Box 7, Folder 9, Complete Folder

Box 7, Folder 9, Complete Folder

DISCUSSION PAPER
. Chicago Conference
Mobilizing Urban Coalitions
Chicago Circle Center, University of Illinois October 17th, 1967
Introduction
With any new national effort such as that being undertaken ~y The Urban
Coalition, it may be expected that organizational structure methods will
continue ~o undergo change.
For this reason The Urban Coalit ion is under-
standably :following a flexibl e course of action.
The ideas set forth in
this discussion paper may be expected to undergo fur t her change a s they are
subject to continuing review by both national and local leadership .
The
views of those interested in The Urban Coalition are invite d and we lcome .
Goals
Base d upon the Statement of Principles , Goals and Commitments adopted at t h e
August Emergency Convocation, The Urban Coalition's program may be restated
as follows:
1.
To encourage the Congre ss to respond affirmatively to the n eeds
of the cities .
2.
To encourage public concern with the needs of the c it ie s o
3.
To stimulate gr eat e r private initiative a nd effort in dealing with
the problems of the cities, including both investme n t and technical
assi s t a nce.
4.
To stimulate gr e ater support' for and interes t
meet such needs as:
in ongoing efforts to
--job d e v elopment and manpower training programs
--open housing efforts
--urban renewal and reconstruction
�Page ·Two
)
--anti-poverty programs
--programs to overcome educational dispariti e s .
Methods
Among the methods tha t may b e followed by The Urban Coalition are the
following:
1.
Be supportive, not op er ational.
It is e x pected that Th e Urban
Coalition will suppor t o ngoi ng e fforts at both the loc a l an d n a tional lev els.
rt may stimulate new under takings.
It will coopeiate with s uch majo~ n ew
efforts as th e $1 billion inv e stme nt allocation of the insur anc e industry
for center city development.
2.
It will give support to loc a l u rba n coalitions.
Stimulat e inte res t in successful e x amp l e s of actio n .
Thr ough it s
Task For c es The Urban Co a lition will identify, work with , and public iz e
successful effort s to e xpand employment, e x tend lower i n c ome hou s ing a n d
equa l housing opport unitie s , new educational pro g r a ms a nd th e like .
Task Forces hope t o s e rve as c a t a l y st s and conv enors .
The
They wi l l serve a s
c l e aringhouses o f l oc al a c t ion.
3.
Work with the mass media .
Thr o ugh its Ta sk F orce on Communicati on s
and Public Suppor t and thr ough co un te rp a rt comm i ttees at t h e loc al lev el ,
it is h oped that the mass media can te encouraged to fo cu s gr e at er a t te ntion
on the n eeds of c ities .
Br oad public understandin g of the n eed for greater
re s ource s , of the c omplexit i e s of the p r obl e ms invo l ved and the need for
urgent action are es s ential if the g oal s of The Urban Coalition are to be
achieved.
�P~ge·Three
4.
To coordinate a national legislative campaign.
The Urban Coalition
has called upon Congress for action across a broad front to meet the urban
crisis.
Interpreting and emphasizing the need for national action is as
~uch a local obligation as it is a commitment of the National Steer ing
Committee.
Discussions with members of Congress is as much a hometown
affair as are appearances before Congressional comm ittees.
Structures
The National Steering Committee at the present time consists of thir ty-six
members.
They are broadl y representat i ve of business, labor , local govern-
me nt , religion, civil rights and education.
It is expected that two addit-
ional member s of the Steering Committee will be sele cted by the Council of
Urban Coalitions.
As loc a l coalitions are formed they wi ll b e invited to
designate two r e pre s e ntatives to serve on the Coun~il a nd thro ugh this
Council provide the National Steer ing Committee with advice and guidance on
matters of national concern .
The National Ste ering Committee has establishe d
seven Task Forces a nd it i s e x p e cte d th a t
c ounterpart units.
guide line s.
local coa lition s will d e v e lop
These are ide ntif i ed and discussed in the attache d
Under con s i der a tion for futur e d e v e lopme nt is the establi s hme n t
o f a Council o f Urban Ec o nomic Advi s o rs to assist the Coa lition in a n a l yzi ng
the ~mp act of Federa l economic, fisc~l, tax , and budget a ry p o licies of cit i es.
A secon d Counc il o f Un i v ersi t y Urba n Studies Cent ers i s b eing contempl ated as
a mea n s o f channe ling the b est r esearch i deas con cerning urban deve l opment
into the discu s s ions and p l ans of b oth t he National Steering Committee and
�Page Four
)
and local coalitions.
Further additions and modifications ~n the organization
and structure of The Urban Coalition may be expected as experience is gained.


*


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.~ P. r.nL.A1
CITY HALL
October 11, 1967
A'I:LANTA. GA. 30303
Tel. 522-4463 Area Code 404
IVAN ALLEN, JR., MAYOR
R. EARL LANDERS, Administrative Assistan t
MRS. ANN M. MOSES, Executive Secretary
DAN E. SWEAT, JR., Director of Governmental Liaison
MEMORANDUM
To:
Mayor Ivan Allen, Jr.
From: Dan Sweat
Subject:
Report on Urban C oalition Meeting,
October 9, New York City
The meeting of the Steering Committee of the National Urban
Coalition developed into quite a stalemate on the question of
whether or not public policy positions should b e taken by the
group.
Most Mayors pr esent - Lindsay, Cavanagh, Graham and
perhaps Naftalin, as we ll as some Civil Rights , Education
and Religion representatives felt the urgent necessity for
the Coalition to communicate a policy position to th e C ongress
on such pressing matters as the Welfare Amendments,
Poverty Bill, etc.
Business representatives, noteably Frederick Close and Gerald
Phillippe, felt any p olicy statements is sued as a Coalition on
controversial l egislation would jeopardize anticipated support
for the Coalition by Business.
They were greatly upset by the Coalition's statement on the
Clark-Javits Amendment to the Poverty Bill.
After a two hour debate the committee voted to adopt a policy
whi ch states: 11 The C o alition shall take public policy positions
except where a substantial or intense disagreement emerges . 11
�r.
Mayor Allen
Page Two
October 11, 196 7
-What this all amounted to was a stalemate on the question of
whether or not the Coalition, as an organization, will lobby
for urban legislation.
I feel that it is imperative for the Congress to have an idea of
the thinking of a group as potentially powerful as the Urban
Coalition, but can understand the problem of the business
representatives, who really cannot speak for any business
except their own.
The Committee adopted a budget of $100,000 for the period
August 1, 1967 - January 31, 1968. (Copy attached.)
It also heard reports from the Task Forces on Local C o alitions,
Communication, Reconstruction and Urban H o using, Equal
Opportunity in Housing, Educational Disparities, Private
Employment, and Legislation.
The Private Employment Task Force noted it planned to
consider setting up pilot meetings in three cities, including
Atlanta to consider methods for establishing priv ate business
coalitions.
The next meeting of the Coalition is scheduled for December 18,
possibly in Detroit.
DS :fy
�BUDGET AUGUST 1, 1967 - JANUARY 31, 1968
Salaries:
Professional Staff (7)
Clerical (5)
Employer Contributions
$43,000
11,500
1,500
$ 56,000
Program Expenses:
Conferences and meetings
Mailings]
Publications and printing
Consultant fees
$ 3,000
2,500
8,000
5,000
18,500
Operating Expenses:
Office Rent
Furniture Rental
Equipment Rental
Telephone and Telegraph
Office Supplies
Insurance
Travel
Subscriptions
$ 4,600
3,600
600
1,200
1,500
250
5,200
50
17,000
August Convocation
TOTAL
8,500
~100,000
�-;==-,---= ,,...----===== -;;;:..
-- - -
Vol.
No. 9
•
June 1968
@UD@[jlj [J]I}ffe@[J]U
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Published by The Urban Coalition
•
•
Federal Bar Building
•
1815 H St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006
Executive Committee-Sets Urgent Priorities
"We owe it to his
memory to end inaction • • •"
Tax Increase Supported
To Finance New Programs
The Executive Committee of the unincorporate d Urban
Coalition met on April 8, four days afte r the assassination of
Martin Luther King, Jr., and adopted a set of high-priority
legislative recommenda tions keyed to the national crisis.
Immediately following th e Executive Committee session,
Chairman John W . Gordner, accompanied by Andrew Heiskell and Whitney Young, J r., held a press confere nce to make
the actions public.
The Executive Committee placed the highest importance
on passage by the House of Representative s of the Civil
Rights Act of 1968, with fair housing provisions. The bill
passed the House by a vo te of 229 to 195 se veral days
later. It had pre viously passe d the Senate.
The propose d suppl emental appropriatio n for th e Office
of Economic Opportun ity a lso rece ived urg ent e ndorse me nt,
but was defeated in the House.
The Committee called a cross-the-board cuts of Fe d era l
expend itu res " irrc tional by d efinition and strong ly opposed
the m.
Expend itures should be raised
The Executive Committee o f th e unincorporate d
Urba n Coa li tion, mee ting on April 8, pre fac e d its
sta tement of urge nt leg islative goals with th is
tribute to Dr. Martin Luther Ki ng , Jr. :
"The Re vere nd Dr. Martin Luther King , Jr. is
no longe r among us to cha /1-enge ·o ur conscie nces
and to press us forwa rd toward fulfi llme nt of a


ust society. W e owe it to his memory and to o ur


socie ty fo e nd inactio n in the fa ce of urg ent
national nee d s.
" The le adership a nd organizations w hich work
togethe r as The Urb an Coalition mo urn the loss
of Dr. King as a courage ous national le ader and
as a m e mbe r of our Steering Committee. W e
here a nd now renew our pledge to p ursue act;on
at b oth the national and communify level appro priate in character a nd scale to the crisis confronting the na tion."
If Congress rise s to its re spo nsibil ities, the Committee
said, " it will incre a se, no t cut, ex penditures for esse ntial
program s such a s jobs, ho usi ng, e ducatio n, a nd community
se rvice s."
To finan ce such a program t he Committee urged the
adoption of a tax increase, " pending t he accomplishme nt
of the re orde ring of prio riti e s and the reorie ntation of our
reso urces in the lig ht of urban needs."
The committee reaffirmed Coalition support for a public
service em ployment program to create one million meaningful
jobs, and p ub lic and private ho using prog rams to produce
one mi ll ion units ann ually.
The ne w ly incorporated Urban Coa lition Action Coun cil
is a ctive ly seeking fulfi ll me nt of a ll these legislative o bjectives
(see page 2).
The Report of the Pre sid ent' s Advisory Commission o n
Civi l Disorders wa s stro ngly e nd o rsed , with t he p ledg e that
" The Urban Coa lition will g ive t he hig hest pri ority to bringing
it to the attention of leadership at a ll levels of both t he
p ublic and private sectors."
�Legisl ative Goa.ls O ut li ne d at Press Conference
ACTION NOTES .
The Urban Coalition ho s moved into new headquarters
1n th e Fed e ral Bar Building, 1815 H Street, N. W., Washington (20006). Main offices occupy the sixth floor of th e
building . The new telephone number is Area Code 202,
3 47-9630.


* *


A new booklet contain ing the major addresses given
a t th e Na ti onal Action Conference on Equal Housing Opportuniti e s in Chicago in January has been published by the
Urban Coalition Action Counc il and is available on request.


