Evening star., 1954-12-30
Housing Code Group
Reaches Accord on
How 10 Draft Plan

l 4 lss
The steering group Of the Dis
trict's Housing Code Review
Committee late yesterday reach
ed general agreement" on q
statement of philosophy designed
to serve as a beacon for drafting
each provision Of the proposed
code.
Charles B. Dulcan, chairman
of the steering body. said that
the general agreement is to be
reduced to final written form to-
day and presented to the Dis
trict Commissioners for approval
at 10 am. tomorrow.
Mr.. Dulcan would not disclose
the nature of the philosophic ap-
proach. But it is understood to
embrace at least one key point:
The code will be enforced on an
area-by-area basis as part of o
planned program of housing re-
habilitation, except where speci-
nc complaints are made to au-
thorities of deficiencies in dwell
ing units.
Briefed by Consultants.
Meanwhile. the two consult
ants hired by the District to tell
the city how to set up its overall
urban renewal program gave the
Commissioners a two-hour brief
ing yesterday on their coming
report.
It will go to the printers, they
said. in the next couple of weeks.
and then will be released to the
public. The consultants are Ma
] thaniel S. Keith, former slum
clearance and redevelopment di-
rector of the Housing and Home
Finance Agency. and James w.
Rouse, Baltimore mortgage
banker who helped write the
Eisenhower administrations 1854
Federal Housing Act.
Commissioners Samuel Spen-
Ger and Col. Thomas Lane said
the consultants, among other
things, are recommending zone
enforcement by teams Of inspec-
tors of the Districts proposed
housing code and other anti-slum
regulations.
They suggested, the Commits
sioners said. that one team work
on forcing rehabilitation of
actual slum or renewal" areas, a
second on better neighborhoods
ito prevent blight from setting
in" and a third on potential
renewal areas" to prevent them
from getting any worse.
Two-Part Statement.
The statement of philosophy
submitted to the housing code
steering body was in two parts.
The first established that the
code would be designed to
promote the health, safety. well
fare and morals Of the commune
lty and get rid Of those elements
endangering the best interests of
the city.
The second, dealing with en-
forcement, specified that areas.
rather than isolated instances, Of
housing deficiencies would be the
target of the code.
The steering committees rec
concentrations were to be put
into final shape today in a special
meeting called by Mr.. Dulcan.
Working with the chairman on
this draft will be William H.
Dyer, vice chairman of the re-
view committee; D. Yates Cook,
executive director Of the Federal
City Council. and Assistant Cor
poration Counsel Robert F.
Kneipp.,
These officials and others will
discuss their recommendations at
the meeting with the Commis-
sioners tomorrow.
Lists Disagreements.
At the steering group meeting
yesterday an itemized list Of the
major points of disagreement
which arose at the December /
public hearing on the housing
code were submitted and dis
cussed briefly. Mr.. Dulcafl said
no effort to reconcile these diff
ferences will be made until after
the Commissioners have decided
on a suitable statement Of the
philosophy for the code.
The disagreements as boiled
down for the steering group:
l. Whether more facts should
be secured relating to the effect
of the proposed housing code on
the District housing situation.
2. Whether the housing code
should include. as supplementary
parts, provisions relating to
(a) Licensing of lodging, room
ing and boarding houses,
(b) Licensing Of tenement
houses,