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TRAILER PROJECT

Mr. DIRKSEN. Now for item No. 4, the trailer park: That was developed as I understand it, with the thought that the people would move into some of these housing units.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. You had 150 trailers.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Did you buy those trailers?

Mr. IHLDER. No; we borrowed them from Farm Security; they were loaned for that period.

Mr. DIRKSEN. They loaned you the trailers; did you set up an account against them?

Mr. MANDELL. No; it was treated as a loan.

Mr. DIRKSEN. There was no bookeeping account.

Mr. IHLDER. No.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Nothing was paid for them.

Mr. MANDELL. No. The only cost we had was in connection with the sites, and installing toilets, washing facilities, and so forth, and connections.

Mr. DIRKSEN. What disposition was made of them?

Mr. IHLDER. They have now been turned back to the Federal Public Housing Authority to use elsewhere as they are needed.

Mr. DIRKSEN. I assume they were equipped with tires, were they

not?

Mr. IHLDER. When they came in they were equipped with tires, and, as I remember it, we kept three sets of tires and all the rest were taken back. The three sets were to shift them from one location to

another.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Suppose from the Farm Credit Administration you get a statement showing what they paid for the trailers and the tires. I think it would be interesting to have in the record in order to give us a complete picture.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes. On the basis of information secured from Farm Security Administration, we submit the following:

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TABLE VIII.-Statistical table showing development costs and management costs of

the trailer camp

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TABLE VIII.-Statistical table showing development costs and management costs of the trailer camp-Continued

Cost of trailer camp management costs June 1 through Nov. 30, 1942:

Project office salaries..

Central office salaries.
Leasehold

Other office expenses..
Operating services.

Utilities

Repairs, maintenance, and replacement.

Total cost

EMERGENCY DEFENSE HOUSING

$1, 538. 30 1, 295. 00

1, 923. 60

361. 68 2, 894. 01

731. 62

547. 20

9, 291. 41

Mr. DIRKSEN. The next item is the Emergency Defense Housing, in the President's fund.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. I understand that has been decreased from the original estimate by some 7% million dollars.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. That embraces the demountable houses?

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Will there be an economic rent set-up for those? Mr. IHLDER. We will set up an economic rent over the life expectancy, of 35 years.

Mr. DIRKSEN. How many have been completed; have they all been completed?

Mr. IHLDER. Of the 2,000 all except 200 are definitely programmed. For the remaining 200 we are still seeking sites.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Will you show how many have been completed, the rental, the contributions, and if they are not amortized out over this period whether or not there will be a loss and at least an estimate of it?

Mr. IHLDER. Could I make a general statement on that?

Mr. DIRKSEN. Yes.

Mr. IHLDER. As I said, we set an economic rent, based on the life expectancy of 35 years. These houses are good for 35 years with normal use.

Now, if the war should end in 3 years or 5 years-suppose we say it ends in 5 years, there will be 30 years that are not amortized. Then it will depend upon what we can sell the houses for.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Will you also show the land costs involved and the type of construction?

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

MANAGEMENT COST, DEMOUNTABLE HOUSES

Mr. DIRKSEN. The next item is management on these demountable houses. Have you an item showing management cost on those? Mr. IHLDER. No; not as yet.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Suppose you project that for the next fiscal year.
Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

(The information requested follows:)

TABLE V.-War housing program Statistical table reflecting annual rents and cost factors for completed properties and those in advanced construction stage

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1 Represents latest estimate of all costs. Final costs not definitely fixed. Syphax houses and 35th St. houses just in initial occupancy period. Other properties nearing completion. Annual rental schedule and annual subsidy figures cannot be determined at this stage. The economic rent includes amortization with interest over 35 years. This accounts for higher percentage of economic rent to development cost.

Includes direct management costs; janitorial expense; utilities, actual repairs, maintenance, and replace ments, leaseholds.

TRUST FUND GROUP

Mr. DIRKSEN. The next item is the trust fund of the United States Housing Authority for which you have nine projects involving 2,796 units, several of which have been completed. Will you give us a statement for the record covering that item, showing what the contribution is?

Mr. MANDELL. There have just been completed seven of the projects, and they are either fully occupied or in the process of selecting

tenants.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Will you state the status of the projects and the estimated contributions?

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

Mr. DIRKSEN. The next item would be the operation of the U. S. H. A. project. That is a management account, I suppose.

Mr. IHLDER. The United States Housing Authority aided projects are constructed with money borrowed by the Alley Dwelling Authority from the United States Housing Authority.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Yes.

Mr. IHLDER. We are in the position of owner and the U. S. H. A. in the positior of banker.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Now, the next item is the operation and management account of completed properties under the first trust fund account.

Mr. IHLDER. Yes.