* *


Th e Steering Committee of The Urban Coalition and
the Policy Council of the Urban Coalition Action Council will
meet at !eparate sessions on June 10. The first meeting will
be gin at 7 p .m. in the Tudor Room of th e Shoreham Hotel.













Local Coalitions have no w been formed in 33 cities, and
several others hove e xpresse d act ive interest . The notional
Coalition is placing new e mphasis on assistanc e to the locals,
hopes 100 will be e stabl ishe d by th e end of th e year .






*


During the period of widespread unrest following the
Chairman John W . Gordner talks into o n array o f television and
radio mi cro p hones at press con feren ce co il ed to ex p ress u rg e nt leg is·
Action Council Is Created
To Carry Out Legislative Program
On April 8, 1968, with the appro val of the Executive
Committee, tw o separate and distinct corpo rations- The
Urban Coalition and the Urban Co alition Acti o n Coun cil
-were created to carry out t he objectives of the un incorporated, voluntary group previously kn o wn as t he
Urban Coalition.
The new OT9onization5 will operot ·n- complete ly
different areas. The Urban Coalition Action Council
will be concerned with legis lative activities, and The
Urban Coalition with non-legislative programs.
The purpose of creating this new corporate arrangement was to facilitate financing by making it possib le to
secure tax exempt status for the Coalition under Section
501 (c)(3) and for the Action Council under Section
501 (c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code. These exemptio ns have now been secured. This means that contributions to the Coalition are tax deductible. Contributions
to the Action Council ore not.
John W. Gardner will be chairman and chief executive officer of both corporations. The Steeri ng Committee
of the former unincorporated Urban Coalition will serve
as the Steering Committee of the new Urban Coalition.
The some individuals, acting in separate and distinct
capacities, will serve as the Policy Council of the Action
Council.
2
lotiv e goof s. Also participating we re Steeri ng Comm ittee Me mb er
W hitney Young, Jr . (le ft ) and Co -Chairman An drew Heiskell .
Gardner Calls for Million
Public Jobs in Two Years
Chairman John ·w. Gardner oppe ore d b e fo re o Senate
Labor Subcommittee rec ently to urg e pro mp t approval of
a pu b lic se rvice e mploym e nt bill.
He gen e rally endo rsed S. 3063, the me asur e und er con sider_ati o n, :-hut no ted tho. its o.bjectiYe f o.ne_mi llion pub lic..
se rvic e jobs would not b e rea ched un til the thi rd yea r ofter
e na ctme nt.
"It seems to me ," G o rdne r sa id , " that this pace should b e
acce lerated so tha t 500,000 jobs a re mad e availabl e t he first
yea r and a tota l of o ne mi llion the seco nd yea r. We a re in
a peri od of great urge ncy a nd should stretch b o th o ur fiscal
and administrative capacity to the utm ost."
He cited a rece nt study mode for the Urban Coa liti on
which shows that at least 141,000 persons cou ld be employed
" almost overnight" in 130 cities with popu lations of o ver
100,000. Projecting the st udy to include smaller cities, loca l
governments and non-profit organizati o ns, he added, makes
it likely that jobs could be found for 500,000 persons within
six months.
All public service jobs, Gordner emphasized, should be
meaningful and socially useful-not dead-end, make-work
projects.
He said a public service employment program should
apply to rural as well as urban areas.
assassination of Dr. Mortin Luther King, President John son
called on the Urban Coalition to ploy o key role in efforts to
reduce tension . In response , Chairman Gordner wired the
officials of loco/ coalitions asking that they bring together
th e leadership cf the ir communities to e xam ine local tensions
and needs , and support the pending Civil Rights Act of 1968.






*


In re ce nt issu e s, th e Wall Street Journal, Business We ek ,
and Agenda Magaz ine hove carri e d in -depth articl es on th e
work of th e Coalition. Re pri nts o re a vailable from Coalition
he adquarters.
Publishers Contribute Part
Of Profits From Riot Report
Bantam Books and The Ne w Yo rk Times rece nt ly con tributed $10,000 fr om th e p rofits fr om the so le of the
Bantam ed ition of the Report O f The Na tiona l Ad viso ry
Commis!ion on Civi l Rights to th e Urban Coa liti o n. Prese nting th e che ck to Cha ir ma n John W . Go rd ner a re
Tom Wicke r (left) , W ash ingto n Bu re au C hief of the
_ Times, and Ba ntam Books Presi d ent Oscar Dyste l. Wicker
wrote a speci a l in tro d ucti o n fo r the book .
New Staff Members Join the Coalition
in recent week s ·severa l staff mem b e rs ha ve joinea
the Urba n Coalition and a re no w at work in th e new
he adquarters at 1815 H Street in Wa shing ton . They
includ e:
Sa rah Collins Ca re y, an a tto rney, serve d a s consulta nt to the Na tion a l Ad viso ry Com missi o n on Ci vil Disord ers an d wa s asso ciated with the Wash ington law fir m
of Arnold a nd Po rter. Mrs. Carey is a grad ua te of Rad cli ffe Coll ege a nd re ceived her law degree fr o m G eorgetown University .
Margaret Carroll, a graduate of Lawrence Co ll ege,
worked for the past seven years as a researcher, writer
and editor for the Congressional Quarterly News Service .
D
John Dean , former Regional Administrator of Office
Economic Opportunity programs in the Southeast, is a
aduate of Howard University in Washington, D. C.
Brian M. Duff, a former Washington correspondent,
ca me to the Coalitio n fr o m NASA, wh-e re he was Directo r
o f Special Eve nts in th e O ffice of Public Affairs. He is a
g raduate of the University of Michigan .
Herbe rt M. Franklin, former director of the Busine ss
and Devel opment Center of Urban America, Inc ., and
Deve lo p ment Admin istrato r of the city of Middletown,
Connecticut, is a graduate of Harvard College and
the Harvard Law School.
Peter Libassi, former special assistant to the Secretary
of HEW and director of that agency' s Office for Civil
Rights. Libossi is a graduate of Colgate University and
Yale Law School.
Richard S. Sha rpe, former Peace Corps Volunteer
serving in Ethiopia, was recently Research Assistant, Cen ter for Studies in Education and Development at Harvard. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the
John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.
3
�Gardner on local coalitions
"No One Segment Can Solve the Probl e m Alon e"
Speaking at the Convention of the United Auto
Workers recently, Chairman John W. Gardner discussed
the importance of broadly based local coalitions, and
areas of activity at the local and national levels. The
following is an excerpt from his remarks:
"The need for collaboration is most dramatically
apparent in the cities themselves. No one leadership
segment can solve the problem alone . City Hall can't
go it alone. J he business communitYS_an't solve th E:._citi_s__
problems singlehand edly. All must collaborate.
" Because of this need at the local level, our national
organization set out immediately to form local coalitions.
We now have 33 and we hope to have 100 by year's
end . As in the case of the national, each local organization includes representative s from a variety of leadership segments in the community-the mayor, business,
labor, minority groups and religion .
"Now I still encounter le ading citizens who say,
'Why try to get all those people into the act? Why
don't a few of us g e t togethe r qui etly, and try to solve
some of these problems?'
" It's a reasonable sugg e stion, but hope lessly oldfashioned. It won 't work for long in any modern city.
We won 't re -establish stability in our cities until all
significant lead e rship e le men ts g e t tog eth e r, until we
bring into the same conversation all the peopl e who
exercise significant powe r- or veto powe r- in the community.
"This includes ghetto le ad e rship. Nothing is more
important to stability in the citi e s than the cre ation of


