THE HOUSING PROBLEM

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17132, 7 September 1926, Page 7

THE HOUSING PROBLEM

RAILWAY DEPT.’S SOLUTION “KNOCK-DOWN” DWELLINGS * HUNDREDS MANUFACTURED (Special to the Herald.) AUCKLAND, this day. The housing problem has been solved for many railway servants by the production of standardised dwellings at the Railway Department’s joinery plant at Frankton. Since the scheme was initiated about four years ago, 900 houses have been delivered in "knockdown” form and erected at the various centres in the North Island. Auckland Province has been most fortunate in being apportioned about 500 of the houses. Of these 100 have . been erected in Auckland city and suburbs, and Frankton has received 110. Fiftyfour new dwellings are receiving finishing touches at Otahuliu, ..and all but three are occupied. An interesting feature of the Railway Department’s housing scheme is that the rents are fixed at one day’s wage. The factory at Frankton gives employment to 130 men, and houses are being produced at the rate of ono a day. They are all five-roomed dwellings of uniform size. There are. however, six designs for the frontage; this enables some variety to be made when a number are erected in line. The cost averages £275 a house, and this includes the expenses of drainage and reading. The programme ahead provides for the construction of another 100 houses. In addition to producing houses for the department the factory will do work lor the local bodies. Tho Hutt County Council has been the first purchaser; an order for 150 houses is now being met, and already 50 standardised houses have been* supplied.