V INDUSTRIAL HOUSING DEVELOPMENTS IN AMERICA A Development of Group Houses SAWYER PARK WILLIAMSPORT, PA. ^ „ . u /» '" George S. and Lewis E. Welsh Architects c~ By LAWRENCE VEILLER NATIONAL HOUSING ASSOCIATION PUBLICATIONS No. 47 Price Ten Cents May, 1918 105 East 22nd Street, New York City Reprinted from THE ARCHITECTURAL RECORD May, 1918 - , 1 — - ftt eW ffl L I U I IAH' 1 1 AHm ill Ln tfRT ]/ £ 3 <* UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS PART in * A DEVELOPMENT GROUP HOUSES SAWYER PARK - WILLIAMSPORT • PA. Geo. S. Welsh &■ Lewis £ Welsh, Architects T HE architects of America are just beginning to discover the advan- tages of the group house. It has taken them a long time to come to it. Fashions in housing seem to be as strong as in any other phase of human activity ; and not only have the architects of America, but the public also until re- cently, clung with great tenacity to the detached house. So strong throughout the country has been the feeling that the detached house is the only type of house for an Ameri- can, that with considerable difficulty has a hearing been had for the claims of the group house, notwithstanding its success- ful use in Great Britain and on the Con- tinent for many generations. In the first article in this series we described a development made up en- tirely of single-family detached houses, that of Eclipse Park, at Beloit, Wis. The present article deals with a similar de- velopment made up entirely of group houses designed for the same class of workingman, the high grade mechanic. One reason that the group house has not been popular heretofore has been because of the fact that it has been as- sociated in the public mind with the “terrace,” as it is called in the Middle West, or long row of stereotyped houses, deadly monotonous in appearance, with little architectural style, and consequent- ly producing a dreary, unpleasing im- pression. Whenever one has spoken of group houses the average person has instinct- ively thought of long rows of the hideous small dwellings of Philadelphia, or of the equally hideous rows of tall New York tenements, or of New York’s earlier brownstone fronts. These repre- sent the defects of the group house, not its merits. They are not at all inherent in the type itself. It is just as possible to secure variety in group houses as it is in individual houses; and detached houses can be quite as monotonous as even the Philadelphia row or the New York brownstone front if they are all alike and do not possess beauty of design or line ; witness the appearance of any of the earlier so-called “mill villages.” The public is just beginning to have its eyes opened to the fact that it is not a choice between a row of drearily monot- onous group houses or of well designed, attractive detached houses. In both cases the question is whether the houses are well designed and pleasing in appear- ance or whether they are not. The row house of England as developed by the ordinary commercial builder is quite as monotonous and unpleasing in appear- ance as anything we know of in this country ; but the group house of the Eng- lish Garden Village, on the contrary, is, % / 1 as a rule, charming and attractive. It all boils down to a question of intelligent design and good taste. The advantages of the group house for an industrial housing development inhere in the facts that is is easy to heat; that it costs less to build, and that be- cause of its better proportions it is pos- sible to utilize better design. Sawyer Park, one of the latest and best industrial housing developments in this country, located at Williamsport, Pa., is unique in that it is a development entirely of group houses. In the opinion of the writer it is architecturally the best thing in indus- trial housing that has thus far been done in this country. The houses are attrac- tive in design, picturesque, quaint and with great charm. They are, moreover, well adapted to the needs of the com- munity. They are essentially working- men’s houses and have been built at a cost that makes their purchase well with- in the means of the skilled worker for whom they have been designed. This latest American Garden Village possesses great interest, not only for the housing reformer, but for the architect- ural profession, for the business men of the country and for those manufacturers who are seeking to reduce labor turn- over and who are finding in improved housing a most potent means of overcom- ing this serious economic waste. The development possesses unusual features of interest. It is not directly an employers’ enterprise ; nor is it, on the other hand, a land speculation scheme. The element of profiteering is entirely absent, as is also the element of paternal- ism and philanthropy. It is in every re- spect a citizens’ movement. In the spring of 1917, there being not a single vacant house in Williamsport at that time, the business men of the city, acting through the Board of Trade, made an appeal to the public-spirited citizens of the