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Federal Ba r Building
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31
open , continuous and understanding communication between wh ite and black communities. This must be a
prime task of any coalition.
" Such communication is not easy. It requires hard
work and patience and imagination on the part of every
" person involved . But it is necessary. Indeed, there is
no alternative, unless we are willing to see our cities
torn apart.
We Must W ork _ aJ All Leve l!.__
"At both national and local levels the Urban
Coalition will work toward the solution of our urban
problems. We will be concerned with unemployment,
housing, education, race relations and many of the other
problems that plague the cities today. We will try to
make the public aware of those problems. We will try
to bring the nation's best talent to bear on them . We
will support constructive efforts to solve them.
" We will seek to supplement and not supplant other
efforts. We consider every organization constructively
engaged in these matters to be an ally and we will hope
to work with them and strengthen them where possible.
"The purpose of the coalition is to enable all of the
segments of our national life, represented by those various leaders, to act together toward solutions to the urban
crisis .
" I would e mphasize the importance of the coalition
principl e . The woods are full of spe cialize d organizations inte reste d in the urban crisis. Our distinction is
that we bring together le ad ership el e ments t hat do not
normally collaborate in the solution of public probl e ms ."
- - - -BULK RATE
U. S. PO STAGE
PAID
Washington, 0.C.
PE RM IT 43234
-
�r
The Race Problem:
"What Are You Going To Do About It?"
An Address
At the Opening of the Fund-Raising Campaign
for the
"University of Community Involvement"
on April 1, 1968 at
New Rochelle Hospital
New Rochelle, New York
By
SIDNEY P. MUDD
A Ci tize n of N ew Roch e ll e
President of N ew Yor k Se ve n-Up
�What we need is men of good will. Men who truly care. Men who want to
help in the solving of the problem. Men from the white community, men from the
black community, and women from both. Can we find one-hundred such in New
Rochelle? Can we find fifty? Can we find twenty? What would we call them? It
makes little difference. Call them the "Committee of 100," or whatever else. The
main thing is to call them together.
Once called together, once engaged in dialogue, once exposed to the hopes,
the problems, the needs of the city, as it strives to be what all of us want it to be,
I can envision no problem that its members, as true men of good will, could not
resolve together. It is the togetherness, the mutual respect and actual understanding that is so obviously lacking now and so obviously needed. And it will take
the leadership that only such a committee can provide to do what is needed to
be done .
Who can qualify for such a committee, for such leadership? I do not know.
I do know that they must come from among the recognized leaders of the city as
it now exists, so that, by their good example, others who respect them will be
moved to follow. They must be leaders who want to contribute of their special
talents to the good of all. In the final analysis they must, I believe, be able to
answer "yes" to the three questions that I ask each of you now :
1.)
If you have a child in school in New Rochelle at present or hope to have
one there, be it a public school or private, at whatever level, grade, highschool or college, are you content to have a Negro child seated next
to yours?
2.)
If you are in government, in professional life or in a business are you
content to have a Negro as a fellow-worker, a fellow-executive, and, if
qualified, as president of your company?
3.)
No matter where you live in New Rochelle, in any house, on any street,
in any section, are you content to see a Negro family move next door
tomorrow?
How many men and women can we find to answer yes, and mean it, and live
by it, and lead others to follow them? I do not know . The answer is locked in the
heart of each of us.
But that is what it will toke. It is that simple or that difficult, d e pending upon
what is in our hearts. You will be asked soon to be such a leader. Let there be
no embarrassment if you cannot accept because you cannot truthfully answer
"yes" to these three questions. You will at least have been honest with yourself .
Since I have proposed this self-examination to be made and answered
privately, it seems only fair and proper for me to answer publicly . I do so now,
humbly in the presence of so many better men than I, answer " yes" to these three
questions .
Is this the impossible dream, is there not enough love in the world, is my life
so busy that I am unable or unwilling to hold out my hand to my ne ighbor?
Perhaps if only a few re spond it will be the impossible dream . But, if enough of
our leaders are willing to try, with the help of the God, Who made us all, nothing
is impossible .
I place this in your hands. I commend it to your hearts .
�On the 19th of March, just o ne day short of two weeks ago, I was aske d if I
would talk to you today, he re in New Rochelle Hospital. Although, like yours,
my life and my schedule are filled almost to the brimming, I acce pte d immediately.
I acce pted for the strongest of all re a so ns: my conscie nce told me to acce pt. And
happily I found myself in full agreem e nt wi th my conscience. I would be less than
fair wit h you, if I did not te ll you why .
When those fleet in g moments of reflection permit, I suppose that ea ch of us
on occasion talks to himse lf. On such occasions two voices wi thin us seem to be
engaged in a d ialogue, voices that as k questions and give answ e rs . Som e times the
questions go like this :
" How well do you think you are doing with your life ?"
" You say that. you are very busy, busy with earning a li ving, busy with various
outsid e acti vities, perhaps a host of them, but are you aware that you could do
more, t hat you could do be tter?"
" Now, pl e ase take a hard look at your life from the vie wpoint of what surrounds it and answer this:
'Wh a t is by far the g re atest problem of your tim e in your nation, in your
city?'"
" Yo u know very simply, ve ry clearly and ve ry quick ly wh at th e answe r is.
It is the problem of race . Th e crying, hurtful, gna wi ng , frustrating probl em, which
exists because one man 's skin is white and anoth er man 's sk in is black ."
An d as yo u menta lly nod " yes, yo u are ri ght, " there follows, as always it must,
that awful, final question , that qu estion which strips you of all the trappings of
your life up to t hat moment:
" What are you going to do about it?"
Please note, d e ar friends , how this question is ask ed of us . Conscie nce is not
content to know how we fee/ about it. It stu bbornly wa nts to know:
"What ar e yo u going to do about it?"
I said t ha t I would b e le ss than fair if I did not tell you why I am here today .
a m he re b e ca use of t hat question. I want wit h all my heart to do something,
to ma ke so me contribution , small as it may be, to the p eacef ul and happy solution of t he most important p robl e m of o ur lifetimes together, he re in th e city for
w hich all of us sha re so d ee p an affectio n. I address you wit h th e greatest of
confi d e nce, on a man to man basis, because I know so many of you and have
count less re aso ns to be sure of t he goodness in your hearts.
Sp e cifically, we are he re today to muster support for the idea and th e financing
of an infant enter prise call e d, ra t he r unusually, the " Uni versity of Community Involvement." Is t his an e arth-s ha ki ng mo ve me nt to date? Is it going to so lve the race
problem in New Ro ch e ll e ? Ha s it b ee n without controve rsy in th e past? Certainly
not! But the a ll -i mportant t hing is that it is a b e ginn ing . A community-beginning,
impe rfect as it may b e, toward the final, searching question:
" W ha t a re you going to do a bout it?"
The "University of Community Involveme nt" is not even dire ctly positioned as
a program only for the Negro community. It may have, by past circumstance and
realistic fact-facing, been forc ed to lean that way, but that is not what it envisions.
It is ideally directed to black anci white, poor and rich, young and old. It is called
a "university" for a valid reason: its classrooms are the city streets and city buildings, where living together under love and under law are the subjects taught; its
students are the youth of our city, be they black or white; and its faculty are the
civic, government and business leaders of the total community. What it needs most
of all now is a board of trustees, whose attitude is to support and guide this first
small step toward the answer to the question which our consciences ask . In proof
of what I have said, le t me read the very first line written about this evolving
organization : " 'The University of Community Involvement' is in the business of
shaping Human Attitudes." Let me repeat: the business of shaping human attitudes.
Now, friends, it is on the subject of " attitude" that I most earnestly want to
open my mind and my heart to you and to ask you to search your own hearts and
minds, as we consider together the number one probl e m of our nation and city,
the problem of race .
Let us suppose for a moment that we could stand far e nough removed from
the problem so as to view it objectively and without prejudice. Hard to do? Very
hard . But just suppose that we could. Certainly God do e s. Le t's at least try it
together .
The first reflection we might well make would be to wonder why in the world,
when God came to make Man , by far the gre atest of all in His series of created
things, why in the world did He make some men wh ite and some men colored.
(And parenthetically, He made many more colored than He did white.) Didn't He
forese e that this was going to lead to trouble? Then w hy did He do it? Not one
of us knows, not even the most brilliant among us . All we know is that He permitted men to be that way .
Th e second reflection that we might make would b e that, eve n considering
the many shadings of re ligious b eliefs, there emerges a very basic formula for
solving th e probl e m: love God above all e lse and love your neighbor as yourself .
Now from our hypoth etical, unpr ej udice d and objectiv e point of view, knowing
th e probl em, and knowing th e basic formula above for solving it, it really
be com es quite si mpl e to point out thre e steps, which, if tak e n e arn est ly and sincerely by me n of good wil l, wo uld solve the problem in the only way it will really
ever be solved .
The three ste ps should com e as no surprise to any thinking man or woman,
white or black .
l .)
Gi ve th e Ne gro th e full ri ght and th e full opportunity to ha ve the sam e
education as the white man .
2.)
Gi ve t he Negro the full right and th e fu ll opportunity to hold any job
in any company for which his education and ability qual ify him .
3 .)
G ive the Negro the full right and the full opportunity to live in any ho us e,
o n any street, in any city, whic h he can afford to occu py .
You wi ll note, I b e li eve, th e inter-relationship of these three esse nti al steps and
the reasonabl e ness of the ord er in w hich th e y are liste d .
In pre paratio n for talking a nd thinking with you to day, I felt it not only important but essenti al to ch e c k my thoughts against those of several men of acknowledged im portance and compete nce in our city, both white and Negro. Th e
time with which these me n favored me was not a brief matte r of minutes. The
averag e time spe nt in th ese conve rsations was a good two hours . I pause for a
mom e nt to thank them sil e ntly for their generosi ty to all of us . Whatever good
may come from our bei ng together he re today will b e, in the greatest part, due
to their generous help and e ncouragement.
In e ach of the conversations with e ach of thes e lead ers, there was comp lete
agreement that the thre e ste ps call ing for e qua l education, e qual e mploymen t,
and equal hou si ng rights end opportuniti es we re basically sound. But it is most
enlightening and important to know that, whe n the point of view of the Ne gro
leaders was ex presse d, our threefold c:nswer took on a fourth dimension . Please
listen carefully to this fourth dimension.
The Negro, with too few exceptions, does not feel himse lf worthy of th ese three
equalities. How strange this is, how foreign to the way the white man thinks and
feels . It was explained to me in this way. Three hund re d ye ars of approximate
slavery, generation upon g e neration of a master-servant re lationship, lifeti me after
lifetime of grinding poverty, of ignorance, of brain wa shin g that what was white
was good and virtuous and powerful, wh il e what was black was evil and menial
and weak have had th e ir effec t, may God forgive it. They have made t he black
man believe that he is, in fact, inferior and thus un wo rt hy of the white ma n's slowly
emerging best inte ntions .
The Negro is trapped, so he believes, in a gh etto soci ety unt il he is shown that
there truly is a way out. He nce the despair, he nce the indol e nce, hen ce the crime,
hence the ang er, hen ce the riot, hence th e ever-increasing polari zati on into a
white society a~d a black society, two Am ericas, and , in a smaller sense, two
New Rochelles. No city, no state, no empire in history has ever been abl e to exist
thus in peace. Not eve n Rome whe n it ruled the w hol e world. It is the obligation
of the lead e rs of the black man and the w hite man to disprove t hi s myth of unworthiness and apply in its stead the obvious and only true soluti o n which we
have discusse d above : the three equalities th at make a man a man .
Since we are only human beings who live in a p ra ctica l wo rld , let me be as
practical a s possi bl e in co ncluding these remarks to you. I am going to ask you
and many other lead e rs in New Rochell e to give of your substance and of yourself .
In plain er words, I am asking for your money, but, more importantly, I am asking
for your he arts.
In mon e y, the minimum need is for $30, 000, to b e contributed by Ap ril 15.
This wi ll und erwrite the impro vement, the exte ns ion and the applica tion of t he
Community Involvem e nt program thro ugh the full summer ahead . This is to be
raised by and from the business and social commu nities of New Rochell e both
black and w hite. I con sider this sum desirable and e nti re ly re asonabl e . W e ought
to b e able to over-~ubscribe it in five min utes right here in this room. It won 't be
don e that way; it will be done by di rect contact. I know you will give it. You a re
both too generous and too practical not to .
But I am much more interested in w hat is in your hea rts. In the fina l anal ysis,
