STATE HOUSING

Grey River Argus, 28 August 1937, Page 7

STATE HOUSING

FOR 33 TOWNS

20 Schemes Under Way

[Per Press Association). WELLINGTON, August 27. Surveying the housing progress, the Hon. J. A. Lee commented, to-day, on the rapidity with which the Department’s activities were extending. Up to date, land had been acquired at 43 places, and inquiries were afoot in numerous other centres. Tenders had been called in 33 towns, and in 20 the schemes were under way or about, to commence. In many towns, the evidence showed that the Department is absorbing all the available labour. In addition to contracts already let, a further contract was now to be advertised for nineteen single house units and three two-house units in the Hutt Valley. In all probability, he said, 2,600 people were gainfully employed in building, and each week would snow a progressive increase, aii additional 400 men had been absorbed directly -and probably another 400 indirectly during the last two months, and that rate of progress would be maintained as long as men were available. Mr. J. A. Lee, Parliamentary Un-der-Secretary in Charge of Housing, announced that contracts for the first instalment of State houses at Oamaru had been signed. The first scheme consists of five separate contracts, comprising 11 single house units. Six will be con structed in Oamaru stone veneer, and five in wood, and one two-house unit in Oamaru stone veneer, making a total of 13 . houses. The dividing wall of the two-house unit will consist of nine inches of solid stone. AUCKLAND, August 26. The housing survey in the city has

revealed conditions to be considerably worse than was anticipated when it was agreed to confine the investigation to certain of the more congested areas. It has therefore been decided by the City Council to extend the work to several small localities adjoining the district already cover ed. Reporting to the council to-night the city engineer, Mr. J. Tyler, said that nearly all of the 14 investigators’ districts had been covered in the survey, and the office work had been completed for five of these. He estimated that the whole of the field and clerical work for the defined area should be extended. In selecting the extended localities, consideration had been given to the nearness to the main lines of communication, as .it was in these areas that over-crowding was most likely to be found.