community, calling their attention to the need which confronted the city and the opportunity that lay be- fore them. As a result, the Williams- port Improvement Company was organ- ized with an authorized capital of $1,000,- 000, one-half of which was soon sub- scribed for the purchase of land and the laying out of a model residential com- munity. Some 887 different individuals in Williamsport subscribed to the stock of the new corporation, which definitely limited its dividends to 6%. One of the things which makes Sawyer Park especially interesting is that it il- lustrates the possibilities of develop- ments of this kind in the smaller cities of America and also with comparatively small parcels of land. Williamsport is not a great metropolis. It has an esti- mated population of about 37,000. Nor in this case was there unlimited acreage for the development. City planners, as a rule, advise securing all the land that can be obtained and have laid down the principle that for a development of this kind there ought to be preferably 100 acres available and certainly not less than 50. In this case some 36 acres of old farming la*"d has been utilized. The selection of the land was most fortunate ; for the little colony nestles in the slope of a hill which shields the houses in winter from the northwest winds and gives to them the most desirable winds during the hot summer months. In ad- dition, the settlement has very unusual attractions in outlook. It overlooks the river, across which there is the delight- ful view of Bald Eagle Mountain. With great intelligence, the developers of the property have followed the natural contours and have utilized the sloping hillside to develop the houses practically to the crest of the hill in attractive ter- races, rows of houses rising above others, clinging to the hillside in a way that sug- gests in their general appearance those attractive crescent terraces of Bath, Eng- land. A considerable part of the charm of the Park lies in this attractive grouping of the buildings and the way in which they fit into the natural landscape. This effect is greatly enhanced by the use of gently curving streets wherever pos- sible, preserving at the same time the ad- vantages of the rectangular street plan and fitting it into the street plan of the city itself. One of the most distinctive features A CHARACTERISTIC VIEW OF SAWYER PARK. of the whole colony and to which a large part of the charm is due rests in the fact that the houses have not been arranged in strict rectangular lines, but have been placed at angles, breaking up the monot- ony of the usual block plan that prevails in most cities. We understand that this method of grouping the houses was viewed in the beginning with grave mis- givings by many of the local people. As one of the townspeople put it, “The man who laid out those lots must have been drunk or crazy.” The best city planning principles have been followed. This being a residential development the streets have not been made unnecessarily wide, the 40-foot street prevailing. One thoroughfare which borders the Park on the east, namely, Wildwood Boulevard, is 80 feet in width, and a curving highway known as Park Avenue, which skirts the main residential development on the south, was already established as a 60-foot thoroughfare. With these two excep- tions all of the streets in the Park proper are 40-foot streets, thus not only saving money, which is so often wasted in streets of unnecessary width, but also discouraging through traffic from utiliz- ing streets designed purely for residential purposes. The orientation has been given very thoughtful consideration. While it has not been possible always to insure every room in every house getting direct sun- shine at some hour of the day, owing to the necessity of adapting the develop- ment to the contours of the land, the maximum amount of sunshine has been afforded. According to the architect, ninety-seven per cent, (by actual count) of the rooms in the various buildings will have the sun at some hour of the day. Many of the houses face the south. Not only has the orientation been considered, but attractiveness of outlook has had equal consideration, and from practically every house a delightful and charming view over the treetops and across the valley to the surrounding hills is af- forded. The property, while on the edge of the city, is within the city limits and readily accessible by trolley. One line comes direct to the edge of the Park and an- other within two minutes’ walk of it. The heart of the city is not over fifteen minutes away by trolley. Within a radius of a mile there are fourteen large industrial plants employing over 5,000 persons. It is thus possible for prac- tically every one residing in Sawyer Park to walk to his work, even to get home at the noon hour for dinner, if that is desired — all of which means a consider- ] A FRINGE OF SHOPS AND APARTMENTS MASKING THE FACTORIES able saving in carfare, a saving that has been estimated to be equal to the