that is the only place the answer can be found to the qu e stion we b e gan wi th:
" What are you going to do about it?"
�EPILOGUE
Subsequent to the · occasion on whi ch these thoughts were expressed, the
citizens' committee to which they referred was formally named
"The Peoples Assembly
New Rochelle, N. Y."
It will be thus incorporated in the state of New York and any gift to it will
be tax deductible. Checks should be drawn to " The People s Asse mbly" and mailed
to the above address.
Particular emphasis should be placed upon the important fact that "The
Peoples Assembly" in no way seeks to intrude upon the activity of any othe r
committee, commission, or body, be it governmental or private, in the city of
New Rochelle.
Its objective is to provide a community-wide gathering of men of good-will,
who are dedicated to the peaceful solution of community problems, and , above
all, those which spring from our difference of race.
" The Peoples Assembly" belongs to 2lJ. the people of New Rochelle. It seeks
without prejudice the happiness of all. May the God Who made us all guide
it to that accomplishment.
�To_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Name
lb~
Telephone No. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
D
Wants you to call
0
0
Returned your call
0
0
Is here to see you
Came by to see you
L eft the following message:
/717
d. <t .
Date: _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Time _ _ __ _ _ _ a. m. / p. m.
By--- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - F O R M 25 • 6
�Novembe:u 30, 1967
Mr . John Feild
National Coo,:dinator
The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street, N . W .
Suite 220
Washington, D. C . 20006
Deii.1" John:
Some time ago,. we discussed the possibility of my obtaining
number of dditional copies of the special supplement to
CITY entitled "Urban Coalition: Turning the Country Around" .
I would be glad to receive any number of Ir e copies that
might be taking up hot£ p ce and if the t i
ch ge .
plea. e let me know how much .258 or 300 would cost me .
Sincer ly yours,
D n Swe t
DS:fy
�MOBILIZING URBAN COALITIONS
January 12, 1968
New York University
Loeb Student Center
New York, New York
8:30 am
Registration: New York University
Loeb Student Center
9:30 am
Opening General Session:
Eisner and Lubin Auditorium
Presiding: Andrew Heiskell
Co-Chairman, The Urban Coalition
Welcome: Dr. Allan M. Cartter
Chancellor, New York University
Remarks:
The Most Rev. John J. Maguire
Administrator, Archdiocese of
New York
Address:
James F. Oates, Jr.
Chairman of the Board - Chief
Executive Officer Equitable Life
Assurance Society of the
United States
10:30 am
Mobilization Workshops
All workshops will deal with the same
series of topics.
The morning workshops will deal with
methods of organizing local coalitions.
12:15 pm
Luncheon Session:
Eisner and Lubin Auditorium
-
Presiding: A. Philip Randolph
Co-chairman, The Urban Coalition
Remarks: Dr. Joseph P. Sternstein
Rabbi of Tempie Ansche Chesed
Member, Executive Committee,
New York Board of Rabbis
Remarks: Christian A. Herter, Jr.
Chairman; New York Coalihon
Address:
Ho.norable John V. Lindsay
Mayor of the City of New York.
2:00 ..pm
Mobilization Workshops
The afternoon workshops will deal with the
development of task force activity at the
community level in counterpart to the
national level task forces on specific
urban problems.
4:15 pm
Concluding General Session:
Eisen and Lubin Auditorium
Presiding: Ron M. Linton
National Coordinator,
The Urban Coalition
· Remarks: Dr. Edler G. Hawk ins
St. Augustine Presbyterian Church
New York City, New Yo rk
Former Moderator, General
Assembly, The United Presbyterian
Church U.S.A.
Address:
5:00 pm
Whitney M . Young, Jr.
Executive Director
National Urban League
Adjournment
,,,
�September 28, 1967
NOTICE
TO:
Steering Committee and Working Committee Members
FROM:
Ron M . Linton and John Feild
National Coordinators, The Urban Coalition
The Urban Coalition has now moved into its new offices.
send or refer all future correspondence to:
The Urban Coalition
Suite 220
1819 H Street, N .W.
Washington, D .C.
20006
(202) 293-1530
Please
�•
WORKING COMMITTEE
ROSTER
September 27, 1967
Mr. John Feild
Mr. Ron Linton
(202) 293-1530
Co-Chairmen
Mr. Andrew Biemiller
(202) 628-3870
Mr. George Meany
President
AFL-CIO
815 16th St., N. W.
Washington, D. C.
Mr. Jack Conway
(202) 393-5596
Mr. David Cohen
(202) 393-5581
Mr. Walter Reuther
President
United Auto Workers
8000 E. Jefferson Ave.
Detroit, Michigan
Msgr. Lawrence Corcoran
(202) 332-2730
Archbishop John F. Dearden
President
National Conference of Catholic Bishops
St. Aloysius
1234 Washington Blvd.
Detroit, Michigan
Mr. Jack Davies
(212) 552-4415
Mr. David Rockefeller
President
Chase Manhattan Bank
New York, N. Y.
Mr. Alfred Eisenpreis
(212) 679-0800
Mr. Theodore Schlesinger
President
Allied Stores Corporation
401 Fifth Avenue
New York, N. Y.
Mr . Walter Fauntroy
(202) 387-2090
The Reverend Martin Luther King
President
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
330 Auburn Avenue, N. E.
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
Mr . John Gunther
(202) 298-7535
Mr . Patrick Healy
(202) 628 - 3440
'
Honorable Joseph Barr
Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh
City Hall
Pittsburth, Penn .
�WORKING COMMITTEE
ROSTER
(Page 2)
Honorable Milton Graham
Mayor of the City of Phoenix
City Hall
Phoenix, Arizona
Honorable James H.J. Tate
Mayor of the City of Philadelphia
City Hall
Philadelphia, Penn.
Mr. James Hamilton
(202) 544-2350
Dr. Arthur Flem ming
President
National Council of Churches
475 Riverside Drive
New York, N. Y.
Dr. Roy Hamilton
(617) 523-1100
Honorable John F. Collins
Mayor of the City of Boston
City Hall
Boston, Mass.
Mr. Tom Hannigan
(202) 265-8040
Mr. Joseph D. Keenan
Secretary
International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers
1200 15th St . , N. W.
Washington, D. C.
Mr . William C. Hart
(212) 751 - 1311
Mr . Gerald L. Phillippe
Chainnan of the Board
General Electric Co .
570 Lexington Avenue
New York , New York
Ra bbi Richard Hi r sch
( 202) 387-2800
Rabbi Jacob Rudin
Pr esident
Synagogue Council of Ameri ca
235 Fi fth Avenue
New York, N. Y.
Mr . Richard Idler
(4 12) 553 - 4555
Mr . Frederick Clo s e
Cha irman of the Board
Aluminum Company of Ame rica
Alcoa Build ing
Pit ts burgh, Penn .
�WORKING COMMITTEE
ROSTER
(Page 3)
Mr. Vernon Jordan
(404) 522-8764
Mr. John Wheeler
President
Mechanics and Farmers Bank
Box 1932
Durham, North Carolina
Mr . Jay Kriegel
(212) 566-6934
Mr. Peter Tufo
(202) 223-6694
Honorable John V. Lindsay
Mayor of the City of New York
City Hall
New York, N. Y.
Mr . Conrad Mallett
(313) 963-0566
Honorable Jerome P. Cavanagh
Mayor of the City of Detroit
City Hall
Detroit, Michigan
Mr . Allen Merrell
(313) 322-2687
Mr. Henry Ford II
Chairman
Ford Motor Company
De troi t , Michigan
Mr. Clarence Mitchell
(202) 544 - 5694
Mr. Roy Wilkins, Executive Director
National Association f or the
Advancement of Colored Pe ople
20 W. 40th St.
New York, New Yor k
Mr. Cha r les Moeller
(212 ) 578 -2011
Mr. Gilbert W. Fitzhugh
President and Chief Execu tive Of f i cer
Metr opolita n Life I n surance Co .
One Madi son Ave .
New York, New York
Mr. Paul Parker
(612) 330-2100
Honorable Arthur Naftal i n
Mayor of the City of Minneapolis
City Hall
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Mr. Guichard Parris
(212) 751-0300
Mr. Whitney Young, Jr.
Executive Director
National Urban League
55 E . 52nd Street
New York, N. Y.
�WORKING COMMITTEE
ROSTER
(Page 4)
Mr. Joseph Rauh
(202) 737-7795
Mr. Arnold Aronson
Executive Secretary
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
2027 Mass. Ave., N.W.
Washington, D. C.
Mr. Bayard Rustin
(212) 666-9510
Mr. A. Philip Randolph
President
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
Room 301
217 W. 125th St.
New York, N. Y.
Mr. John J . Sheehan
( 202) 63 8 -6929
Mr. I. W. Abe 1
President
United Steelworkers of Ame rica
1500 Connnonweal t h Building
Pi t tsbur gh , Penn.
Mr. Will iam Slay ton
( 202) 265 -2224
Mr . Andrew Heiskell
Chairman of the Board
Time , Inc .
Rockefeller Center
New York, New York
Mr. James Rouse
Pre sident
The Rouse Co .
Village of Cros s Key s
Bal t imor e , Md .
Mr. M.A. Sloan
(919) 682-9201
Mr. Asa T. Spaulding
President
Nor t h Ca r ol ina
Mu t ual I nsurance Company
Box 201
Durham, N. C.
Mr. Philip Sorenson
(812) 379-6331
Mr. J. Irwin Miller
Chairman of the Board
Cunnnins Engine Company
301 Washington Street
Columbus, Indiana
Mr. David Stahl
(312) 744 - 3307
Honorable Richard Daley
Mayor of the City of Chicago
City Hall
Chicago, 111 .
�r
WORKING COMMITTEE
ROSTER
(Page 5)
Mr. Dan Sweat
(404) 522-4463
Honorable Ivan Allen, Jr.
Mayor of the City of Atlanta
· City Hall
Atlanta, Georgia
Mr . Anthony Weinlein
Mr. Richard Murphy
(202) 296-5940
Mr. David Sullivan
President
Building Service Employees
International Union
900 Seventeenth St., N. W.
Washington, D. C.
Not yet designated
Mr. Roy Ash
President
Litton Industries
9370 Santa Monica Boulevard
Beverly Hills, California
�N E WS
from ··The Urban Coalition
2100 M Street, N. W.
Washington, D. C.
20037
202/293-7625
( Tom Ma thews)
FOR RELEASE MONDAY, A.M., NOVEMBER 10, 1969
URBAN COALITION NAMES TOP LEADERS
TO STEERING COMMITTEE
Three businessmen, two mayors, a Texas state senator and
a physician were named today as additions to the national Urban
Coalition's policy-making Steering Committee.
The new members announced by Urban Coalition Chairman John W.
Gardner are:
Ben W. Heineman of Chicago, Chairman of the Board and President of the Chicago and North Western Railway Company .
Heineman
is also Chairman of the President's Commission on Income Maintenance.
Donald M. Kendall, President of Pepsico , Inc ., and Chairman
of the National Alliance of Businessmen .
H. I. Romnes, Cha irman of the Board of AT&T.
Romnes is also
Vice-Chairman of the National Industrial Conference Board and is a
me mber of the Urban Coalition's Task Forc e o n Education.
Mayor Erik Jonsson of Dallas.
Mayor Richard Lugar of Indianapolis.
State Senator Joe J. Bernal of San Antonio , Texas.
Senator
Bernal , an educator and social worker as well as legislator, is
(MORE)
�-2Executive Director of the Guadalupe Community Center in San Antonio.
Hector P. Garcia, M. D., a Corpus Christi, Texas physician
and Commissioner of the
u.
S. Civil ~ights Commission.
Dr. Garcia
was organizer of the American GI Forum, a national group of
veterans of Mexican origin.
The appointments bring the total membership on the national
Steering Committee to 65.
Mr. Gardner said the Urban Coalition adds to the Steering
Committee periodically to assure broad and dynamic representation
from the Coalition's constituent elements -- local government,
business, labor, minority groups and religion.
He said he was de-
lighted that men of the stature of the seven new members had agreed
to actively participate in Urban Coalition policy.
The Urban Coalition is a national organization with 48 local
coalition affiliates.
It brings together diverse groups to work
toward the solution of urban problems.
Co-Chairmen of the national Urban Coalition Steering Committee
are Andrew Heiskell, Chairman of the Board of Time , Inc . , and A.
Philip Rand olph , International President - Emeritus of the Br otherh ood of Sleepin g Car Porters .
�The Urban Coalition
2100 M Street, N .W .
Washingto n, D .C. 20037
(202) 293-7625
·
Chairman Jo hn W . Gardner
Co-cha irmen Andrew Heiskell
A. Philip Ran dolph
November 13, 1 969
Honorable I van Al len, Jr.
Mayor of the City of Atlanta
City Hall
Atl anta, Georgia
30303
Dear Ivan:
I want to urge that you make a special effort
to attend the meeting of the Steering Committee
on December 10 . The agenda will include discussion
of the very critical fiscal problems facing our
cities and consideration of the role of the Urban
Coalition in helping the cities cope with these
problems.
I believe the meeting will be an interestinq one.
I believe also that it will be an important one.
The meeting will start at 3:30 p.m., on Wednesday,
December 10 in Washington. We will have dinner
and a brief eveninq session which should adjourn
at approximately 9:30 p.m. I do hope that you will
be able to be present. Further details will follow.
Sincerely,
Chairman
�7
\
.\
1s19 H s:r~c t, !! \'/ .
\ '/3~h ingto11 , D. C. 2CC'J:,
Tel ephone : (~O,) 223-SGC0
CHA I !IM,t:\N : Joh n W. Garclne;
CO-CH A I RMH ~: An drew Hc:ske l! / I . Philip P. andolph
Decembe r 2 4 , 1 968
The Honorabl e I van Al le n, Jr .
Mayo r of the City of At l an ta
City.H a ll
At l a n ta , Ge o rg i a 30 3 0 2
De a r I van:
Enc l o sed i s th e s c h e d ul e f o r 1 96 9 me etings
o f t h e St e e ring Commi ttee o f t h e Urb an Co a l it ion .
P l e ase note t h a t the n e x t St ee r i ng Comm ittee
mee ting will b e We dn e sday , Fe bruary 26th, in
Wa s h i n g ton.
I am a l so enclosing se ver a l i tems t ha t may
b e o f i nterest to you . We can s end y o u a n y
add ition a l c o p i es y o u may wa n t.
P l eas e l et me k now i f fu r the r i n f ormation wi ll
b e h e l pf ul .
Sinc e r e l y ,
J ohn w~ Ga rd ner
Cha i rma n
. i
�. 1969 Schedule
Steeri ng Committee, The Urban Coalition
(also for the Urban Coalition Acti on Council )
Time
Place
Wednesday, February 26
6:00 p.m.
Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, June 18
6:00 p.m.
New York City
Date
I
Wednesday, September 2 4
6:00 P. m.
To be determined
Wednesday, December 10
6:00 p.m.
Washington, D.C.
�The
Urban
Coalition
�------======-==d;/==;:__==__143.215.248.55-=-J r
The Urban Coalition
I.
ing
ment
Ac o
The " 0
-
s h owinq
in man_
December 1968
I ,
t:atij
F
Community
']
J
The fallo wing statement is an excerpt from a
recent speech by John W. Gardner, chairman
of the Urban Coalition:
difficulty in even formulating their probl~ms?
Long before the riots, it was apparent to everyone who studied these-matters closely that
communities so riven could not weather a storm
without cracking wide open.
Today one of the gravest handicaps to the
The storms came-and they cracked wide
local community, one of the things that prevents open. One after another. Like aU structures
it from pursuing any of its purposes effectively,
under stress they cracked along the lines of
is the fragmentation of the community itselftheir internal weaknesses. The rift between
and the fragmen tation of community leadership. black an d white communities was usually the
I saw_ this at firsthand when, as Secretary of
main issue but when the city tried to pull itself
Health, Education and Welfare, I had to visit all together to face that issue, it found its capacity
of our major cities-and many not so major.
to do so greatly diminished by the other rifts
I found that the typical American city was split
within tbe community-between business and
up into a variety
of different worlds that were
labor, between suburb and central city, between
,1
police and c iti?Pn h ~•---_ l:,1. __ • ~- --
ition
. Id only to a tot~!
that would y1e lition itself is
attack.


