Evening star., 1944-05-18
Slunn Clearance
Battle Put Up
ToCongress
Tydings Files Bill
To Give Green Light
To Privute Builders
BY DON S. WARREN.

BY DON s. WARREN.
The embattled issue as to whether
private industry should be given the
full field in Washington's future
slum clearance -redevelopment pro-
gram or whether the subsidized
rental portion should be reserved to
a Government agency was before
Congress today.
Setting the stage for a final test.
Senator Tydings, Democrat. of
Maryland yesterday introduced a
bill sponsored, at least in principle,
by numerous civic and business
groups which would give the green
light to private enterprise.
Bills Before Congress.
Already before Congress and un-
der study by the Burton Housing
Subcommittee of the Senate District
Committee is the McCarran bill
proposing s20,0oo0 900 revolving
fund to finance continued work by
the National Capital Housing
Authority.
Ready for introduction is the
urban redevelopment bill approved
by the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission and the Dis
trict Commissioners, which would
give private capital opportunity to
engage in rebuilding blighted areas
except in the lowest cost fields.
There, this bill, submitted yesterday
to Senator Burton, suggests the
work be done by public agency,
presumably the NCHA.
The Tydings measure, which is
identical with one offered in the
House bit later yesterday by
Chairman Randolph of the House
District Committee, carries a pro-
vision extending for five years the
present July. i deadline on alley
dwelling occupancy.
Debate to Be Resumed.
Debate on plans to reclaim blighted
areas is to be resumed before the
Burton subcommittee of the Senate
tomorrow and be continued Sat-
urday.
Shortly after Senator Tydings Of
fered his measure yesterday, Joseph
H. Deckman, chairman of the Hous-
ing Committee of the Federation Of
Citizens Associations, issued a state
ment in which he declared:
What public housers want 20
years and 10000, 900 to do, private
enterprise will do completely in less
than six years at no ultimate cost
to the taxpayers. Those who
suggest that some compromise
formula be devised to save corner
or hiding place for the public build
ing bureaucracy ignore the cold
fact that public housers haven't
used the last nine years to rehouse
slum dwellers and admit they don't
intend to in the future until they
have achieved their ideas of social
uplift involving four times as much
housing as the job calls for
He added: Until tenant assist
ance is placed under the local public
welfare agencies the evils and
dangers of the present system will
persist"
Agency of Members.
The Tydings-Randolph measure
provides for the creation of a slum-
clearance agency of seven members.
all but two of whom would be
named by the District Commission
ers. Two would be Federal officials
designated by the President, two
would be District officials designated
by the Commissioners and three
others would be citizens, resident
here for five years or more, to be ap-
pointed by the Commissioners.
The citizen representatives would
be paid on a per diem basis for
agency work, the Government repre-
sentatives receiving no extra pay.
The agency, after public hearings.
would determine redevelopment OF
blighted areas and would acquire
by condemnation or otherwise the
sites and later sell or lease them for
long terms to private redevelopment
corporations under competitive bid
ding or after public hearings.
The bill also would provide that
where tenants needed assistance to
pay rents for the low-cost housing.
such aid should be determined and
handled through the District Well
fare Department.
Tydings Explains Plan.
Senator Tydings explained that
under such plan there would be no
tax exemption, no revolving fund,
no public money involved except the
funds used to acquire areas and
this money, he added, would be re-
covered through sales or leases and
increased taxes on redevelopment
of blighted areas.
The Tydings- bill was
said to have been indocSed formally
by the Home Builders Association
of Metropolitan Washington. the
Washington Taxpayers Association,
the District Building Owners and
Managers Association. the Housing
and Rent Control Committee of the
Federation of Citizens Associations,
the Arlington CVaD Board of Trade.
the Arlington tVaO Chamber of
Commerce, the Alexandria. Arling-
ton and Fairfax Real Estate Board
and the Housing Committee of the
Southeast Council.
Spokesman or committees of the
following groups also we're said to
have indorSed basic principles un-
DERIVING the Tydings Randolph bill:
Washington Board of Trade, District
Building and Loan LeaSue, District
Mortgage Bankers Association, Dis
trict Bankers Association, the Fed
Grafton of Businessmen, the WASH
ington Real Estate Board and Il
citizens associations