equiva- lent of one month’s rent. Public schools are within easy access. The high school is less than a mile away. Churches, stores and other public facilities are found in the neighborhood ; but notwith- standing this, the company contem- plates the building of neighborhood shops for the residents of the Park, in which can be found those small stores that are necessary for the needs of a community ; in addition, a moving picture theatre and club or assembly rooms in which the social life of the community can be main- tained are to be provided. A very attrac- tive building for this purpose, harmoniz- ing in architectural style with the whole park development, has been designed by the architects. While not yet erected, its construction is planned at a later date. Out of the total acreage of 36 acres, 5 24 acres have been set aside for recrea- tion and play and school buildings. The diagram on the opposite page shows in an interesting way the proportion of the land allotted to various purposes. Of the 36.71 acres 16.06 acres or 43.70% is utilized for building lots; 5.71 acres or 15.55% has been reserved for school buildings and recreation space ; 6.98 acres or 19.80% it is contemplated to de- velop with factories ; 6.32 acres or 16.50% is being utilized for streets; 1.32 acres or 3.55% for sidewalks, and .32 of an acre or a little less than one per cent, may be devoted to alleys. Following the practice of the best Garden Village de- velopments, the property is being ar- ranged so that when the whole develop- ment is completed there will be an aver- age of about eight families to the acre. To the south of the Park the company owns a strip of land running down to the railroad tracks that is adapted to factory development. In fact there are a number of factories already built in this location and it would be most un- wise to develop this portion of the prop- erty in any other way. The company is now considering the suggestion, made by the writer when he was at Williamsport recently, of treating this property by de- veloping with factories the major part of it immediately adjoining the railroad tracks, but placing on the Park Avenue end of the property, facing the main resi- dential part of the Park, a fringe of shops and small apartments such as are shown on this page. This will serve a two-fold purpose. It will mask the factories and thus prevent the factory development from interfering with residential values; it will maintain the residential character and appearance of the entire Park; it will place the shops and stores and build- J /TWYfj? P/?J2K /fores Peyoff fo scfoo/ffjrf /. 7/ /33Sf. /• /n fetcforj/ S/'fet 6?0 /?■#*% / ■. •• Py/ff/n 3300 . so /a" - /7J-4 /■/0 770740 ffoos e Sr Af /3 00 ■73 7/23.°° Wj/fs 'yy/r4 /433Z .33 & 00 J .60 f 7000 .— J9°j9s°// gf#. jS c 1 // 9 -<- y. r-o ' First Floor Plan. Second Floor Plan. TYPE A — DOUBLE HOUSE. Each Unit, Six Rooms and Bath; Each House, 16 Feet by 24 Feet. First Floor Plan. Second Floor Plan. TYPE B — DOUBLE HOUSE. Each L’nit, Six Rooms and Bath; Each House, 14 Feet by 39 Feet. TYPE C— GROUP FOR SIX FAMILIES. Each Unit, Six Rooms and Bath; Each House, 16 Feet by 33 Feet 6 Inches. THE SIX-FAMILY HOUSE — TYPE C. The remaining type, or Type C, is a modified form of Type A. The house proper is but two rooms deep, but on the ground floor there is the kitchen exten- sion; the four end houses, two at each end, being of this type. The two middle houses vary slightly, having a front pro- jection which gives much charm to the architectural design of the building and in this case affords rooms of a little larger size. Each unit of this type is built on a frontage of 16 feet, with a depth of 24 feet for the house proper, an additional depth of 9 ft. 6 ins. for the kitchen extension and a further addi- tional depth of 6 feet for the front pro- jection, making the house 33 ft. 6 ins. in depth at one point and 39 ft. 6 ins. deep at the point of greatest depth. GROUPING OF HOUSES. As will be seen we thus have a number of houses two in a row, four in a row and six in a row. Of the 100 houses al- ready built, 26 have been built two in a row, 6 have been built four in a row and 4 have been built six in a row. So much for the arrangement of the houses. ACCOMMODATIONS OFFERED. Now with regard to the accommoda- tions offered. Every house has a well lighted and ventilated, concrete floor cellar and a hot air furnace with pipes to each room on the first and second floors. The houses are equipped with Second Floor Plan. TYPE C-GROUP FOR SIX FAMILIES. Each Unit, Six Rooms and Bath; Each House, 16 Feet by 33 Feet 6 Inches. all modern devices. The bathroom is complete in every respect, with a porce- lain tub, washbowl and toilet fixture of modern type. Kitchens are provided with a sink and porcelain washtub, the cover of the washtub acting as a drain- board for the sink. Kitchen dressers have not been provided, but it is stated that these can be furnished where the purchaser desires them at an additional charge of $25. In the opinion