rhe


coal areas, if only
moving m severa
in small ways.
· ted
School Aid ~::p:du<;ation
For example,
Dr. James
division, headed _bre professor
.
an assoc1a
. SUP"
Kelly,
b" University, is
funds and re·a t Colum t~
porting with ·t that ·could
search a Jawsu~he method by
radically....-.n
change
t"tes allocate
c_t
L ! - \..
~
�The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
�Steering Committee
of The Urban Coalition
John W. Gardner
Chairman
Andrew Heiskell
Co-Chairman
A. PhiLip Randolph
Co-Chairman
I. W. Abel
President
United Steelworkers of
America
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Honorable Ivan Allen Jr.
Mayor
{\.tlanta, Ga.
Joseph H . Allen
President
McGraw-H:ill
Publications
New York, N.Y.
Arnold Aronson
Leadership Conference
on Civil Rights ·
National Community
Relations Advisory
_Council
NewYo.rk; N.Y.
Roy Ash
President
Litton Industries
Beverly Hills, Calif.
Jordan Band
Chairman
National Community
Relations Advisory
Council
Cleveland, Ohio
Honorable
Joseph M. Barr
Mayor
Pittsburgh, Pa.
Honorable
Jerome P. Cavanagh
Mayor
Detroit, Mich.
Frederick J. Close
Chairman of the Board
Aluminum Company of
America
Pittsburgh, Pa.
H.oiiorable John F. Collins
Massachusetts Institute of
Technology
Cambridge, Mass.
Honorable
Richard J. Daley
Mayor
Chicago, Ill.
T he Most Reverend
Joh n F. Dearden
Archbishop of Detroit
Detroit, Mich.
�Dr. Arthur Flemming
President, N ational
Council of Churches
. President, Macalaster
Co!Jege
St. Paul, Minn.
Henry Ford 11
Chairman
Ford Motor Company
Dearbor,n, Mich.
Honorable
Milton Graham
Mayor
Phoenix, Ariz.
The Most Reverend
George H . Guilfoyle
· Bishop, Diocese of
Camden
Camden, N .J.
Dr._Edler G. Hawkins
Pastor
St. Augustine
Presbyterian Church
New York, N.Y. ·
Andrew Heiskell
Chairman of the Board
Time Inc.
New York, N.Y:
Jphn: H . Johnson
President
Johnson Publishing
· Cpmpany
Chicago, Ill.
Joseph D . Keenan
Secretary
International Brotherhood
of Electrical Workers
Washington, D .C .
A. Philip Randolph
President Emeritus .
International Brot herhood
of Sleeping Car Porters
New York, N.Y.
Walter Reuther
President
United Auto Workers
Detroit, Mich.
David. Rockefeller
President
Chase Manhattan Bank
New Y ork, N.Y.
James Rouse
President
The Ro.use Company
Baltimore, Md.
Rabbi Jacob P. Rudin
President
Synagogue Council of
America
New York, N.Y.
TheodoFe Schlesinger
President
Allied Stores Corporation
N ew York, N .Y.
A~a T. Spaulding
D irector
North -Carolina Mutu.al
Insurance Company
Durham, N .C.
David Sullivan
President
Service Employees
International
Union
Washington, D.C.
Honorable
John V . Lindsay
Mayor
New York, N.Y.
Honorable
James H . J. Tate
Mayor
Philadelphia, Pa.
George Meany
President
AFL-CIO
Washington, D.C.
John Wheeler
President, Mechanics and
.. Farmers Bank
President, Southern
Regional Council
Durham, N .C.
J. Irwin Miller
President
Cummins Engine
Company
Columbus, Ind.
Honorable
Arthur Naftalin
Mayor
Minneapolis, Minn.
James F. Oates
Chairman of the Board
Equitable Life Assurance
Society
New Yo.i:k, N .Y.
Roy Wilkins
Executive Director
National Association for
the Advancement of
Colored People
New York, N .Y.
Whitney M. Young Jr.
Executive Director
National Urban-League
New York, N.Y.
..,.
�On
August 24, 1967, at an emergency convocation in Washington,
D .C., a prestigious group of 1,200
persons issued an urgent appeal on
the urban crisis to all concerned
Americans. They were men and
women of diverse, even divergent
interests, and yet they joined together in a national effort to mold a
new political, social, economic, and
moral climate that would help to
break the vicious cycle of the ghetto.
This effort-heavily dependent on
local as well as national actionwas the beginning of the Urban
Coalition.
The immediate impetus was concern over the mounting violence in
American cities, and a realization
tha-t the problems confronting the
cities were too large and too complex to be solved by a single segment
of society acting alone. At the conclusion of the convocation, the
participants, who included mayors
and leaders in business, religion,
labor, and civil rights, agreed on the
urgent need for action on a broad
statement of principles that became
the charter of the Urban Coalition
movement.
This is what the statement adopted
at the convocation said, in part :
" We believe the American people
and the Congress must reorder
national priorities, with a commitment of resources equal to the magnitude of the problems we face. The
crisis requires a new dimension of
effo rt in both the public and private
sectors, working together to provide
jobs, housing, education, and the
other needs of our cities.
'·We believe the Congress must
mo ve without delay on urban programs. The country can wait no
longer fo r measures that have too
lo ng been denied the people of the
cities and the nation as a wholeadditional civil rights legislation,
adequately funded model cities,
anti-poverty, housing, education ,
and job-training programs, and a
host of others.
"We believe the private sector of
America must directly and vigoro usly involve itself in the crisis of
the cities by a commitment to investment, job-training and hiring,
and all that is necessary to the full
enjoyment of the free enterprise
system- and also to its survival. ...
'This convocation calls upon
local government, business, labor,
religions, and civil rights grou ps to
r
Joseph H. Allen
Arnold Aronson
�create counterpart local coalitions
where the y do not exist to ·support
and supplement this decl aration of
principles."
The work of mobiliza tion began
immedi atel y after the convocation
ended , under the leadership of two
co-chairmen: Andrew Heiskell,
chairman of the board of Time Inc. ,
and A. Philip R andolph , president
of the Intern ational Brotherhood of
Sleeping Car Porters. By yea r's end,
communities across the country had
responded by forming local Urban
Coalitions , each structured to fit the
particul ar needs of its city.
In the spring of 1968, the national
Urb an Coalition became a nonprofit, ta x-exempt corporation with
John W . Gardner as its chairman
and chief executive officer. The
Coalition is governed by a steering
committee of 38 national leaders
represe ntative of the participants
in the convocation.
The Urban Coalition Action
Counci l was se t up nationally as a
separate non-profit organization to
engage in direct advocacy of legislation a imed at meeting the problems of the cities. It is responsib le
for a ll legislative activities.
are needed . They have served as
catalysts, marshaling broad community support and stimulating new
ac tion programs while not operating
them directly. The Coalition movement also provides a channel by
which Coalition members and local
groups may speak out on legisl ative
issues at the national and state level
affecting urban problems. Thus an
Urb an Coalition is not a new organization , but a process , a means for
joint action by the significant and
diverse elements of the community.
While the programs and structures
of Urban Coalitions may vary to
meet loc al priorities, the Coalitions
share four essential characteristics:
1. Urban Coalitions have adopted
a statement of principles which
parallels that adopted by the organizers of the national Urban Coalition, tailored to the particular local
situation. The national statement is
broad enough to have received the
endorsement of leaders from all
major segments of urban society,
from businessmen to civil rights
~rctivists , yet specific enough to give
the Urban Coalition movement its
essential form and direction . (For
full text of statement, see appendix. )
2. Urban Coalitions, as indicated
by the statement of principles, are
committed to a comprehensive
at tack on all of the interrelated
problems of their communitiespo verty, poor housing, in adequ ate
ed ucation , racial tensions. A singlepurpose group such as a fairhousing council, even if it has wide
community support, must expand
its goals to other issues to become
an Urban Coalition.
3. ln their m akeup, Urb an
Coalitions are bro adl y representative of the leadership and li fe of
th eir communities. As with the
national Urb an Coalition, local
Urban Coa litions include represe ntatives of business, labor, local
government, re ligion , and civil rights
o rgan iza tions . Most local Urb an
Coalitions also include representati ves of ed ucation , the communications med ia, and estab li shed community organizations. It is essential
that all include spokesmen for disadva ntaged and mi nority
neighborhoods.
4. F in all y, Urban Coa litions must
have th e resources to do an effective
job. T hese reso urces include an
adeq uate budget and an able (a lthough not necessa ril y large) staff.
What is an Urban Coalition? The
key word is " coalition": an alli ance
of indi vi du als and orga niza ti ons
drawn toge ther for specific purposes.
An Urb an Coalition is a mechanism
throu gh which individu al leaders
and community groups can collaborate in dea ling with th e urban crisis.
Jt is to meet all the complex and
interwoven problems of our urban
areas that Urban Coalitions are
born. The elements of mod ern inJustri al soc iety have beco me so
specia li zed and fr ag mented, and ye t
so interdepe ndent, th at a new force
is needed to pull the pieces together.
No single element can solve the
problems alone. The solution lies in
joining the creativity, reso urces, a nd
leadership of the private sector with
those of the public sector.
Ex ist ing Urban Coa liti ons have
already demons trated their utilit y
as forums for communication
among the varied elements of comm unities and as instruments for
comm unity ed ucation and action.
T hey ha ve helped to assess community problems, establish goa ls and
priorities, and coord inate program
_ efforts. T hey have uncovered duplication of community efforts and
identified gaps where new services
,.
Joseph M. Barr
Frederick J. Close
�rate Coalitions. The Washington,
D.C., Coalition has a metropolitan
base, extending into the suburban
counties in Virginia and Maryland.
Since most of the problems confronted by a Coalition extend into
the metropolitan areas-finding
work for the unemployed, for example, requires a look at the job
market both in the city and in its
suburbs-these tasks are made
easier if the Coalition is organized
on a metropolitan basis.
-The only criterion for the size
of the steering committee is that it
be large enough to do the job in the
particular community. New York,
With the national headquarters of
many corporations, banks, and insurance Gompanies and its thousands
of small employers, has 150 members, including spokesmen for
community-action groups. Detroit,
with one dominant industry, has 39.
The first order of business before
the steering committee is the drafting of a statement of principles.
Once this is done and public announcement of the Urban Coalition's formation has been made,
action should follow quickly. The
community should know that it has
The task of an Urban Coalition is a
serious and complex one, and it
dem ands a serious commitment of
all involved.
How an Urban Coalition Begins
An Urban Coalition can start with
one concerned and determined
person-the mayor, a businessman,
a labor leader-or out of discussions
among several individuals or community organizations. As quickly as
possible, however, the makeup of
the organizing committee for an
Urban Coalition should be spread
across the entire spectrum of
community leadership.
The task of this initial group is
to create the Coalition's steering
committee, its policy- and programmaking body. These are some guidelines, drawn out of the experiences
of Urban Coalitions to date, for
selection of the steering committee
members:
- They need not have been previously identified with civic causes.
One task of the Coalition, in fact,
is to identify and enlist talent which
may not previously have been at the
service of the community.
-They should include the community's most influential leadership.
The most zealous efforts of
churches, community-service
organizations, and neighborhood
groups will be wasted unless those
who hold power in local government, business, labor, and communications are convinced of the
