan Area
Substantially Met

tlally py war housing projects al
ready constructed or under con-
struction, according to John w
Hyde, District field representative
of the National Housing Agency.
Based on present production
! schedules, he said, it is estimated
that as result of spring and early
summer construction, the private
housing supply for the area will be
increased by several thousand units
by fall.
With reference to the Negro hous-
ing problem, which has been
stressed in recent discussion of
Washingtons housing troubles, Mr..
Hyde said it was anticipated that
units now under construction or near
completion will begin to come on
the market nappreciable numbers
this fall. Some units, he said al
ready have been made available.
Builders Get Priorities.
Priorities for construction of 3 900
units for Negroes are in the hands
OF private builders, according to
John Ihlder, executive officer of the
National Capital Housing Authority.
ana prlorities for an additional | 900
units are in NCHA hands. But. he
added. 5000 more would be needed
to satisfy the nee.i for Negro hous-
ing in this area.
Meantime, j. T. Risher, real estate
broker, who recently conferred with
Mr.. Ihlder, and officials of the
National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission, indicated he was
looking over sites recommended to
him as possible locations for new
Negro homes. He plans to make a
report to the Planning Commission
shortly. he said. In the Suburban
Heights development, he said 36
new homes for Negroes are under
construction, with $50 planned.
MIR. Hyde also made public a sur
vey OF occupancy in privately owned
dwelling units in the WASHINGTON
area, made by the Census Bureau
1t showed a gross vacancy rate of
liz per cent and a habitable for
rent or sale vacancy rate of 1 per
cent among the units during March
The results were obtained through
a sample survey" of $4,000 dwell
ing units, made at the request of
the National Housing Agency.
Smallest Number Here.
The smallest proportion of unoc-
cupied dwelling units were found in
the District, where the gross va
cancy rate was 09 per cent, while
IN the nearby areas, Virginia had
a gross vacancy rate of 1.6 per cent,
and Maryland per cent.
The 1 per cent "habitable" va
cancy rate was considered to be
more realistic in evaluating the
present need" Mr.. Hyde said, than
the gross vacancy rate Of IL per
cent.
"Habitable vacancies represent a
lower proportion for Negroes thsn
for whites" he said, with one-third
Negro vacancies not habitable. Nu-t
mercially this represents only about
$50 dwellings, two-thirds of which
are for rent.
The $1,000 bedrooms in white
homes, and the $500 in the homes
OF Negro families which are not
currently used as sleeping rooms do
not represent in all instances rooms
available to war workers" /" he added.
In some cases they could and are
being continually utilized for This
purpose, but this number includes
guest rooms, storage rooms, studies.
and others not furnished at the time
OF the survey. Many Of them are
listed at the War Housing Centers II,
Washington, Alexandria and Airing
ton.
Cover 2e5, ,eee Units.
For Washington, with 20s .ooo
dwellings covered, the rental va
cancy rate of 05 per cent was
slightly less than that for the area
as a whole. The rental vacancy in
the Virginia area totals also o.5 Der
cent as opposed to IL per cent In
adjoining Maryland counties.
For Negro dwellings in the Is. 600
units in Washington which consti-
tute nine-tenths of the housing SUD-
ply for Negroes in the area, q total
nabitable vacancy of OF per cent is
indicated, half of which are for rent
In terms of number of dwellings.