of the writer it would have been wiser to have provided a built-in dresser to contain china, glass and dishes in each kitchen, also a pot-closet, leaving to the tenants the providing of their own kitchen cabinet for the holding of supplies. Every house has a front porch as well as a rear entrance to the kitchen. The treatment of the front porch has been handled with great skill. As a rule, the average piazza demanded by American custom destroys the architectural style of the building, but the architects in this case have with very great skill provided the necessary porches without in any way detracting from the appearance of the building. So, on the contrary, they have made the front porch add to the archi- tectural design of the structure. As well as having modern plumbing every house is equipped with gas pipes and also is wired for electricity. The fix- tures are direct, with the exception of the dining room, which is semi-indirect, and the switches control the lights not only in TYPE D— GROUP FOR FOUR FAMILIES. Each Unit, Seven Rooms and Bath; Each House, 22 Feet by 24 Feet. the basement, but also on both the front and rear porches. This is a very real comfort to the housewife, who, at night when her husband may be away, or in the late hours of the short winter days, finds considerable concern about opening her door to everyone who knocks upon it. By turning on the switch from the in- side of the house she is able to see who is out there before going to the door. It is little things like these that make or break developments of this kind. The interior finish of the houses is varied — yellow pine, stained mission, golden oak and green. Most of the rooms have been designed so that the usual 9x12 rug, the size that is gen- erally purchased by the workingman, can be easily accommodated and not leave a large floor space to be covered in some supplementary way. To Williams- port belongs the honor of having dis- covered the 9x12 rug as a standard in determining the size of rooms in a work- ingman’s dwelling. It is a good, practical method. Clothes closets are provided in all of the houses. While much more generous provision has been made in this respect than is found in the usual commercially built workingman’s dwelling, this is one of the features in which the houses might be improved. In some of the types there are no clothes closets in each of the bed- rooms. In one type, the only clothes closet opens off one of the bedrooms, thus forcing other members of the family to go through an occupied bedroom in order to get their clothes. The space pro- vided for linen closets is not always ade- quate. There should be; a linen closet on the second story of every workingman’s TYPE D— GROUP FOR FOUR FAMILIES. Each Unit, Seven Rooms and Bath; Each House, 22 Feet by 24 Feet. dwelling. The workingman’s wife, just as much as any other man's wife, wants a linen closet for the storage of linen, blankets and similar household supplies. TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION. The houses have all been built with outer walls of fireproof material, there being no frame construction in the de- development. This means greater per- manency, less cost for upkeep and less depreciation. Hollow tile has been used for the cellar walls, foundation , side walls and division walls between the houses, thus not only affording greater strength and fire safety but providing the necessary air space so essential for warmth in winter and coolness in sum- mer and protecting against dampness in all seasons of the year. Some of the houses are developed with an artistic stucco finish in white or gray on top of the hollow tile ; others, with pentex treatment. It is believed that because of this method of construction the houses will be less expensive to heat than houses built of frame or of solid walls. The fire risk has thus been reduced to a minimum. In fact the smallest possible amount of wood is used on the exterior of the houses. Even the roof overhang- ings only being faced with wood, the under side being stucco. The roofs are of slate. THE ECONOMIC SIDE. The acid test of a development of this kind is to be found on its economic side. Given good judgment and taste and in- telligence, it is always possible to build houses that are attractive architectur- ally and possess charm ; but to build such houses at a cost within the purchasing power of the skilled mechanic is a total- ly different question. The extent to which this has been done is the real test of such an enterprise. Sawyer Park meets this test and comes out of it with flying colors. It is an object lesson for other communities, to note the business- like way in which the project has been handled from the start. The various prospectuses issued by the Board of Trade, when the project was first sug- gested in March, 1917, are models in manner of presentation and soundness of treatment that may well be followed by persons contemplating similar develop- ments.