Evening star., 1953-04-13
NCHASeesD.C.
Still Short Of
LoW-Rent Units
Report to Congress
Sees Little Easing
On Children Ban

A serious shortage of rental
housing for low-income families
still exists in the District, the
National Capital Housing Au-
thority said today.
A study on the rental housing
situation here was contained in
the annual report of the NCHA
sent to Congress. The NCHA
also said the lack of additional
sites for public housing projects
in the District was handicapping
its efforts.
James Ring, executive director
of NCHA. said the check on
rental housing was made by
studying classified ads in news
papers. Referring to one days
ads. he commented:
Although the advertisements
of rental vacancies still feature
the familiar adults only and
no children the landlord of
one furnished apartment an
nounced that children are well
come! The advertisements for
two other furnished apartments
let down the bars to the extent
OF. specifying 'one child ac-
cepted'."
EnCOuraging Note.
Mr.. Ring added:
These evidences of limited
Improvement in the local market
for private rental housing are
too Scanty and inconclusive fol
any broad claims, but they are
at least more encouraging than
the no children. pets or drunks
note, which characterized the
rental advertisements in the fall
of 1851"
He said the study of the ads
going back five years, reflected
the local shortage of rental hous-
ing, particularly for families in
the lower economic strata. Al
the same time, he added, the
study yielded a bare suggestion
OF a slight easing in the local
shortage of dwellings for small
families who can afford to pay
monthly rents of $50 or more.
Negro families in search OF
housing. whether having children
or not. were offered little. oppor-
tunity," Mr.. Ring said.
1856 NCHA Units.
The NCHA report also re-
vealed:
/. The NCHA was landlord for
1856 dwelling units in the Dis
trict, of which 3,504 are subject
to removal as war housing.
2. Under construction or ready
for building at the close of the
fiscal year were a total of LAS
dwellings on four sites-Stanton
Dwellings, Highland Dwellings,
Richardson Dwellings and East
Capitol Dwellings. Stanton, with
348 units, since has been COM
pleted.
8. Preliminary plans and eSti-
mates were completed on 1888
units at three sites-Lily Ponds
Dwellings, Carrolsburg and a
Northwest location.
4. Preliminary plans were un-
derway on 1,764 units at five
sites - ParkSide Dwellings Ad-
dition, a Benning location, Fort
Dupont -Stoddert Dwelling Ad-
dition, a Southwest location and
an Overlook location.
Interracial at Stanton.
The report said tanton
Dwellings has been occupied by
318 colored families and 80 white
families. This is the first public
housing project here to be rented
on an interracial basis.
The same policy will prevail at
the new Lily Ponds Dwellings
and the Carrollsburg Dwellings.
Others under NCHA are segre-
gated, more because of their To-
cation either in predominately
white or predominately colored
neighborhoods. the report ex-
planned.
Mr.. Ring said the completion
of Stanton Dwellings was i'm
portant in several respects.
He said it was the first public
housing project to be completed
in the NCHA's current 1000
dwelling program under the
Housing Act of 1949: the first
permanent public housing to be
added in the District since 1916;
the first public housing here to
contain units with as many as
five bedrooms, and the first to
be offered to low-income families
II