Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-09-26
1OPct. Of City
Found Living
In SIum Homes
1850 Census Study
Discloses n, 900
Substundurd Houses

housing was drawn yesterday for
the Commissioners Committee
on Stun Prevention and Re-
Mobilization in a new survey Of
1850 census figures.
Substantial public aid is re-
quired IF most of the families
living in the slums of Washing
ton are to be decently rehoused."
said report submitted by James
Ring. executive director of the
National Capital Housing Au-
thority.
The survey. carried out by the
Census Bureau. counted more
than $4,000 substandard dwelling
units spread over sc of the Dis
trict's SO census tracts. Less
than 1000 such homes were es-
timated in the remaining tracts.
More than half the families
occupying slum housing here
cannot afford to pay as much
as $40 month rent, a study Of
| AAANOAAG 0dOd lIlu1CdGGQ.
Three Criteria Cited.
Although based on 1850 census
figures, the study nevertheless
Is valid as a general indication
OF the extent of the housing
problem and the locations in
which substandard housing is
concentrated" the report main
tanned.
The Commissioners committee
was told that the extent to which
public assistance must be given
IN order to rehouse slum fam
lilies decently will be determined
by three things:
l. The ability of private in
terests "to do more than they
ever have done in the past" to
provide adequately for displaced
slum families at rents compatible
with their incomes. ~~.
2. The financial assistance
made available to the housing
authority to provide the hous-
ing required to accommodate dis
placed families whose needs CEN
not be met properly by private
facilities. --.
3. The availability of sites
which the authority can use for
the construction of the neces-
sary housing.
Land Availability Vanishing.
"The supply of land available
for public housing construction
| in the District of Columbia Is
approaching the vanishing point"
the report noted. land it is EVIL
dent that a considerable part of
future construction must take
place on the sites now occupied
by slums."
The housing authority said.
however, that IAN about attack
upon the slums which continue
to disgrace the Nations Cap
ital" must enlist all Of the con-
structive resources of the COM
munity.
This task is not the exclusive
responsibility of q few independ-
ent agencies, but one which de-
; mands an effectively co-ordi-
mated and continuing program
under the leadership of the
. Commissioners and with the &C.
tive cooperation and participa-
ton of public and private inter-
ests." 1t declared.
: In what it called q "conserv-
alive estimate" of the housing
: problem. the report brought out
: these highlights:
Where the SIums Are.
More than two-thirds, or 60
of the SO census tracts, each
contained 100 or more substand-
, ard homes in 1850. Thus the
. housing problem is not that of q
single neighborhood or q few.
; The heaviest concentration Of
. decaying housing is in the older,
central portions of the city. But
"sizeable danger spots of blight"
are evident in other neighbour
hoods.
The concentrated substandard
, housing by areas - Northwest.
, 13,625 units, including 7,415 in
IL census tracts east of Six
tenth street between Florida
avenue and the Mall; South
west, 2,775 units in four tracts;
Southeast, 1850 units. including
1926 in eight tracts west of the
Anacostia River, and Northeast,
4,645 units, including 3,430 in
| eight tracts west of the Anacos-
tia south Of Florida avenue and
Benning road.
Sine the figures were obtained,
the District Redevelopment Land
Agency has begun an extensive
slum clearance program in
Southwest Washington.
Who Lives in the Sums.
White persons occupied 10,412
= of the total substandard homes,
and non-white. 1927. OF 1920
units reported as mot dilapi-
dated" but lacking private bath
or running water, 8,469 were oc-
: cupied by white persons and
. 1851 by non-white. OF 9.6l9
"dilapidated" dwellings, 1,943
, were white and 1876 white
occupied
, In 20,280 units occupied pri-
marily by families, there were
estimated to be at least 72,480
persons. Adding homes primarily
occupied by individuals. some of
which had dodgers, the estimate
was that at least 5000 persons
lived in Slum housing as of 1850,
or more than 1919 of the popula-
ton.
Family Income.
The Districts slum housing is
occupied largely by families
whose incomes are so low they
cannot afford to pay $50
month rent or more. and more
than half have incomes insuffi-
cient to permit them to pay as
much as $40 a month.