* The lowest priced house has been built so that it can sell for $2,935, and the highest priced house for $3,335. The great majority of the houses sell for $3,185 and $3,285. This means that a mechanic by an initial payment of $300 down and a monthly payment of $30 thereafter can immediately enter into possession of a high-class, modern home of six rooms and bath, and at the end of 10 years own it free and clear. This result has been accomplished through buying material at pre-war prices in car- load lots at wholesale rates at costs much less, of course, than would prevail today. All unnecessary middlemen’s profits have been eliminated. The investors in the property have deliberately limited their return to 6% on their money and the contract made with the construction company has been so fair and equitable as to reduce to a minimum the necessary overhead expenses connected with the construction of the houses and the de- velopment of the property. The houses have frankly been built to sell and not to rent. The projectors of the enterprise have been of the opinion that it was more advantageous to the community, as well as to the working- man, that he should own his own home. That a community of home-owners was preferable to a community of “renters.” At the time of going to press with this article the sale of the houses was in prog- ress. The writer believes that ultimate- See Prospectus of the Williamsport Realty Com- pany ? nd “^ e P° rt °f a Proposed Industrial Village at Williamsport” issued by the Board of Trade un- der date of March 15, 1917. ly the company will find, as so many others have found, that there are very distinct advantages in renting dwellings of this character — advantages which out- weigh the advantages to be obtained from selling the houses. Management and upkeep are so essential a part of the success of any such scheme that it is an almost universal experience that, if the property is to be kept up to the high- est standard, the projectors of the enter- prise must retain control. When houses are sold, control is surrendered. Under such circumstances property of this kind is apt to deteriorate and depreciate, especially where restrictions have not been imposed. One workingman to whom a house is sold may have high standards and keep his property in good condition. The man next door to him may be shiftless in character and untidy; he may have no desire to plant a garden, to grow flowers or to keep the lawns trimmed and well cut. Instead he may keep chickens, horses, cows or pigs in his backyard; or he may dump piles of ashes and other refuse material there. He may build an unsightly board fence or one with scraps of sheet iron to fence in his vegetable garden. The effect of all this is to drive the orderly and tidy people away. Thus the whole class of occupancy is in danger of gradually changing, undesirable oc- cupants creeping into the settlement. After the company once sells a house to a man there are no means of preventing him from reselling it. Under such conditions the Garden Vil- lage loses its character ; while it still re- mains a village, the garden vanishes. This has been the general experience, not only in this country but in Great Britain, an experience that has led to the copartnership scheme of property ownership by which, instead of there be- ing individual ownership of individual houses, and though actually paid for by the occupiers of the dwellings, neverthe- less the . entire community owns them, so that its proper upkeep and manage- ment is secured ; for, no individual owns his house but only its value in stock of the company. The result is that all the advantages of the individual’s ownership of property in having a stake in the community are maintained, while the disadvantages just cited are overcome; with the added advantage that the ob- jection to the purchase of houses, which is being more and more often advanced by the workingman, namely, that it inter- feres with mobility of labor and chains him to his job, is entirely overcome. It is to be regretted that some such plan was not developed in connection with Sawyer Park ; and it is to be hoped that even now restrictions will be im- posed in the deed which will protect the purchasers of the houses in the perpetual enjoyment of the amenities of this Gar- den Village. CONSTRUCTION SIDE OF THE PROBLEM. One of the reasons for the success of this development has been the skill and efficiency with which the construction company, in this case the Dodson Realty Corporation of Bethlehem, Pa., has handled the work. The directors of the Housing Company decided wisely at the beginning of the undertak- ing to make a contract with one con- cern for the entire development and selected the Dodson Realty Corporation as the company to whom they entrusted the supervision of the entire scheme. The terms on which this contract was made represent a fair basis for similar contracts in similar developments and for this reason the following summary of the terms of the contract is given : The contract with the Dodson Realty Corporation