Evening Star Newspaper, January 4, 1930, Page 15

REAL ESTATE. THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, SATURDAY, PROBLEMS FACING BUILDING DWNERS But Office Vacancies Are Now Met With Increased Understanding. ‘The office building industry faces 1930 with many problems, one of them aris- ing from overbuilding conditiens in some sections, but there is little pessimism among members of the National Asso- ciation of Building Owners and Man- agers, it is stated by Paul Robertson, president. “We will begin the new year with an office space vacancy slightly in. excess of the normal vavancy,” he reports, pointing out that the office bullding in- dustry is one of high- importance, since its represents invested capital in excess of_$7,000,000,000. He declares there is little pessimism, because building owners and managers today have a much better understand- ing of rental campaigns, operating prob- lems and service to tenants than ever before. The last quarterly survey revealed a | vacancy of 11.55 per cent throughout the country, he reports. “We are convinced,” he said, “that with the addition of many more millions of square feet of office space during 1930 the national average of vacancies will be higher than in 1929—in fact, higher than at any time since before the World War. There is a tremendous amount of building under way and many more projects will begin to assume defi- nite form during 1930. The number of contracts let for office building projects during the first 11 months of 1929 have not only exceeded those of 1928 by mil- lions of dollars, but by millions of square feet @f floor area as well. “Some of the new construction of of- fice buildings is justified from the stand- point of local market conditions. Some of it is clearly adding to already over- LIVES IN $100,000 FIRE TWO LOSE Blaze in New York Apartment Hotel Is Followed by Un- explained Explosion. By the Assoclated Press. NEW YORK, January 4—Fire De- partment officials today sought the cause of an explosion and fire which cost two lives and did damage estimated at $100,000 in the Hotel Marguery, a Park avenue apartment hotel. Mrs. Louis Lichtenstein, 60 years old, ‘who had been attending her husband, 11l in bed, in their eleventh-floor apart- ment, collapsed and died after she and her husband reached the street. ‘William Cass, 50 years old, ele- wator operator, was found dead in his elevator car between the third and fourth floors. He had been burned to death by the flames which shot up the elevator shaft after failure of the power his car. The Hotel Marguery occupies the block between Forty-seventh and Forty- eighth streets and extends from Madi- son avenue to Park avenue. Its tenants and guests include many persons promi- nent in_society. ‘The fire was discovered at 9 o'clock last night in the subbasement of the Madison avenue side. Soon after the first fire companies arrived there was an explosion which shook the building and shattered several windows. Light and power service failed and the guests, warned by servants and em- ployes of the hotel, were obliged to grope their way down dark stairways to the street. Many left the building in ht attire and all left valuable and personal belongings behind. A fire chief and 20 men were bowled over by the force of the blast when the explosion occurred. Eight firemen were overcome by smoke. All were given medical aid on the scene and remained on duty. ‘The flames attracted thousands of spectators, who were kept at a distance by fire lines. After the fire had been extinguished a police guard was posted in the building to protect valuables left by tenants who sought shelter for the night in nearby hotels, ‘The damage was confined chiefly to furniture and other property stored in the subbasement. The British of Canada. Canada has come in for more than her fair share of criticism on the ground that slowly but surely she is permitting foreign immigrants to swamp the British-born population, particu- larly in the western cities. A return which has been submitted to the Canadian Parliament makes, therefore, significant reading. It shows that in ipeg only 37,181 of the population ©of 191,996 were born in foreign coun- tries. The same ratio holds good in other Canadian cities. T which is to be erected on Connecticut streets. BY THOMAS HASTINGS. There are certain first principles so evident when one builds a house I would hesitate enumerating them were it not that I see them so frequently neglected in the small country and sub- urban houses. Why is it that the old Colonial house and almost all old houses are so attractive, and why is it so difficult for either owner or architect to match the charm and atmosphere of some of the simplest examples? Unquestion- ably, the best have survived because they have been cared for through sev- eral generations. ‘They are good also because they were built at a time when there was a real respect for tradition, when people were more resigned to