need for action.
- It also works the o ther way
aro und. T he best efforts of the
holders of power will be frustrated
unless decisions are made with,
rather than for, the disadvantaged
in the community. The increasing
drive for self-determination among
the minorities and the poor is producing new and often militant
neighborhood and youth organizations. If truly representative, the
Coalition can provide the essential
link between emerging neighborhood spokesmen and the established
communitywide leadership. It can
thus be a vehicle for both communication and common action, joining
reso urces to needs.
- The Coalition may represent a
city, a metropolitan area, even a
county. Kansas City, Mo., and
Kansas C ity, Kan. , have found it
advantageous to fo rm a joint U rban
Coalition; the twin cities of St. Paul
and Minneapolis have formed sepa-
George H.Guilfoyle
--
Andrew Heiskell
�acquired not just a forum for discussion of its problems, but a
potentially powerful force for
constructive change.
In joining an Urban Coalition,
the steering committee members
may be working together for the
first time, putting their special interests aside for the sake of the
community. The better they get to
know each other, the more productive their association will be.
When the New York Urban Coalition was organizing, some 100 men
went off to Tarrytown together on a
weekend retre at. On neutral ground,
the big insurance executive and the
ghetto militant met, listened, and
learned from each other.
To get a program underway, the
Co alition needs both money and
staff. Initial funds may come most
readil y from business and labor
members , or the city government
m ay make an interim contribution.
In Minneapolis, the 14 business
executives who had attended the
August convocation each contributed $ 1,000 to get their program
organized. The fund was used to
hire two part-time professionals to
help analyze objectives, organization
structure, and fe asibility of Coalition action.
Perm anent funding should come ,
however, from all segments of the
Coalition. If one segn1ent is unable
to contribute money, it might provide se rvices inste ad: staff members
ca n be lo aned to the Coalition , office
space contributed, stationery and
supplies furnished.
In developing their programs,
Coalitions have found th at it is impo rt ant to mee t where the problems
are. Visiting slums in H arl em helped
se t priorities for action by the New
York Urb an Coalition. Phil adelphia
leaders saw things " they would not
be lieve" when the m ayor too k 200
of them to visit the city's pockets
o f poverty.
The Urban Coalition in Action
G ive n the va ri ations in needs from
city to city, the ra nge of program
possi bilities fo r Urban Coalitions
ca n best be desc ribed by specific
exam ples . In most cases, programs
are p lan ned by task forces in the
a reas of most p ressing concern.
Most U rban Coa litions have started
with task forces on employment,
ho usin g, and ed ucation ; others have
been added on econom ic develop-
�ment (with the focus on encouraging entrepreneurship among ghetto
residents), youth, problems of the
aging, and communications.
These are some of the progra ms
th at Urban Coalitions have launched
aro und the country:
Concentrating its strongest efforts
on helping the ghetto's small businessmen, the Baltimore Urban
Coa lition has formed a business task
force to help establish a Small Business Investment Corp.-a high-risk
ven ture capital program with a
projected $ 1 million operating fund .
The task force has pulled together
the talents of the Greater Baltimore
Committee ( a 102-member business
organization) to advise on the creatio n of business cooperatives, and
local associations of acco untants,
law yers, and retail merch ants to give
tech nica l assistance to inexperienced
ghetto entrepreneurs.
In the middle of its organizing
process , the Washington, D.C.,
Urban Coalition came into instant,
full-grown existence in response to
the April disorders which rocked the
capital fo llowing the shooting of
the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. T he Coalition appointed emerge ncy committees on food, housin g,
John V. Lindsay
George Meany
employme nt , and fin ancial assis tance; they made available 1,400,000
free meals, developed 1,000 job
offers , fo und 800 dwellings for riotdisplaced persons and collected
$ 146,000 in emergency aid funds.
This emergency effort was followed
by a call to provide logistical support
to the Poor People's Campaign:
delivering food to Resurrection
City three times a day and providing
med ical care, a recreation al progra m, and community se rvice
volunteers.
Jobs have been the chief focus of
the Minneapolis Urban Coalition ,
workin g with the N ation al Alliance
of Businessmen and the Chamber
of Commerce. The results have included pledges to the NAB for I , I 00
summer jobs and the waiving of
education-level requirements for
line work by one of the area's major
em ployers, Honeywell Inc.
The Riverside (Calif.) Urban
Coalition developed a Job Opportunities Council and persuaded eight
of the city's largest employers to
participate. With funding from the
eight firm s, the Council was to find
and ge t in touch with hard-core
unemployed persons. It wou ld provid e or obtai n necessary training to
qualify these applicants to meet
lowered minimum hiring standards,
then refer them to the firms. The
eight co mp an ies planned to hire a
num ber equivalent to 4 per ce nt of
their present work force.
A. housin g se minar sponsored by
the Gary (Ind.) Urban Coa lition led
to the decision by two ch urches to
sponsor the construction of lowe rincome housing under federa l mortgage guarantees . Along with these
efforts by the non-p rofit spo nsors,
the area's major employer, U .S.
Steel, announced its intention to
build about 300 moderate-i nco me
housin g units in the city.
The Bridge port (Conn.) Urban
Coa /irion's ac tin g T ask Force on
Ed ucation formed an educational
consort ium to ensure a co llege educa tion for all qu alifi ed students in
the Brid ge port area. The consortium
includ es the three pres id ents of
pri vate universities who make up
the Task Force and the presidents
of four o ther institutions of higher
learning in the region. A com mittee
of admissions officers fro m the seve n
parti cipat ing schools screens each
appli cant a nd arra nges fo r his
admiss ion to one of the co lleges.
J. Irwin Miller
�pressing their views on nation al and
state legislative issues. Because most
Urba n Coalitions seek taxdedu ctible contributions from such
sources as community found ations,
some have chosen to establish a
separate organization, as the nation al group has, to carry out legislative progra ms on the scale needed.
The Urban Coalition Action Council will provide assistance to others
choosin g this course.
The tasks of an Urban Coalition will
not be easy, for they reflect the scale
and complexity of the crisis situation facing the country. The search
for solutions involves major commitments at every level- national, state,
and local-and by all segments of
society, public and private alike.
Substantial public resources must be
forthcoming if solutions are to be
found, but so must significant
private leadership.
"Out of past emergencies, we
have drawn strength and progress,"
said the founders of the U rban
Coalition movement. "Out of the
present urban crisis we can build
cities that are places, not of disorder
and despair, but of hope and
opportunity."
Appendix
1
Principles
Goals
Commitments '
Statem ent adopted at the f:mergency
Con vocation, August 24, 1967,
Washingt'on; D.C. ,:,
We are experiene~g our third
summer of widespread civil disorder.
In 1965, it was H arlem, and the disas ter of Watts. In 1966, it was the
H ough area of Cleveland, _Omaha,
~ tlanta, D ayton, San Francisco, and
24 other cities. This summer, Newark and Detroit were only the most
tragic of 80 explosions of violence
in the streets.
Confronted by these catastrophic
events, we, as representatives of
business, labor, religion, civil rights,
and local government have joined in
this convocation to create a sense of
national urgency on the need for
positive action for all the people of
our cities.
We are united in the followin g
convictions:
We believe the tangible effects of
the urban riots in terms of death ,
injury, and property damage, horrifying though they are, are less to be
feared than the intangible damage
to men's minds.
We believe it is the government's
duty to m ai ntain law and order.
· We believe that our thoughts and
actions should be dir ected to the
deep-rooted and historic problems
of the cities.
We believe that we, as a nation ,
must clearly and positively demonstrate our belief that justice, -social
Progress, and equality of opportunity are rights of every citizen.
We believe the American people
and the Congress m ust reorder national priorities, with a com mitment
of resources equal to the m agnitude
of the problems we face. The crisis
requires a new dimension of effor t in
both the public and private sectors,
Working together to provide jobs,
housing, education , and the other
needs of our cities.
We believe the Congress must
move without delay on urban program . T he country can wait no
-
• A t the national le1·el, t wo separate o rgani:::.atio11s ha,·e been created: the U rba11
Co a/itio11 and the U rban Coalition Action
Cou11ci/. Th e Actio n Council is responsible
fo r th e impleme111ation of legislative goals
and ob jectfres ex pressed in this s tatement.
.
�longer for measures that have too
long beet). denied the peop)e of the
cities and the nation as a wholeadditional civil rights legislation,
adequately funded model cities,
anti-poverty, housing, education,
and job-training_ programs, and a
host of others.
We believe the private sector oi
America must directly and vigorously involve itself in the crisis of
the cities by a commitment to investment, jo~:>-training, and hiring,
and all that is necessary .to the full
enjoyment of the free enterprise system-and also to its survival.
We . believe the sickness of the
cities, including civic disorder within them, is the responsibility of the
whole of America. Therefore, it is
the responsibility of every American
to join in the creation of a new·
political, social, economic, and
·moral climate that will make possible the breaking of the vicious cycle
of the ghetto. Efforts must be made to insure 1he broadest possible opportunity for all citizens and groups,
including those in the ghetto, to participate fully in shaping and directing the society of which they a're a
part.
This convocation calls upon the
nation ·to end once and for all the
shame of poverty amid general affl uence. Government and business
must accept responsibility to provide
all Americans with opportunity to
earn an adequate income. Private
industry must greatly accelerate its
efforts to recruit, train, and hire the
hard-core unemployed. When the
private sector is unable to provide
employment to those who are both
able and willing to work, then in a
free society the government must of
necessity assume the respo.nsibility
and act as the employer of last resort
or must ass ure adequate income
levels for those who are unable to
work.
Emergency Work Program
This convocation calls upon the
federal government to develop an
emergency work program to provide jobs and new training opportunities for the unemployed and
underemployed consistent with the
following principles :
- The federal government must
enlist the cooperation of government at all levels and of private industry to assure that meaningful,
productiv7 work is available to
everyone willing and able to work.
- To create socially useful jobs,
the emergency work program should
concentrate on the huge backlog of
employment needi:; in parks, streets,
slums, countryside, _schools, colleges, libraries, and hospitals. To this
end an emergency work program
should be initiated and should have
as its first goal putting at least one
million of the presently unemployed
into productive work-at the earliest
possible moment.
- The program must provide
meaningful jobs-not dead-end,
make-work projects-so that the