provides that they furnish plans and specifications for land de- velopment, including: (a) Plans of streets, lots, parks, etc. (b) Locations and grades for streets and sidewalks. (c) Cross-section details of streets, sidewalks, curbs, gutters. (d) Landscape plans — (street plant- ing). (e) Plan of street lighting system. It is agreed that in case the contract is cancelled by either party, the plans of Dodson may be used for Williams- port, on the basis of 4% for originals and 2% for repeats without superintend- ence on the cost of construction, on which cost of construction no commis- sion has been paid to Dodson. Dodson further agrees to perform the following services, for which he re- ceives a percentum on expenditure for construction as shown below: (a) Prepare four sets preliminary plans of land improvements and houses, showing location of houses on plot plan. (b) Furnish four sets of detailed plans and specifications for land improve- ments and houses when preliminary plans have been approved. (c) Provide an experienced field su- perintendent, who shall be in constant attendance during the progress of the physical operation, and provide such other assistants as may be required for efficient supervision, direction and ad- ministration, beyond recognized duties of the contractor. (d) Examine all proposals, estimates and contracts in connection with the work, and give Williamsport the bene- fit of Dodson’s experience in all mat- ters pertaining to the operation. (e) Have its representative, expe- rienced in various branches of the work being done, visit the operation from time to time, and make suggestions for the general welfare and progress of the operation. Williamsport agrees to pay Dodson for its services under this contract a percentage of the amounts expended for materials and labor which actually enter into construction during the term of this agreement upon the following basis : Ten per cent, of a maximum of $200,- 000, so expended during the first year of this agreement, or until $200,000 is so expended. Five per cent, of such amounts in ex- cess of $200,000, so expended during the duration of this agreement. Williamsport shall pay Dodson the amount specified above in manner fol- lowing : (a) $2,000.00 when preliminary draw- ings for land improvements and house plans are approved. (b) $5,000.00 when detailed plans and specifications for land improvements and houses are completed and approved. (c) 6 y 2 % of expenditures for mate- rials as shown by the bills when and as they are checked into construction account, and 6%% of labor payrolls when and as they are reported as hay- ing been paid, until such time as said materials and labor accounts amount to the sum of $200,000. After the first $200,000 have been expended, and dur- ing the continuation of this agreement, 5% of such amounts so expended or charged shall be paid in the same man- ner and form. It appears from a perusal of these terms that all details of the enterprise, after initial decisions have been reached, such as furnishing of expert architectural service, of the city planning services and SAWYER PARK IS ACCESSIBLE TO THE HEART OF THE CITY. Map Showing a Half Mile Radius. of all that usually goes with a develop- ment from acreage property into build- ing sites, have been placed in one hand, thus eliminating unnecessary middle- men’s profits and reducing overhead charges to an absolute minimum, at the same time affording to the contractor a proper reward for his services. An interesting commentary on how the war has affected building is found in the statement of the architect that he closed a contract for 50 houses similar to Type D on April 16th, at a price $269 per dwelling for material and $208 per dwelling for labor, or a total increase of $477 per dwelling over the cost of these buildings built a year ago. Some of this advanced cost was due to different costs in a different locality. It is interesting to note that this village of 100 houses was under roof in six months’ time and that it had been brought to completion in a reasonable time not- withstanding the unanticipated difficulties of the extreme weather encountered dur- ing last winter. The building company has not only furnished unusual intelligence and skill in its work, but has also estab- lished standards in methods of record keeping and presentation of facts which may well serve as a model for similar undertakings. Through the courtesy of the Dodson Realty Corporation we are able to present here three statistical charts showing various phases of the costs that entered into this project. Table I shows what may be termed the De- velopment Costs, not only in totals, but also on a unit basis of running foot cost. Thus we are able to see at a glance the cost of house sewers per running foot, or storm sewers, of sidewalks, of curbs, of gutters, of electric wiring and of all the elements that enter into the development of property of this kind. Table III shows in a similarly striking way the cost of labor and