Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-09-13
Southwest: Who Is Ii For?
BY GEORGE BEvERIDGE
star stan Writer

Southwest should be mainly for
the poor, or mainly for the rich,
or mainly for some group in be-
tween. And over the years, official
policy on this question has under
gone sharp changes.
AS Of today. the die seems
pretty well cast. Almost 1000
dwellings-roughly a fifth Of the
total housing-will be in Govern
ment-subsidized public housing,
for families with incomes gener-
ally below $4,000 a year. The bal
ance of 1000 dwellings. built and
marketed by private investors, will
be divided about equally between
aforementioned, elevator apart
ment houses and row town
houses" Rents and sales prices
for most of this private housing.
officials say. probably will require
family incomes that start at about
$4,000.
A few weeks ago, however. con-
troversy broke out over this pros
pect. 1t was raised by a decision
to eliminate q requirement Of the
old redevelopment plan that 800
units of "low-rent" private hous-
ing must be built in the 80-acre
Area B project. Under the re-
quirement, rents for these units
could have totaled no more than
SIT per room per month. This
would figure to a rent somewhere
near $40 a month. excluding util-
tiles, for q normal two-bedroom
unit.
Ceiling Held Impractical
At q public hearing, citizen
opinion on the decision generally
agreed that the old rent ceiling
was impractical-at least at the
SIT a room level. But one group.
the National Conference Of Cath
Ollie Charities, bitterly attacked
the elimination In a report that
was prepared for 1t by a young
Massachusetts, priest. the Rev.
Robert G. Howes.
Father Howes' main point was
that very few of the families
displaced from the old Southwest
would be able to afford to return
to private housing in the new
Southwest. And this, he con-
tended. was improper.
In his report, Father Howes
charged that Washington. in its
preoccupation with restoring the
central city and increasing tax
values. was losing sight of the
human elements" of redevelop-
ment. He questioned that an ade-
quate supply of decent housing
exists elsewhere to relocate all
the low-income families that will
be displaced from the Southwest.
He pointed out that nowhere out
side Of redevelopment areas is
new private housing being built
for the 'lower-middle" income
groups - those in the $4,000
$1,000 income brackets, which ex-
coed income eligibility for public
housing. And he contended that
redevelopment-as a matter Of
principle-should do so.
Revision Since 1852
Father Howes' contentious are
not new and, in the early days
Of redevelopment planning. it was
expected that there would be q
good deal of low-rent private
housing in the Southwest. In
1852. for example, when the city
first approved its Area B plan,
1t was stated that the Southwest
generally should be predomi-
nantly a moderate to lower-in-
come area, about one-fourth Of
1t being redeveloped with low
rent public and private housing"
At that time, according to John
r. Searles. jr., director of the
District Redevelopment Land
Agency RLA), there were three
major factors which influenced
thinking. These we're:
/. A belief that there would,
indeed, be trouble finding decent
new homes for all the families to
be displaced from the Southwest
slumS. It was felt, therefore, that
a substantial amount of low
income housing would be needed
in Area B to handle displacees
from the rest Of the Southwest.
2. A belief, long advocated by
city planners, that the most
healthy kind of community is one
which has a wide diversity Of
family incomes and, therefore, a
wide variety Of housing.
3. A general background of plan
ming, dating back to the mid
1940s, which envisioned only q
modest upgrading Of the South
west, its residents being mainly
people who would work in the area.
In the years since then, how
ever, several factors have con-
tributed to a switch in policy.
Housing Which Turned Up
The first Of these, officials say.
is that a steady supply Of decent
housing elsewhere in the city to
house displacees Of all income lev
els has turned UP. There are still
shortages Of housing for very large
families, but this is virtually the
only problem group" So "reloca-
alton" housing within the South
west, aside from the question Of
its desirability, is not the essen
tial need that it was earlier
thought to be.
James g. Banks, chief Of the
RLA's relocation service, said this
housing has become available
mainly as a result of vacancies in
established neighborhoods, caused
by the moves Of District residents
to the suburbs. Paralleling these
vacancies, he said, there has been
a breakdown Of racial barriers in
nearly every part of the city. A
large map on Mr.. Banks Office
wall, with pins marking the relo-
cation points Of former Southwest
residents. proves the point. A