employment experience gained adds
to the. capabilities and -broadens the
opportunities of the employees to
become productive members of tfie
permanent work force of our nation .
-Basic education, training, and
counseling must be an integral part
of the program t-0 assure extended
0 ~~ortunities for upw,!rd job mobility and to improve employee
productivity. Funds for training,
edncation, and counseling should be
ma_de availal:ile to private industry
as Well as to public and private nonprofit agencies.
-Funds for employment should
be made available to local and state
governments, non-profit institutions,
and federal agencies able to demonstrate their ability to use labor productively without reducing existing
l~vels of employment or undercuttin& existing labor standards or
wages which prevail for comparable
Work or services in the area but are
not less than the federal minimum
wage.
- Such a program should seek to
qualify new employees to become
Part of Jhe regular work force and
tbat normal performance standards
are met.
-The operation of the program
should be keyed to specific, localized
unemployment problems and focu ed initially on those areas where
tl)e need is most apparent.
Private -Employment, Assistance,
and Investment
All representatives of the private
sector in this Urban Coalition decisively commit themselves to assi t
th.e deprived among us to achieve
_ful.l participatiQn in the economy as
self-supporting citizens. We pledge
full-scale private endeavor through
creative job-training and employment, managerial assi tance, and
-
�basic investment in all phases of
urban development.
The alternatives to a massive and
concerted drive by the private sector
are clear. They include the burden
of wasted human and physical potential, the deterioration of the
healthy environment basic to the
successful operation of any business,
and the dangers of permanent alienation from our society of millions of
citizens.
We propose to ini,tiate an all-out
attack on the unemployment problem through the following steps :
- In cooperation .with government, to· move . systematically and
directly into the ghettos and barrios
to seek out the unemployed arid underemployed and enlist them in
basic and · positive private training
and employment program s. We will
re-evaluate ou,r current testing proceclures and employment stand ards
so as to modify or eliminate those
practices and requirements· that unnecessarily bar many persons from
gainful employment by business or
access to union membership.
- To create a closer relationship
between private employers and public training and emergency employment pTograms to widen career op-_
portunities for our disadvantaged
citizens. To this end, we will proceed immedi ately to promote "Earn
and Learn Centers" in clepressed urban areas that might well be the
joint venture of business, labor, and
local government.
- To develop new training and
related programs to facilitate the
earl y entry of under-qualified persons into industrial and commerci al
employment.
- To develop large-scale programs to motivate the young to
continue their education. Working
close ly with educators, we will redouble our efforts to provide parttime employment, training, and
other incentives for young men and
women. We also pledge ou r active
support to making quality education really accessible to deprived as
well as advantaged young people.
- To ·expand on-the-job train ing
programs to enhance the career adva ncement prospects of all employees, with particula r emphasis on
those who now must work at the
lowest level of job· cl assifications
becau e of educational and ski ll
deficiencies.
We pledge to mobilize the man-
agerial resources and experience of
the private sector in every way possible. We will expand p art-time and
full-time assistance to small business development. We will strive to
help residents of these areas b'ath
to raise their level of managerial
know-how and to obtain private and
public investment funds for development. We will work more closely
with publi<.:: agencies to assist in the
management of p·ublic projects. We
will encourage more leaders in the
private sector to get directly and
personally involved in urban problems so that they may gain a deeper
understanding of these problems
and be -of greater assistance.
We pledge our best efforts to de~elop means by which m ajor private
investment m ay be attracted to the
renovation of deteriorating neighborhoods in our cities. We will explore and en~ourage governmental
incentive.s to ·expedite private investment. We will develop new
methods of combining investment
and managerial assistance so that
the residents · m ay achieve a leadership position in the development of
their areas.
llousing, Reconstruction,
and Education
This convocation calls upon the
nation to take bold and immediate
action to fulfill the national need to
provide "a decent borne and a suitable. living environment for every
American family" with guarantees
of equal access to all housing, new
and existing. The Urban Coalition
shall, as its next order of business,
address itself to the development of
a broad program of urban reconstruction and advocacy of appropriate public and private action to
move toward these objectives, including the goal of rehabilitation
and construction of at least a million housing units for lower-income
families annually.
T his convocation calls upon the
nation to create educational progran;is that will equip all young
Americans for full and productive
~articipation in our society to the
full potential of their abilities. This
Will require concentrated compensatory programs to equalize opportunities for achievement. Early
chi ldhood education must be made
Universal. Work and study progra ms must be greatly expanded to
enlist those young people who now
�drop out of school. Financial barriers that now deny to youngsters
from low-income fa milies the opportunity for higher edu_cation
must be eliminated. Current programs. must be increased suffi ciently
to wipe out adult illiteracy within
five years.
This convocation ·calls upon local
government, business, labor, religions, and civil rights · groups to
create counterpar t· local coalit_ions
where they do not exist to support
and supplement this declaration of
- principles.
·
This convocation call~ upon all
Americans to apply the same determination to these programs that they
have to past emergencies. We are
con:!ident that, given this commitment,. our society has the ingenuity
to allocate its resources arid devise
the techniques necessary to rebuild
cities and still meet our other na-_
tional obligations without impairing
our fin ancial integri~y. Out of past
emergencies, we have drawn strength
and progress. Out of the present
urban crisis we can build cities that
are places, not of disorder and des-pa ir, but of hope and opportunity.
The task we set for ourselves will
not be easy, but the needs are massive and urgent, and the hour is late.
We pledge ourselves to this goal for
· as long as it takes to accomplish it.
We ask the help of the Congress and
the nation.
.,.
�1
-
�REPRINTED FROM
THE NEW YORK TIMES, THURSDAY, DECEMBERS, 1968
'Exiles' From Government
Heading
National Urban Coalition
By JOHN HERBERS
Special to Th< New York Tlme5
WASHIN~TON, Dec. 4
Some of the ablest innovators
and mechanics of the New
Frontier and Great Society are
to be found two blocks from
the White House in the offices
of the National Urban Coalition. This private agency has
become the vehicle for the
special talents and persuasion
of John W. Gardner, the former
Secretary of Health, Education
and Welfare.
The kind of ferment. and excitement that pervaded the
Government in the Kennedy Administration and early part of
the Johnson Administration is
present to a degree within the
coalition, which occupies two
floors df an office building at
1819 H Street.
Many on Mr. Gardner's staff
of professionals are, in effect,
exiles from the Government
and have transferred their hope
for a better society from the
public to the private sector.
A Commitment Sought
They show less optimism
about the possibility of quick
change and less self . assurance
than was evident in Washington in the days before the big
city riots. But they are finding
America to be a little wiser
about its urban predicament
and are moving to achieve a
national commitment in that
area.
The force that Mr. Gardner
has assembled in the last seven
months has two main objectives: To organize a massive
lobbying effort to obtain the
The New York Times
John W. Gardner
legislation that the coalition
considers essential for the cities
and to activate local leader.ship, especially the business
community, through local affiliates.
Mr. Gardner said in an interview that the coalition's annual
b\ldget at .the national level was
$3.5-million but that the overall cost, including that of 39 local coalitions, would be ,a bout
$20-million. The money is provided \)y ccntributions from individuals, businesses and foundations.
Three years ago President
Johnson described the adverse
forces faced by Negroes in the
slums as a "seamless web"
that would yield only to a total
attack The coalition itself is
moving in several areas, if only
in small ways.
School Aid Disputed
·For example, its education
qivi'sion, headed by Dr. James
Kelly, an associate professor
at Columbia University, is supporting with funds and research a lawsuit that ·could
radically change the method by
which most states allocate
school funds, so as to give
inner-city schools a larger
share.
The suit, brought by the
Detroit Board of Education
against the State -of Michigan,
charges that the system of appropriating the , same amount
per child in both rich and poor
districts is inherently unfair to
the slum child. The case, now
in a state court in Detroit,
is expected eventually to be
decided by the United States
Supreme Court.
Other "problem solving" projects are under way in the fields
of employment, education, housing, economic development of
the slums, legal services and
health-all under the general
heading of program development.
The coalition was founded
by a group of private citizens
in August, 1967, after the
nation had been raked by
riots. It brought together business, religious, labor and civil
rights leaders in an effort to
reorder national priorities in
the urban crisis.
Its stated objectives was to
bring about expanded Federal
�THE NEW YORK TIMES, THURSDAY, DECEMBERS, 1968
efforts to provide jobs, an
adequate income, decent and
nondiscriminatory housing and
improved education for the
poor.
There
was
considerable
skepticism about what it_ coul_d
accomplish, and for a time 1t
appeared that the coalition
would disappear for lack· of
leadership, staffing and coordination. Mr. Gardner became its chairman the following spring and has been
steadily building his staff.
"The staff was assembled
from two sources: persons who
had worked with Mr. Gardner
in government and those who
beat on the doors to get in ,"
according to a coalition spokesman.
·
The latest high-level official
to arrive is George A. -Silver,
who had been deputy assistant
secretary for health and scientific affairs in the Department
of Health, Education and Welfare and who will head up a
health program for the coalition. Dr. Silver was an idea
man for the Government ("it
would take several trucks to
haul away my unused memos,"
he says) and hopes to be the
same at the coalition.
Health Crisis Seen
In an interview amid packing
boxes in his new office, Dr.
Silver said there was a crisis
building in most communities
regarding health services, -due
in part to ,a lack of understanding among the classes of people
and professional groups involved. He hopes to build
"communications bridges" between them.
Following is a sample of others who have joined the staff:
M. Carl Holman, formerly deputy staff director of the United States Coro.mission on
Civil Rights, and now the coalition's vice president for
program development.
Bryiµi Dliff, who was on the
public affairs staff of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration and is now
vice president for communications.
Lo~ll Beck, who was on the
staff of the American Bar