material of various kinds for one dwelling, based on the cost of 100 dwellings. This is an im- pressive, graphic presentation and is invaluable to persons projecting similar enterprises, in affording a basis of what such costs should be. Here we have presented under the heading of “Material” the actual cost per house of the excavation, concrete, tile work, rough lumber, finished lumber, plaster, painting, slate roofing, sheet metal, hardware, electric work, heating, plumbing, hauling, structural steel and miscellaneous. Under each one of these various categories in parallel columns are presented the costs for labor for one house, not only the cost, but also the number of hours of labor taken in each kind of work ; from which it appears that the average dwelling containing 13,600 cubic feet was budlt at a rate of 14.6 cents per cubic foot, not including, however, contractor's profit nor archi- tect's fees nor certain extras such as cement floors, gas range, kitchen cabinet and medicine cabinet. This would give the average cost of a house without the contractor’s profit in round figures at $2,000 ($1,985.60). Table IV shows in a comparative way the relative cost of labor and material entering into each one of these various categories, with the percentage of the total cost of each ; thus we note that the tile work, for example, was 24.8% of the total cost of the building and that of this cost materials constituted 63% and labor 37%. Of course to these actual costs of the building must be added the overhead charges, interest on the money invested and the important cost of land and land development, especially the latter, as well as the carrying charges on the buildings during the ten-year period of sale. LAND COST. The facts with regard to the land cost and the cost of developing the acreage property into suitable sites are singularly instructive. The land, amounting to 36.71 acres, was purchased for $23,235, giving a cost of raw land of $636 an acre. To develop 24 acres of this land cost approximately $2,000 an acre as fol- lows : Cost per acre for House Sewer $405.64 Storm Sewer .... 385.24 “ “ “ “ Sidewalks 236.50 “ “ “ “ Curbing 333.48 “ “ “ “ Gutters 137.10 “ “ “ “ Electric Lighting. 106.66 “ “ “ “ Streets 630.00 “ “ “ “ Alleys 43.00 “ “ “ “ Planting 32.66 Total cost per acre $2,311.28 The city will refund for lights, street intersections, etc., making the cost ap- proximately $2,000 per acre or $166 per lot, not including carrying charges or overhead. 16.00 acres in lots. 7.64 acres in streets. .32 acres in alleys. 23.98 or approximately 24 acres in above esti- mate. or approximately 304 lots in above esti- mate. 12 lots to an acre. Total length of streets, 7,740 feet. Total length of alleys, 4,140 feet. Total length of sidewalks, 11,752 feet (4^4 ft. wide). Our single-tax friends, who are so wont to hold that low land cost is the solution of the housing problem and that the keeping of land out of use is responsible to so large an extent for the inability to develop workingmen’s dwellings at a price within the purchas- ing power of the workingman, should take to heart and ponder these figures, for they will then discover what has been patent for many years to all persons who have had experience in developing acreage property, that the heavy cost is not in the cost of the land, but in the cost of developing that land. Could this cost of developing proper- ty — of building sewers, laying sidewalks, curbs and gutters, of installing electric lights and building streets and alleys — Jf/WYez P r yy/i / / (? ms P r PfA'/Vn?. c p o/z /oo ppApj. i ///fj. //om. do S’/ AZtfrfjR/yjL fos/ l tfjoje. /xM^cr/av /34 4! 40 m AencreA <7 - 42 /S rf ] 7/'/& 3! Z MS m ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ 1 Z97 H8 28 ■ ■ ■ i i ■ ■ ■ £c>uy/ /.om/er / 60 /o ■ ■ i i [ - 306 Ifo Si ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ A7httAe /v'r’A"?y 168 38 ■ ■ ■ ■ i 154 lo 61 ■ ■ ■ I Ac/v/fiy 90 Z* 89 40 ■ ■ ■ ■ 1 6 62 i /Ajce//cf/7s 12 90 ■ 75 30 ■ ■ r>u U34 6 >o /6/f 85o 93 SAOTjF 3 TAc t/Aoro « ., A/'AAen coA/na/ , •• ZS " •• •‘ •• •• •• •• .. ftfet/ic/r)* n p *? •• n A ?/ ^ 9 2 r*vo//ny con/r/nj /jdoo oo. y'yA A"ojf /op. d y ^Aan eo.yA/A /) & /? j °A/ £J r x?lTY r C°g/>°£ <7T/°// />&■ djroydfir s- yv^i s-//' #. y- 25- /& TABLE III.— COST CHART, LABOR AND MATERIALS. 5/JWYE& P/fPK YY/lL/WSP°&r PP/Z/Zf cz/fpr s/Zo/z/pf. soA/ppppr/pp- <~*sr ^ /fpop p A/pppp/tf/ if/ so ppp CPA'rp fjrs op SfA/P . pop o/, VP />>YP/Z/jZ O /? \ at o r/r e / *//. I j7jte0/l//O/) 1 z./o JOO Conece/c 3 1.2 85. 37. 7/'/ / 3o %/*/ /oo.% 43% 577. 7° ToT/!/. C»ST "7° /<7P°& 7° /wr/B# z?0#j0/y £/-(?iry /># tfSoBfs j-. yAPP/p, pjecp/ppcr f ff/Z. A ■/r EACH HAS SEVEN ROOMS AND BATH Williamsport Improvement Company Any Member of tHe Sales Organization Will Give Detailed Information Upon Request SWARTZ 4 SHEA 4 West Market Square ABE HART Han Building FUREY 4 CO 347 Pine Street NEWCOMER 4 RILEY 2007/ West Fourth Street E. W. COLE 4 CO. 353 Pine Street SPENCE W. HILL 4 SON 332 Pine Street