Scheme For Building Houses For Workers In The Country

Wanganui Chronicle, 8 September 1950, Page 4

Scheme For Building Houses For Workers In The Country

It is not proposed to build Sta'te rental houses for individual farmers. So far as this type of housing is concerned, the scheme is to provide ac-, commodatlon for casual workers, men' who are not employed on one farm: entirely but whose services are spread over a number of farms with, per-1 haps, some part-time employment in the off-season on local body work. This information is contained in a circular from Federated Farmers received by the Wanganui Provincial' Executive. The information contained in the circular is the result of a number ot ■ questions submitted to the Minister in I Charge of the State Advances Department. The circular states that, generally, speaking, three-bedroom houses will | be built by 'the Government, the' houses being standard State houses 1 with modifications to suit local conditions and requirements. Generally speaking, the area of land for each 1 house will be a quarter of an acre. 1 The State Advances Department has accepted the principle of supplying State houses to rabbit boards in appropriate cases, the arrangements being the same as for Federated Farmers. The circular points out that county councils have statutory authority to raise loans to provide staff housing. “As to placing in full operation the special scheme put. forward by 'the Government to meet the particular requirements of the federation, the first step is an assurance by the organisation that it concurs with the proposals outlined,” states the circular. “The individual cases can then be discussed by the various branch offices of the Corporation in conjunction with th? local offices of the Ministry of Works. Following this, the leases can be drawn and submitted to you for approval and signature by the federation. Upon completion the Ministry of Works will be authorised to proceed with building. It may be possible. to some degree, to anticipate some of the steps set out above, for example, tentative arrangements re building could no doubt be made in anticipation of actual signature of the lease—but first, of all what is required is the concurrence of the federation with the proposals outlined above.”