monday, September 17, 1979
daily ncbraskan
page 5
D.C. low income housing proposal a sensible idea
WASMNGTON-The District of Comm.
bia government has proposed-and the
federal government is resisting-i low
income housing plan that makes more
sense than anything I've seen in a long
time. -
Willi
am
The proposal, in its. essence, is to take
56 boardcd-up units of a. defunct public
housing project here, partially renovate
them and then sell them to public housing
tenants.
The plan,' if the Department of Housing
and Urban Development approves it, would
accomplish a number of things.
It would increase the supply of low
income housing by 56 units by returning
to occupancy buildings that have been
vacant for three years.
It would save the city a substantial
amount of money-the difference between
partial renovation (new roofs, furnaces,
kitchens, bathrooms and wiring) and the
cost of full-scale rehabilitation, plus the
income from the projected sale price of
$15,000 a unit.
And it would recognize a fact that
everybody knows but few housing author
ities have been willing to act upon: that
owner-occupied housing is better both for
the tenants and forihe community's social
and environmental health than is rental
housing, especially public housing.
HUD officials, incredibly, are withhold
ing approval until local authorities prove
that the more traditional approach
remodeling the properties and returning
them to the public-housing pool-is
unworkable.
HUD OFFICIALS, more than anyone
else in the country, ought to know that the
traditional approach to public housing is
, unworkable, almost by definition .
It begins with economic failure as the
basic criterion for eligibility. Then it
dumps those who meet this negative criter
ion into what amount to concentration
camps of failure, where problems feed
upon problems. Indeed, the easiest-often
the only-way to lose your eligibility for
public housing is to stop being a failure.
The predictable result is that the ten
ants, chosen initially on the basis of their
negative attributes, behave negatively
towards the housing, the housing authorit
ies and themselves. The housing deterior
ates, almost inevitable, to the point where
it becomes unfit for habitation. Frequent
ly, housing authorities are left with no
alternative but to fix it up (and let the
cycle repeat itself) or to tear it down and
reduce the stock of low -income housing.
And yet the myth persists that theure
for the deterioration can be found in better
architecture, tenant education and better
management.
The Deanwood Gardens complex, the
center of the D.C. government proposal, is
not first-rate architecture, to be sure.
IT IS ALSO true that the buildings, like
most public-housing projects, have been
abused by their tenants. The housing
authority, again typically, has not moved
with alacrity to make repairs.
But it does not follow that better archi
tecture and more responsive management
would prevent the deterioration; nor is
it reasonable to suppose that destroyed
stair railings, broken windows, ripped out
electrical wiring and gaping holes in
interior walls are the result of tenant
ignorance.
(mm
Continued from Page 4
In short, I think the editorial will be
viewed as constructive by those who must
get elected or re-elected, but I doubt if it is
very constructive on the issue of achieving
a quality institution. I view the Regents'
job as stating what is needed for a quality
institution - I view the senators' jobs as
deciding how much the taxpayers want to
pay for. These are different roles, and I
sincerely hope the Senators do not get mad
at Regents for asking for what the Regents
think is needed nor would I want
Regents to get mad at Senators for not
giving all of what is requested.
That's the kind of cooperation and
mutual understanding I hope will
characterize the divided power over the
fate of the university which exist under the
Nebraskan Constitution - not complete
abdication by either group to the other as
--
your editorial suggests.
James A. Lake, Sr.
Professor of Law
Moon Christian
In response to the "Not Christian''
letter, to me Christian means follower of
Christ. I believe Rev. Moon is the best ex
ample of the teaching of Jesus. I chose his
church because of his teaching, and I wor
ship God, not Rev. Moon.
To say we are "Polytheisitic, Moon
centered religion" is an insult and false
statement. It is a monotheistic, God-centered
religion. I can stand to be called almost
anything except a polytheist.
What are Keith Briggs' and Monte
Froehlich's motivation for presenting such
a misleading statement regarding my religi
ous belief? Did they research the teaching
objectively, or is it a gut level reaction?
John A. Rainen
Sophomore, Arts and Sciences
Ending!
4 NO MINIMUM
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CHOOL SUPPLIES!
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The culprit Is the fact that tenants have
no sense of a stake in the buildings they
occupy and that the system is erosive of
any pride the tenants might have in them
selves. After all, you have to be a certified
loser to be eligible in the first place.
Occasionally, a housing authority will
recognize the negative results of these nega
tive criteria and will move to do something
about the situation.
Sometimes it is something as elementary
as requring tenants to make their own
routine repairs (with management supply,
ing the tools) and making failure to carry
out these minimal responsibilities grounds
for eviction.
Sometimes it involves such concepts as
home purchasers to substitute their own
Macho President
labors for cash down payments.
And sometimes it involves what the Dis
trict of Columbia has proposed for Dean
wood Gardens: a plan for transforming
renters into homeowners.
In each case the essential ingredient is
to give occupants a way of setting them
selves apart on some other basis than the
fact that they are society's losers.
It all seems so obvious, and yet HUD
officials want proof that giving low-income
families a stake in their homes would work
better than the "traditional approach."
If there is anything that requires no
further proof, it is the fact that the "tradi
tional approach" to public housing has
been a loser virtually since Its inception.
(c) 1979, The Washington Pott Company
Continued from Page 4
"I could take up swimming or fishing,"
he said. Jordan, who had returned from the
Library of Congress by now, said both
were unacceptable.
"When you go fishing," he Said, "Amy
always catches more fish than you do and
you aren't exactly the Incredible Hulk in
swim trunks, you know."
Touch football was ruled out because of
the Kennedy's monopoly of the sport since
the 1960s. Backgammon was rejected be
cause the game requires a large degree of
skill and luck. No one in the Carter
Administration felt confident enough in
either of those areas.
CARTER, OPTING FOR the adventur
ous task, suggested he become a race car
driver like Paul Newman. Powell and
Jordan both laughed.
Powell said, "If you use as much judg
ment with a race car as you did in that foot
race last Saturday, Ham and I would be
working for Walter Mondale."
The mention of Mondale lit a spark in
the president's mind. The solution was
simple, he said. He and Mondale would be
come a professional wrestling team and
tour the country. They would take on pro
fessional wrestlers dressed in robes with
current American problems emblazoned on
them.
One wrestler would represent inflation.
Another would represent the energy crisis.
Other topics would include the recession,
government bureaucracy, environmental
problems and the postal service.
CARTER THOUGHT it was a fine idea.
The press could actually report that he had
been wrestling with the energy crisis or
inflation. The theatrics would wear off
after the first matches, he said.
Aides Powell and Jordan were skeptical,
but 1980 was an election year. Their man
was in trouble in the polls. They needed
something. Maybe this was it.
The announcement was made in the
Rose Garden before the Washington press
corps. Carter and Mondale were dressed in
traditional Sumo wrestler gear. Carter was
smiling and happy. Mondale was embar
rassed and puzzled.
An ABC reporter asked the obvious
question. Will such a gamble or stunt help
salvage Carter's faltering election chances?
Mondale started to speak and then
paused. He looked at the ridiculous outfit
he had been forced to wear. Then he
looked into the television cameras. Finally
he spoke. .
"I expect the president to be renomin
ated and I intend to support him," Mon
dale said. He winked at the press and de
parted. And suddenly, the famous smile that
had helped elect Carter was gone and Dr.
Lukash was once again administering smel
ling salts.
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