accept certain simple principles of good taste which they had inherited and which were dealt out to them by architects or builders guided by certain very simple and primitive hand books on “how to build” which were in general circula- tion. A man building a house should first select his architect and this should be done when possible before he selects | his building site, because certain sites | are suggestive while others are forbid- ding to the architect, After the site has been chosen, there are almost sure to be certain physical conditions, such as grades, views, or neighboring houses which will suggest design and then in turn when the house -is built it should suggest a cer- tain treatment of the grounds which will make a happy marriage between the house and its environment. A man building & small house gen- erally requires two stories and an attic, in which event it is most important to make one of the two dimensions in plan dominate. Otherwise, three equal di- mensions would be obtained, forming a cube which is hopeless from an archi- tectural viewpoint. In almost any com- position of three parts, one of these should dominate; incidentally, by so doing, the direction of the roof is not left indefinite as one would naturally make the roof run lengthwise with the house. Generally a gable end is best because it best accentuates this difference in the three dimensions. As a matter of detail, avoid too much projection to the eaves, an ugly and unreasonable expense, Too | much piazza room and covered areas |shut out the light and are useless and expensive. ‘Thousands of houses have been built with endless and useless piazzas and more cellar space than needed—these two savings alone with a simple exterior treatment would have made it possible to build with permanent materials, such as brick or stone, a real house instead of & wooden house, which always seems temporary and in the end costly because of upkeep. Again for economy and in order to obtain permanency, accentuate some one feature, such as the main entrance, keeping the rest very simple in contrast. This certainly will be more interesting than an all-over treatment of meaning- less decoration. Four brick walls, possi- K IN MODERNISTIC STYLE Sketch of the new branch of the Washington Mechanics and Savings Bank avenue between Newark and Macomb George Oakley Totten, jr., is the architect. FIRST PRINCIPLES OF BUILDING Owners of Small Country and Suburban Homes Frequently Neglect to Follow Simple Guides that Enhance Beauty Manyfold. a small portion of the total cost of a modern house, when one considers the kind of heating, lighting and plumbing required. Another most important consideration is the proper placing of the house on the site, especially when the site is small, It is almost always a mistake to place it in the center of the lot, leaving a mere fringe of ground around the house for treatment. Either one side or the front or even the back of the lot offers a far better solution of the problem. If in the back of the lot, an interesting garden approach might be obtained or if in the front, the service might be placed on the street and great seclusion obtained back of the house. Any house so placed, built in per- manent materials, lends itself to the olanting of vines and trees and a general treatment of the grounds without to much architecture. An attractive plan of the grounds with good planting helps largely to make the architecture a success. The planting may be small to begin with, without immediate effect, but whenever I see a new country house the New Homes 3rd & Allison Sts. 6 ROOMS—3 PORCHES FRIGIDAIRE—GARAGE 9,250 ATTRACTIVE FEATURES Colonial Buff Brick Home 20 Ft. Wide by 32 Ft. Deep Slate Mansard Roof Covered Concrete Front Porch 2 Screened Rear Porches Reception Hall, Coat Closet with Plate Glass Mirror Door Beautiful Living Room Daylight Kif:_h- Fully Equipped rigida Bright Dining Room Spacious Master Bed Room 2 Other Large Bed Rooms Black and White Tiled Bath Built-in Tub and Shower Concrete Cellar with Toilet and Laundry Trays Automatic Hot-Water H Gabled Roof Gara; ic Decoration Paneled Wallpaper Hardwood Floors and Trim Wardrobe Closets with Lights Screens Throughout CAFRITZ ter bly painted white, with well proportioned windows properly distributed are in fact 1401 Ridge Place S.E. WE OFFER FOR THE FIRST TIME This new group of homes, built by the Thrift Building Co. and represent- ing the best the market affords in substantial construction, practical design and attractive finish. The location is ideal for those desiring a modern home in an “in-town’ ’ section, Six large rooms, beautiful tile bath with built-in tub and show er, spacious, copper screened porches, built-in garage, Nationa! jacketed boiler, conveniently arranged kitchen with inlaid linoleum and sanitas covered walls, chest- nut trim, first floor artistically paneled. These are all brick homes with genuine slate mansard. Paved street. Bear in Mind: There are only three of these homes, each differ- ent from the others, and they will sell quickly Open Daily—2 to 8 P.M. Cross Navy Yard 1ith St. Bridge—to 14th and S Sts., then ome block morth NATIONAL MORTGAGE & INV. CORP. 1004 Vermont Ave. Nat. 5833 1 | HOME ECONOMICS MOVE AID SOUGHT Conference Makes Plans to Enlist Mothers in Work of Federation. The problem of the non-co-operation of mothers throughout the country with governmental and philanthropic agen- cles working for the promotion of home economics was discussed yesterday at & conference called by the General Fed- eration of Women's Clubs. Attending the conference were repre- sentatives of the various Federal bu- reaus in the home economic field and other national organizations engaged in this work. ‘The conference is a result of a recent survey made under the direction of Mrs. J. E. Gawlor of Yakima, Wash., chairman of division of home economics of the General Federation of Women's Clubs. Apathy is Found. The principal fact brought out by this study was that the Nation-wide home economics program is not func- tioning. Not enough girls are partici- pating, it is said, and this is attributed directly to the lack of interest among the mothers. Plans were begun to enlist the aid of | mothers in the work. The delegites to the conference will meet again next week after spending the intervening time in research and consideration of the problem. Those Attending Session. Those attending the session today were Mrs. Gawlor, Dr. Louise Stanley of the Bureau of Home Economics of the Department of Agriculture, Miss Eme- line Whitcomb of the Bureau of Educa- tion, Miss Adelaide S. Baylor of the Federal Bureau for Vocational Educa- tion, the following representatives of the American Home Economic Associa- tion: Dean Margaret Justine of the University of Kansas, president; Miss Alice L. Edwards, Miss Helen W. At- water, editor of the association journal, and Miss Anna E. Richardson, field worker in child development, and the following representatives of the General first thing I ask myself is, will it grow into something, will it improve with age? It is like a friend who studies and im- proves himself mentally, he becomes more interesting as he grows older. Don’t Fail These New Modern Homes (Open {1207 Owen St. N.E. In the beautifully developed Trinidad section, just morth of Florida Ave. N.E. Only 2 blocks from Sears-Roebuck. Six and seven well baths with showers:; many distinctive features, including chestnut trim outlets, large porches and the new Green Jacket heating system. Garage miowas $7.9 Robert W. Savage 717 Union Trust Bldg. Or Any Broker Pederation of Women's Clubs: Mrs. John F. Sippel, president; Mrs. John B. Sherman, chairman of the department of American homes; Mrs. Maggie W. Barry of Texas, and Mrs. W. A. Winke- haus, District of Columbia chairman of | the department of American homes. AUSTRIA IMPORTS HAIR, TEETH AND DRIED BUGS VIENNA (#).—Two tons of human hair formed one of the items among the imports into Austria in the last fiscal year. Much unsatisfactory curi- osity has been roused as to what it could be used for in these days of close crops. Another item was artificial teeth, of which almost exactly the same weight came from abroad. Dentistry has reach- ed a high state of development here, 50 no surprise is caused by this quantity Nearly 500 pounds of dried insects came in for museums. Women’s fash- ions were responsible for the arrival of 20 tons of crocodile, seal, elephant, hip- popotamus, lizard and sharkskins for shoes. See This * 6-room ultra- modern brick home, adjoining the Mass. Ave. Heights section. * $8,950—Terms . All-brick cons rooms, master ed porches, throughout, Fri tive lawn very sturdily constructed and most desir- ably located near churches, cars, other conveniences. Arrange an inspection tomorrow. bus . 2414 37th St. N. Open Daily Until 9 P:M. oolez} Bros. "BUILDERS OF BETTER HOMES™ Tower Bldg. Nat'l 9240 to Inspect Daily) 1 216 17th PL. N.E. Adjacent to Eastern. High School, in a mew restricted neighborhood; the nearest to downtown. . arranged rooms; tiled . hardwood floorfl‘ fld;o s built in or in yard. 50 Very easy terms Nat'l 6799 4 RECREATEON ROOM GYMNASIUM the Harvard Hall Apartments 1650 Harvard St. N.W. One of the reasons why 100% rented shortly after o ing in Washington to have this apartment building was pening. The first apt. build- such a room. It is a step in the right direction and in keeping with the modern means of giving the public better health, HEALTH begins at HOME Why not adopt this idea in every home, hotel, club, apt. and office building? It Your inspection of All equipment is a sound investment. this room is invited. furnished by— HEALTH EQUIPMENT CO. CHAS. G. GRAVES, Mgr. Lobby 9 Investment Building Metropolitan 4269 JANUARY 4, 1930. REAL ESTATE. Washington Building OPPOSITE UNITED STATES TREASURY s romsiss e rVIRON ) 6 Srune! 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