Evening star., 1946-08-02
Planners 10 Ask
Early Funds for
S|um Program
Visit Areas to
Determine Priority
Of RedeveIopments
H. P,,I.I.L K~Ik- ~
By Rudolph Kouffmonn II

L
Planning Commission Is to take i'm
mediate steps to get funds to finance
the District slum clearance and re-
development master plan for which
1t would be responsible under the
slum clearance act just passed by
Congress and now awaiting the
Presidents signature.
The commission made this an
nouncement through its secretary,
Thomas S. Settle, Immediately fol-
lowing yesterdays halliday session,
devoted to discussion of it's RESPONSE
bilities under the act.
The session included a tour of
slum areas in the District as well
as the 150-acre area of relatively un-
developed land bounded by st. Eliza
beth's Hospital, Nichols avenue Sc.
Fort Stanton Park and Howard
street Sc.
Priority Areas Visited.
Slum areas badly in need of re-
development, which threaten to
spread their decadence into adjoin-
ing residential sections, were visited
first-the area just east of Griffith
Stadium near the Mott School and
the Mcmillan Pumping Station
where the National Capital Housing
Authority already has made some
progress toward redevelopment
under previous housing legislation,
and the alley dwellings in Neal place
and Ridge street NV
These areas are as bad AS any in
the city, planning commission aides
said, and are likely to come in for
early attention under the act.
Then the planners, accompanied
by Jonn Ihlder, executive officer of
the National Capital Housing Au-
thority, went to the Fort Stanton
area.
Here. Mr. Ihlder explained. Gen.
o. Q. Howard, who was head of the
Freedmen's Bureau, post-Civil War
agency created to help freed and
escaped slaves, succeeded in having
set aside a number of large plots,
many from $50 to 300 feet in width
and depth in the hope that the men
and women just coming out of
bondage could make a farm living in
a small way
An Economic Slum."
The area was subdivided for this
purpose, he continued, but, now
when an area SO close to the city's
center is badly needed for housing
it is what he termed an economic
slum "a waste of land which could
be better used another way.
Planning officials indicated this
land would be ideal for an initial
project. Housing could be created
there first and families from down
town slums moved in as their former
homes were razed for redevelopment
under the SUM act.
Here's how the act would work to
Clear up the specific situation cov-
cred in the tour:
After preparing its city-wide slum
master plan, the commission would
then make a detailed project plan
covering the Fort Stanton area.
This would be submitted to the Dis
trict Commissioners, who would in
turn hold a public hearing on it,
Then the Commissioners and the
Planning Commission would COL
laborate to clear up defects brought
out by the hearing and forward the
plan to the fve-man Slum Clear
ance and Redevelopment Agency set
up by the act.
Provides for Bids.
The agency would then purchase
the land, using it's s20,000oO0 re-
volving fund, and would advertise
for bids from private contractors to
build the project. If private enter
prise failed to bid, the National
Capital Housing Authority would
have the opportunity to step in and
bid for the project.
Making the trip were three men,
bers of the commission: Mai. Gen
U. S. Grant III, retired, chairman
j. c. Nichols and Henry v. Hub
bard; Col Kenneth E. Madsen, as
sistant District Engineer Commits
sioner; John Nolen, jr., director OF
planning; Thomas c. Jeffers, staff
landscape architect: Mr.. Settle and
Norman c. Brown, land purchasing
officer