Evening star., 1945-03-25
Digest Fdyors
Private HOUSING
Program Here
Conference Board
Summarizes Burton
Committee Hearings

Committee Hearings
A report by the National Indus
trial Conference Board of New
York, summarizing the arguments
made last year before the Burton
Subcommittee OF the Senate over
the Districts past and proposed
slum clearance programs, will be
distributed this week to all men,
bers of the Senate and the House
District Committees.
Setting down in concise form the
opposing contentious in the long
controversy between public and pri-
vate housing interests, it contains
definite findings on two points, at
least, which are being interpreted
as lending strength to proposals of
private builders, spearheaded by the
Metropolitan Home Builders Asso-
citation.
These are:
That construction costs of private
builders are substantially lower"
for low rental dwellings than for
comparable housing built by the
National Capital Housing Author
ity, which would be abolished under
one of the bills now before Congress.
Pros and Cons Cited.
That costs of MANAGEMENT of
houses under private industry are
lower.
Such findings, based on testimony
before the subcommittee, are listed
with scores of others in an impartial
outline of pro and con reasons and
explanations. Decisions tI1at should
be reached on the issues are left up
to the reader.
Virgil Jordan, president of the
Conference Board, explained in an
introduction to the review that the
board had not attempted to solve
Washington's slum problem, pass on
pending bills or resolved contro-
versial issues. Rather, he said. 1t
had sought to assist in assimilating
the voluminous testimony.
Analysis of the hundreds of pages
OF testimony, factual tables and ex-
hibits. however, brought the re-
search staff to the summary find
ing, as reported in the advance
newspaper release last Tuesday,
that:
Private enterprise can build and
maintain housing developments for
the lowest income groups at lower
cost than the Government agency
charged with slum clearance here
has been able to achieve since its
creation in 1884, provided the Gov
ernment assists in obtaining sites
and gives assurance of a clear field. +"
Conclusions Noted.
Salient conclusions found by the
board we're:
Il. Slow progress has been made
by NCHA since its establishment in
June, 1884, in clearing Washing
tons inhabited slum alleys. OF the
100 existing in 1884, NCHA has elm
mated II; other public agencies, 13,
and private owners, l3, with lat
remaining. The public authority has
been hampered by the relatively
small funds made available to it and
has been further delayed by the as
signment to it of the task of pro-
viding housing for war workers.
%. In addition to the housing
erected in the reclaimed slum areas,
NCHA has also built four low-rent
projects on vacant and sparsely oc-
cupied areas. IN total, NCHA has
completed 2,544 low-rent dwelling
units, of which 1903 have been
temporarily converted to war-worker
occupancy.
"3. NCHA throughout has built
with a social rather than profit
purpose in view. In so doing. it has
included many features, such as
generous provision for open space
and community facilities, not Gus
tomarily provided in low-rent pri-
vate projects built for profit and
sale. NCHA properties are exempt
from all local taxes.
Management Costs.
a. Construction costs of private
builders, on the basis of evidence
submitted, are substantially lower
for low-rental dwellings than COM
parable units built under public
direction.
IS. Statutory restrictions neces-
state higher wage costs in public
housing. This wage-rate differential
reduces private housing costs from
3 to Is per cent below public housing
costs.
IS. Management costs for public
housing projects averaged 13 per
cent of rents in 1943, as compared
with customary management rates
for private projects Of per cent of
rents collected.
~. Local private builders have
asked that the task of clearing
Washington slums be left exclusively
to them. They pledge in return to
wipe out slum areas and to build
1000 low-rent housing units in
six years time. They ask. that pub
lie housing be kept out of this COM
| pCUlOAfC AlClO III JILL &C W AVC yCdI D
Congress could, however. intervene
at any time, in event of poor per-
formance.
Builders Stand Summarized.
"8. Private builders ask that the
activities of new private agency
be limited to exercise of eminent
domain, and to specification of areas
to be cleared, uses to be made OF
areas, and the conditions under
which such areas shall be sold OF
leased by competitive bidding tc
Continued on Page BIS, Col. u
Truman 10 Be Speaker
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