Evening star., 1944-09-01
|h|der Offers
1oHe|p Builder,
GET Priorities
Tells House Group
He Would Transfer
740-Unit Program
BY DON S. WARREN.

BY DON S. WARREN.
With his low-cost housing pro-
gram under attack from several
sources, John Ihlder, executive
officer of the National Capital Hous-
ing Authority, today offered to help
private builders obtain TAO pending
dwelling priorities-if the builders
would guarantee to follow five strict
stipulations.
The suggestion for a transfer to
private builders of his program for
two large colored housing projects
was placed today before the Judi
ciary Subcommittee of the House
District Committee as it continued
hearings on the controversy as to
how Washington's future slum-
clearance program should operate.
Mr.. Ihlder's suggestion was a
sequel to a demand made yester-
day by Representative Hebert
Democrat, of Louisiana on Admin
tstrator John Blandford of the Ma
tional Housing Agency that he Sub
stantiate with action" his verbal
promises that private builders be
given preference, whenever possible,
in priorities for housing construc-
ton
Blandford. Approval Needed.
In making the offer, Mr.. Ihlder
reminded the committee and the
private building spokesmen that
the suggested transfer would have
to have the approval of Mr.. Bland
ford. He added, whether Mr..
Blandford can agree to this, I do
not know"
Mr.. Hebert had protested the
NCHA had held the TAO priorities
for year and had not yet started
construction, whereas several pri-
vate builders stood ready and will
ing" to do the building. One OF
the pending NCHA projects is for
Southeast Washington and the
other for the Northeast.
The five stipulations which Mr.
1hlder attached to his offer were:
That the private builders (acting
through a pledge to be made by
the Home Builders Association of
Metropolitan Washington agree tc
buy at full market value" the two
sites acquired by the NCHA for the
proposed developments;
That they erect on these sites TAO
dwellings for Negroes;
That they restrict site occupancy
to density not exceeding that
which NCHA proposes-l7.l fami-
lies per net acre on one site and
24.44 families per net acre on the
other;
That they erect dwellings con-
tanning three and four bedrooms in
stead of only one and two bedrooms
In the same proportion NCHA pro-
poses, with Is per cent having one
bedroom, so per cent with two. 25
per cent with three and 10 per cent
with four bedrooms.
Would Limit Rentals.
And that they rent these dwell
ingS to graduates" from NCHA
houses so that NCHA may take in
families of lower incomes-the pri-
vate owner to limit rental charges
Tor these graduates" to a level not
exceeding one-quarter of their in
comes.
Mr.. Ihlder said that if the rent
schedules given NCHA must be ad-
hered to, it would be somewhat
tougher" for the private builders
to make use of the TAO priorities.
Placing blame on private builders
for the lack of housing into which
NCHA tenant graduates could be
moved. Mr.. Ihlder said this phase
of the NCHA program has been
blocked by private builders be-
cause during prewar days. when
there were no priority problems.
they did not provide required mod
crate rental houses
The hearing also was marked by
a declaration from Matthew G. Lep-
ley, architect, that these hearings
should not be used for f1ag-Waving
by the NCHA about war housing
work it has been doing" He con-
tended war housing had no relation
to the pending question of future
slum- clearance work.
Mr.. Lepley was followed bv
Thomas S. Settle, secretary of the
National Capital Park and Planning
commission, one of the sponsors,
with the NCHA, of the urban rede-
velopment" lum-clearance bill. who
agreed that the three pending bills
had nothing to do with war housing.
A. j. Haskell, chief financial officer
OF NCHA, who has been waiting for
several months for a chance to tes-
THY, then took the stand and in
serted in the record lengthy replv
TO DR.. Frederick c. Smith. an earlier
witness, who had challenged state
ments made by Mr., Haskell before
the Burton subcommittee of the
Senate
Representative Abernethy. Demo-
crat, OF Mississippi, who presided
limited time for each witness. saw
Ing 1t was the request of Chairman
McGehee that the protracted hear
lngs be brought to a close TODAY
However, when Mr.. Ihlder, Mr.. Set
Tie and others asked for further
time Mr.. Abernethy agreed, to ad-
Journ the hearings subject to pos
slole resumption at the call of Mr.
McGehee. Also, he said additional
written statements would be ad-
mltted to the record.
Hotel Cafe Rohhed