LANGSTON HOUSING PROPERTY

Mr. DIRKSEN. The Langston Housing project involves 274 units. Mr. IHLDER. That was built by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works. It was transferred to the United States Housing Authority and on April 1, 1940, was leased by the United States Housing Authority to the Alley Dwelling Authority, which now manages it under the lease.

Mr. DIRKSEN. How is your administrative personnel set-up? Is that carried against each project?

Mr. IHLDER. What we do is to have a central office and charge against each project its share of the cost.

TEMPORARY HOUSING, COMPLAINTS OF LOCATIONS

Mr. DIRKSEN. Recently you sent me a copy of a memorandum furnished Mr. Randolph. I have not had time to examine it. There was some complaint concerning the temporary housing project, was there not?

Mr. IHLDER. That was recently?

Mr. DIRKSEN. Yes.

Mr. IHLDER. I would like to say something about that before we conclude.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Yes; suppose you give us a statement now.

Mr. IHLDER. Congress has determined that this war housing shall be temporary. In order to cut down the initial cost and to make full use of sites serviced by utilities, the A. D. A. last February devised two-story demountable houses which can be sold to private purchasers and removed at the end of the war.

Again, in order to keep the cost as low as possible we lease sites instead of buying them when that is to the advantage of the Government. But in the case of a large tract where it is necessary to install streets and utilities, purchase is advantageous to the Government. Then the war houses will be sold separately from the land and the land will be put on the market as improved subdivision.

Mr. DIRKSEN. Does that involve the continued management of the property after the arrangement has been completed?

Mr. IHLDER. It involves continued management until the houses are sold and all the lease commitments are discharged.

The program contemplates that the houses shall be sold within 1 year after the declaration of peace, or whatever phrase is decided upon. If the land is leased it will then revert to its owner. If it is bought, it will be sold and the Alley Dwelling Authority will be through with that project.

The property will be sold to private purchasers. That is what is contemplated.

Recently, under the fourth Lanham Act, which applies to the Washington locality, the cost was put down to an over-all of $3,000. We had found that $3,000 was too small a figure for a normal house in the District of Columbia with wages and other costs as they are. Stoddert dwellings actually came to nearly $3,200. Congress then raised the price so that we could build the Highland dwellings at $3,500. I still hope I can get you to go out and see these Highland dwellings.

Then in the fourth Lanham Act, the price was reduced to $3,000 over-all, land, architectural service, everything must be included in the $3,000. This means that the construction cost of the house could not be more than $2,000. We have developed what I think is a good temporary shelter for this cost.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. $2,000 over-all?

Mr. IHLDER. For construction $2,000; $3,000 over-all. We have a difficult problem in meeting this low figure while developing a house that will provide proper shelter for war workers. When we began on this program the War Production Board was beginning to impose restrictions and they have become increasingly stringent. At the present time, for example, we can have only 50 feet of water pipe per dwelling unit, including pipe in the street and laid up to the house. That does not permit us to build except where we can connect with existing water mains. We have got to build right by existing water pipes and other utilities.

There are comparatively few sites that meet the requirements, and these are largely in the good residential districts. That is where the streets have been improved and the water and sewer accommodations are in. Consequently we have had to use sites that are in good residential districts.

Very naturally the home owners who have bought homes costing anywhere from $8,000 to $25,000 or more object to having these $2,000, $3,000, and $4,000 temporary houses put in their neighborhoods. They fear depreciation of values.

When we say they are temporary, for the duration only, the home owners are skeptical and recall the Government hotels that stood so long on the Union Station Plaza. There are two risks between which to make a choice: First, the risk of an epidemic due to house overcrowding, with its effect upon our war effort; and, second, the risk of depreciating neighboring property values. If the temporary housing really is temporary, the second risk is small. But if the temporary housing is permitted to remain indefinitely, its effect may be considerable. So the Alley Dwelling Authority interprets literally the legislation providing for temporary housing and is seeking every means to assure that it will be temporary.

We are doing everything we can to assure house owners that these houses shall be temporary, but they reply "Look at the Government hotels on the station plaza; they remained for years; Congress can at any time nullify anything you are promising." So our suggestion has been that Congress definitely put into legislative form a provision that we may set up out of rents a reserve fund which will enable us to pay for the removal or demolition of these temporary houses.

We did put such a provision into our financial program, but the Budget Bureau told us that the law does not provide for it; the law says every cent must go back into the Treasury. The General Accounting Office gave us the same answer. Consequently, we are unable to set up this reserve fund under the present law. That fund would be the best guarantee we could give home owners that these temporary houses shall be temporary, and that is what we wish.

Mr. DIRKSEN. In effect, then, Mr. Ihlder, what you asked of the Budget Bureau was a reserve fund to demolish the houses you are building now?

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