Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

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July 27, 1918 RECORD AND GUIDE 91 Staten Island's Shipbuilders To Be Housed Government to Build Homes on Land Given by the Compan^^— The First Appropriation of $400,000 Made FOR the purpose of selecting sites for the location of homes for workers employed at the shipbuild- ing plants on Staten Island, George Van Pelt, architect, Walter Green, engineer, and William Clunt, realty expert of the United States Shipping Board's Housing Commission, inspected several sites suggested by borough officials, the Staten Island Civic League and the Staten Island Shipbuilding Company, on the north shore of Staten Island. The three Federal repre- sentatives were piloted by Borough President Calvin D. Van Name and looked over tracts in the Arlington, Bloomfield, Chelsea, Graniteville, Linoleumville and Bulls Head sections. The commission representatives remarked- favorably upon several of the sites but declined to state definitely which had been selected, but Borough President Van Nanie is authority for the statement that the visitors told him that houses capable of accommodating 30,000 persons, which would include the families of workmen. would be built, the construction to start at once and that many of the buildings will be ready for occupancy before late fall. The original offer of the Federal government to fur- nish eighty per cent. of the money necessary to con- struct the houses if the people of Staten Island would furnish the remaining twenty per cent. was not met and it was beli(yed for a time that the housing prob- lem on Staten Island would fail of solution. But when the Staten Island Shipbuilding Company, which op- erates three of the largest yards, offered to donate the land upon which to build the houses the matter took on a dift'erent aspect. When this oft'er was made by the shipbuilding com- pany an appropriation of $400,000 was made to defray the cost of the preliminary work and it is understood that at least $5,000,000 wiIÍ be expended on the project. The site offered to the Government is at Mariners Harbor, and is bounded by Richmond Terrace, HoIIand and Western avenues and the tracks of the Staten Island Rapid Transit Railway. While it is thought the shipbuilding company may be permitted to off'er some suggestions it will have nothing to do with the im - provement. Delano & Aldrich, architects, of 126 East Thirty-eight street, Manhattan, of which firm Mr. Carl F. Grieshaber of Staten Island is a member, wiU have entire charge of the actual construction and the financ- ing. Just what character of buildings will be erected cannot be decided upon until the site and conditions on Staten Island are definitely fi.xed. The Staten ísland Civic League has urged the erection of small houses of a permanent character. Anning S. Prall, a member of the Board of Educa-- tion of the City of New York, is chairman of the Civic League Housing Committee and made several trips to Washington accompanied by Mr. E. R. Moody, also a member of the committee, to take up the matter with the Shipping Board. Mr. Prall said yesterday: "Staten Island is in for a long era of shipl)uilding and it wiU undoubtedly be the leading industry of the borough for many years to come. Aside from that it means the development of a great labor market for Staten Island and that in itself will insure a wonderful commercial development along the north shore of Staten Island and also along the lines of the Baltiniore & Ohio R. R. The Staten Island Shipbuilding Company employs 1,811 Staten Island men in its two plants and foundry. At the Mariners Harbor yard 1,080 are eniployed and at the Port Richmond yard 731. These employees re- side in all parts of Staten Island, some of them coming from TottenviIIe, a distance of twelve miles from their work. At the Mariners Harbor yard 352 of the force reside in Manhattan and the Bronx, and 123 reside in Brook- lyn. nine residents of the latter borough are employed at the Port Richmond yard. Two residents of P'ort Chester are employed at the Port Richmond yard'and an even dozen from Long Island outside of Brooklyn are employed in the two yards of the company, and froni New Jersey 259 men journey daily to and from the two yards. Government Moves To Insure Coal Supplies ■{Continticd from page 89) director for railroads in New York harbor; F. E. Harri- man, coal adviser, Eastern region; E. M. Rine, general manager, Lackawanna Railroad, and F. L. Blendinger, general manager of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. In making the announcement of the appointment of Mr. Cooke as administrator Dr. Garfield called atten- tion to the fact that, notwithstanding the regrettable and unavoidable delay in the appointment of Mr. Wig- gin's successor, the work of the Fuel Administrator in New York has been proceeding in regular course, and New York has been receiving its full allotment of coal. Under the present distribution plaii each State will re- ceive a fixed part of the available supply as determined by Washington, and New York, accordingly, is bound to receive its full part in any event, whether delivered 110 w or later. The decision not to divide the State into sections and to name one man who should have full authority was made by Dr. Garfield after his visit to New York when he was in conference with Mr. Cooke and went with him on the inspection tour of the harljor facilities of New York. It is understood Mr. Cooke will resign his traffic chairmanship, but will remain a member of the organ- ization of executives and will represent it on the ex- ports control committee. He said that on the inspection trip he was satisfied with the manncr in which the railroads were preparing to meet the situation. They are enlarging steam heat- ing plants for thawing out coal, he added. Mr. Cooke admitted that he had little acquaintance with his duties as Fuel Administrator. "I know I will have the co-operation of all the people of New York," he said. "I pledge them my best eft'orts in a task which, if I may be pardoned tor saying it, has been 'wished' on me. "I believe we have learned niuch from tnir experi- ences last year that will.be of service to us to prevent a repetition of such conditions. I cannot say now whether any increased transportation facilities over the barge canaí can be installed for getting the coal into the city. We must bend all our eft'orts in the direction of improving the service." * Mr. Cooke declined to predict another series of heat- less days. "Don't let's assume tluit such a necessity will arise," he said. "We all know that there must be a lot of coal bunkered here and that the task is especially of im- portance in view of war shipping. There is a scarcity of labor in the mines—but don't let's borrow trouble. "Let us all pray for a mild winter and work together to prcvent trouljlc." In accordance with the order issued by tiie Fuel Ad- ministration during the succeeding weeks, Monday, Tues- day, Wednesday, and Thursday will be lightless. The order for four lightless nights a week applies to this State, New England, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Dela- ware, Maryland, and thc District of Columbia, other sec- tions of the country only being compcUed to go without excess illumination two nights a wcek. According to statistics preparcd in Washington, each lightless night saves more than 1,000 tons of coal. The Bureau of Statistics of the Department of Commerce has advised the Fuel Adniinistration that about 500,000 tons of coal are consumed by the country in a year in advertis- ing by electric signs.