Evening star., 1951-12-30
Wary District Heads
Eye Plans 10
Boost Employees Rent
Commissioners Go Slow
On Committees Proposals
To Adjust inequalities
By John W. Stepp

first time in more than 20 years
whether, and by how much, to IN
crease the rents Of municipal
|resident-employes.
A special committee they ap-
pointed two years ago dropped the
problem in their laps last Thurs
day. The committees recon-
mendations included the upward
adjustment and standardization
of rents for more than 1000 en-
ployes living on the premises OF
nearly a score Of District agencies.
The Commissioners took the
matter under advisement after
Ishuddering at the thought that
some rents would go up from go
to 900 per cent under the stand
ardization plan.
While instances like 900 per
cent represent increases from a
mere IS to S44 monthly payments,
some employees have complained
that their quarters are so old or
cramped as to be undesirable even
at S..
DOnOhue Balks Action.
Commissioner F. Joseph Dono-
hue, in fact, baked at early adop-
ton of the proposal, commenting
that to take any rental for some
Iof the housing is a "steal" Com
missioners John Russell Young
and Bernard L. Robinson also ex-
pressed doubt over some of the
new rentals and agreed more study
Is in order.
The committee. comprised Of
five municipal officials, acknowl-
Iedges that the rental matter is
complicated by the wide variety
Iof municipal housing for employees.
This rage extends from build
ing of pre-Ciyil War vintage still
in use as part of Gallinger Hos
: pital to tidy modern detached
! homes of brick at Glenn Dale
Sanatorium.
To compensate for vast dis
crepancies of this sort, the special
committee divided rentals into
, four classiflcations from "desir-
i able" to ''noticeably inferior"
|, Each category carries different
rent scale.
: Glenn Dale Rates Top.
Glenn Dale. which was COM
pleted for resident occupancy
about 13 years ago, offers virtually
nothing but top-rated living quar-
ters. These include detached homes
for the two top executives. five
room, kitchen and bath duplex
apartments for resident physicians.
apartments for nurses and single
: rooms for attendants.
In the top category. rentals for
, detached homes would include in
.creases from $50 to $88 monthly;
= ,duplexes, S25 to SIT; apartments,
SIS to $34, and single rooms, S5 to
SIS. The few Class c rooms would
go from IS to S11, and Glass B
dormltory apartments from S25 to
( s54.
DR.. Daniel L. Finucane, Glenn
Dale superintendent, said he
fears that increased rentals may
discourage sanitorium employees
D or prospective employees.
i I'VE are already short stated
e here because of the problem Of
a getting to and from an institution
2 so far out from town." DR.. Finu-
cane said. He added that low
. rentals always are part of the
incentive" to get resident en-
! ployeS in an institution.
/ Underscores Incentive
' An officer who lives in the
District jail in an eight-by-ten
cubicle formerly a cell, under
: scored the incentive" point.
+ I'VE only pay SIS a month but
! look what we get-bed, table,
chair, bars on the window. toilet
bowl less than a foot from the
bed, no visitors. no pets, not even
a can of beer" he said. His
: home" located in the ancient
:. original building of the jail, would
cost 81 more under the proposed
new scale.
The jail superintendent, who
lives in a 50-year-old building
right across the street from the
: jail, would have to pay s22 more
! than his present $50 rental, plus
So monthly charge for garage.
0 DR.. Philip A. E. Stebbing. super
!. intendent of Gallinger, pointed
I out that while a number of new
I quarters have been built recently
lon the hospital grounds the
younger resident physicians must
: live in structure which dates
} from 1848.
Noted For Uneven Floors.
DR.. Stebbing said that this
building, which accommodates
about 80, is noted for it's uneven
floors. loose windows and lacks
!, of closets.
One physician declared the
rooms are SO small and inconven-
lent that there's barely room to
put your shirts and Sox-its just
a place to sleep"
= Under the new rent plan, in
: terneS. student nurses, trainees
and resident physicians paid less
than $2,100 salaries would be ex-
Icluded from higher rentals. How
ever, some of the bottom grade
quarters at Gallinger would cost
more according to the scale.
L0rtOn "Sees Logic"
u Donald Clemmer, who heads the
Department of Corrections with
headquarters at Lorton, Va.
pointed out that while most of
the living quarters for his large
resident staff are comfortable,
many of the buildings are 20 or
80 years old.
I Naturally, no one likes a rent
increase, but our people know it's
coming and I think they see the
t logic in If z" Mr. Clapopoar coid