HOUSING PROBLEM

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 179, 27 April 1938, Page 6

HOUSING PROBLEM

City Council Should Assist Government DR. L. G. AUSTIN’S VIEWS “With the State coming more and more into the trading activities of our daily life, it is gradually devolving on the State to undertake the housing of its people,” said Dr. L. G. Austin, an independent candidate for election to the Wellington City Council, in an address to Brooklyn electors last night. The recent report had brought to light the fact that there were practically 25 per cent, of the population living in apartment houses and boardinghouses in Wellington, said Dr. Austin. These people were mostly young people and they represented the parents of the next generation. If they were not cared for by the State immediately they might prove to be a national problem of immense significance. “Private enterprise as far as the housing field is concerned is done, and the housing problem is one for the State to face up to,” declared Dr. Austin. “The building of business places is the only field left to private enterprise, and even this is a very risky speculation unless the building will pay off its capital charges within 15 years. “The housing report shows: (1) A definite shortage of dwelling accommodation ; (2) utilisation of private dwellings as apartment houses; (3) exploitation of the house shortage by farming of house rents; (4) utilisation of baches as dwelling units. In the city area there are 2014 unsatisfactory private houses and 5446 unsatisfactory apartment houses. There actual shortage of 7205 satisfactory dwelling units in Wellington. • “The average rate of population increase in the last 16 years has been 2136 persons a year. Assuming an average of 3.46 persons a family, then some 617 new houses are required each year to house this increase alone. This does not include the replacement, of houses past repair. The average number of building permits issued in recent years covering the inceptiou of the Government housing scheme is 483 permits per annum. To illustrate the trend in apartment houses, there are 1080 single females in rooms, 628 males and 3210 two-person families in rooms. Many cases were disclosed of owners or tenants residing in large dwell-ing-houses letting a zoom or rooms as separate apartments with the right to use a common bathroom, conveniences, etc.

“In the city area there is a total of 240 baches being used as individual dwellings' and 52 baches in the inner suburbs and 32 baches in the outer suburbs, making a total of 324 baches in the whole city. These, in most cases, are detached outbuildings on sites already occupied by dwellings and do not include annexes used as sleeping quarters by family units occupying the main dwelling. “There are 17,670 persons housed in city apartment houses, and in the inner suburbs there are 4358 persons in apartment houses and 515 persons in boarding houses. In the outer suburbs there are 635 persons in apartment houses and 71 in boarding houses, giving a total of 22,663 persons living in apartments, 7226 persons in boarding houses, and 79,372 in private dwelling's. “The housing of our young folk in the city is a thorough disgrace to our civilisation,” Dr. Austin declared, “and calls for immediate action on the part of the Government to put the housing question on a proper basis for the future welfare of the citizens of New Zealand. The population of Wellington is steadily rising but the issue of building permits varies with the financial barometer. In 1930 over 980 were issued, in 1932 they dropped to 100, and in 1936 rose to 440 when the Government started to build, and the graph for 1938 shows a steady decline to 300 permits issued. The report reveals the need for small dwellings of the type now being built by the Government Housing Department and the need for large blocks of apartment flats to house our single young men and women, widows and widowers in the large towns and cities. The time is past for the housing of the people to be the plaything of the politicians. The city council should assist the Government in solving the problem as speedily as possible.”