Association antl is executive
director of the Urban Coalition Action Council, the coalition's lobbying arm.
A visitor gets the feeling that
if Mr. Gardner were to leave,
the coalition might fall apart.
This is due in part to the fact
that he has the respect of liberals because of his commitment to Federal action, and of
conservatives because he is a
Republican with a wide following in the business community.
The emphasis is on getting
business leaders and others
with "clout" in their communities involved. John Dean, a Negro who had been southeastern
director for community action
programs under the Office of
Economic Opportunity, is overseeing the formation of local
coalitions in the same area.
It is a slow, difficult task,
he acknowledged, but the first
step is to interest business and
other community leaders in
establishing a coalition. The
blacks, he said, are no longer
interested in meeting just with
the white liberals who mean
well but have little power.
"They want to meet with the
people who can get something
done," he said.
Mr. Gardner believes the
greatest failure has been at the
community level, As Secretary
of Health, , Education and Welfare, he was assured by his
own staff and other leaders in
some communities that there
would be no riots just before
the riots broke out. In some
cities white leaders still do ·not
know who the real Negro
leaders are.
Performance Varies
"We have talked a great
game of community leadership,
but we haven't lived up to it,"
he said. "The Federal Government can only give the communities the pieces [in grants
1and program s], and it is up to
them to put the pieces together."
The performance of the local
coalitions has varied widely.
Many are still in the formative
stage. Th e Minneapolis Coalition is cited as the good example. It' has sponsored such
things as "Anti-Racism Weck"
for the education of suburban
whites. White leaders ventured
into the slums and were exposed to such remarks as: "Did
you see wliat the honkies did?
They raised $5-million for the
Minneapolis Symphony."
Stephen Keating, president of
Honeyw~ll. Inc., and chairman
of the coalition, withstood outrage and in sults· in "confrontations between the powerless
and the powerful."
But cities like Minneapolis,
New York and Detroit are exceptions. Some cities whose
Mayors are members of the
national steering committeeChicago, P:ttshu,·gh and Phoenix-did not even have coalitions as of last month.
Mayor Richard J. Daley of
Chicago has said his Democratic organization provides
the same service, and in cities
like Atlanta progressive leaders
who have traditionally met in
private and decided what is
best for the community are
reluctant to give up that preroi;:ative.
Because of the coalition's
emphasis on private initiative,
Mr. Gardner is hopeful of having the cooperation of the incoming Nixon Administration.
Members of the steering committee are to meet soon with
the President-elect, and Mr.
Gardner already has held meetings with several of Mr. Nixon's
advisers.
He is pleased with the list
of persons he has been told
Mr. Nixon is considering for
the Secretaties of Health, Education and Welfare and Housing and Urban Development.
But there is skepticism within
the coalition about the use of
tax credits, which Mr. Nixon
has proposed in an effort to
enlist private enterprisr in rebuilding the slums and providing employment. Mr. Gardner
says the proposals must be
made more specific and studied
carefully before his organization will decide on their merit.
NEW SYMBOL of Urban Coalition makes "U" and "C" the
links of a chain. Sandgren & Murtha, Inc., designed it.
�THE NEW YORK TIMES, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1968
N ew York Coalition Scoring
Its First Dramatic Gains in Slums
By SYLVAN FOX
A grimy foundry in Harlem
changed ownership recently,
and with the transaction, all the
'talk about giving Negroes a
" piece of the action" took a
small but profound step toward
reality.
The foundry, at 402 West
126th Street, was sold by its
two white owners, Frieda Boga-rod and Ernest Kruezer, to the
Harlem Commonwealth Council, a Negro economic development corporation.
Behind the sale lies an important part of the story of what
the New York Urban Coalition
is all about; fo r it was with t he
help of the coalition-a group
of some 160 business, labor and
community leaders who believe
life in New York's slums can
be improved by private e,ffortthat the deal was accomplished.
The story of the coalition
also 11ies in the help it gave to
a Negro man who wanted to
open a shoe store in Harlem.
And it lies in the dedicated
activities of the city's street
academies, which seek to salva•g e high school dropouts from
lives of ignorance and degradation.
Not An 'Illusion'
It even lies in a little vacant
lot on 118th Street and Park
Avwue, which in a few months
will become the fi rst of dozens
of miniparks created with coalition aid.
"We're not under the illusion
that the private sector can turn
the city around," said Saul
Wallen, the president of t he
New York Urban Coalition, as
he reviewed its first-year accomplishments. "But we can
have an impact."
Except for the trumpeting of
its slogan - "Give a damn"
-the coalition has operated
quietly during the year, possibly because it did not seek
publicity for its first tentative
steps and avoided controversial
areas until this week.
But on Monday the coalition
purchased newspaper advertisements strongly backing
school decentralization under
the headline: "If it works in
Scarsdale, it can work in
Ocean Hill." The text of the
advertisement included a decentralization resolution approved by the group's board
of directors after some vigorous
private debate.
Officials of the United Federation of Teachers said yesterday that the union was preparing a statement "rebutting
some distortions" in the advertisement.
A Dramatic Step
The sale of the Acme Foundry to the Hal'lem Commonwealth Council is, perhaps, the
most dramatic tangible step
the coalition has yet made
toward changing things in the
depressed black and Puerto
Rican communities.
The Harlem Commonwealth
CouncH was organized 18
months ago' by Roy Innis, now
the national director of ~he
Congress of Racial Equality and
a fil'm believer in black economic development. Mr. Innis
is also •a member of -t he New
York Urban Coalition, w hich is
the local arm of t he National
Urban Coali,tion.
His simultaneous role in both
groups made it natural fo r the
Urban Coalition and the Harlem
Commonwealth co·uncil to cooperate, and when Miss Bogorod and Mr. Kruezer informed
the coalition they wanted to sell
their fo und·ry, the w heels were
quickly set in motion.
The ,price the foundry owners
!tad set was $45,000 .p lus about
$70.000 ·in cash on hand, accounts receivable and inventory.
The coalition marshaled the
needed assistance to complete
the deal. Allen Herzig of Kidder, Peab9dy & Co., the investment banking firm, did a financial analysis of the foundry.
Stuart Goldman, a WaH Street
lawyer, handled the legal work
involved in the purchase.
The Abex Corporation, a
manufacturer of control i:quipment and the owner of several
foundries, agreed to provide
technical aid and ar.ran-ged for
the new president of the
foun-dl:y, Rozendo Beasley, to
attend a training course given
by the American Foundrymen's
Society.
Loans Are Granted
Through the efforts of the
coalition, the Morgan Guaranty
T,rust Company lent the Harlem Commonwealuh Council
$50,000. The coalition's Venture
Corporation-one of two economic development corpora~
tions it has established to help
black and Puer.to Rican ·business
enterprises -put up $20,000,
and the Episcopa'i Diocese of
New York provided a loan of
another $20,000.
Under its new ownership, the
foundry employs 27 persons
and does a gross business of
$500,000 a year.
But Negro ownership of the
plant, while an important step,
is just the fi rst, according to
Mr. Beasley, a dynamic, mustached 33-year-old business administration graduate of Michigan State University.
When the foun dry has paid
off its $95,000 debt, he explained, 'the Ha~lem Commonwealth Council plans to sell
shares to Harlem residents at a
price they can afford to pay.
"Our aim is economic development," he said, "spreading
the equity within the community. That's what we're
shooting for."
THE N EW YORK TIMES, T HURSDAY, DECEMBERS, 1968
As a corollary objective, he ing number of high school munity Association, which has
been working on a neighborsaid, the Harlem Common- dropouts.
wealt,h Council hopes to prove
Recently the New York Urban hood rehabilitation program.
that Negro businessmen can run Coalition moved in, convinced The community association
an en teiiprise so successfully ·businesses to invest in the edu- bought the lot and commisthat investment will be at- cation of high school dropouts, sioned plans for the minipark.
tracted to other black-operated and won pledges from 15 com- It is expected to be completed
businesses.
panies of $50,000 a year each in early spring.
These are a few of the coa"A lot of fi nancial institu- to support a street academy.
tions say the re are no busi- Twenty-three are now in opera- lition's activities. There are
others. In the South Bronx, the
nesses in ghettos worth invest- tion or soon to be opened.
New York Urban Coalition has
ing in," Mr. Beasley said. "We
'Beautiful Communication'
given the United Bronx Parents,
wan t to prove that is wrong. A
lot of financial institutions say
Among the companies re- Inc., $50,000 1:o conduct a
there isn't enough black mana- cruited by the coalition t o sup- training program, now in
gerial talent available in the port street academies are Mc- progress, on school decentralighetto. We want to prove this Graw-HiH, American Ak lines, zation. After serious internal
wrong, too.
Pan Am, International Business debate, the coalition strongly
"Our main function is to get Machines, Time Inc., Celanese endorsed the ,program.
Col'poration, Sinclair Oil ComNews Jobs Filled
in there and make dough."
Cooperation between the Har- pany, Union Carbide, First NaLast
summer, with coalition
lem Commonwealth Council and tiona.J City Bank, Chase Man- financial help, 20 Negro and
hattan
Bank,
Burlington
Mills
the New York Urban Coalition
Puerto Rican young people athas also led to the establish- and American Express.
tendetl a course in radio and
At
the
McGraw
Hill
Street
ment of a shoe store under
television journalism at the CoAcademy
on
West
64th
Street,
Negro ownership at Lenox Avlumbia University Graduate
enue and 134th Street. The five teachers work with 30 School o-f Journalism. All have
'rru-Fit Stride Rite store, which youngsters. McGraw-Hill found been ,placed in news jobs.
ls owned by Al Jackson, opened the site for t:he academy, proThe coalition has committed
vides teaohing mater-ial, puts up $150,000
in September.
for four h ousing ,projthe money that is needed to
Mr. Jackson, who had 'been run the school and conducts ects that needed money to go
the manager of a Miles shoe regular conferences with mem- ahead with their construction
store in Harlem, was chosen bers of the academy staff to plans. It has provided $20,000
from among eight possilble discuss the work ibeing done to the East Harlem Ski•lls
owners whose names were sub- there and to sound out the Training Center, whioh is conmitted to the Green Shoe Com- teachers on how educational ducting a training program in
pany by ' the Harlem Common- materials and textbooks can be vhe printing t rades for at least
200 Negroes and Puerto Ricans.
wealth Council. The Green improved.
The coalition has obtained, in
Shoe Company put up about 90
"We've
become,
in
a
sense,
conjunction with the National
per cent of the needed investa laboratory for them," David Alliance
of
Businessmen,
ment, Mr. Jackson the rest.
Rathbun, a 26-year-old teacher
The New York Urban Coa- at the academy, said of Mc- pledges of 19,000 jobs for hardlition helped Mr. Jackson refur- Graw-Hill. "There's a very core unemployed, and already
bish the store, provided Jegal healuhy, beautiful kind of com- has filled 9,000 jobs.
The National Urban Coalition
assistance in the p reparation of munication."
was formed in August, 1967, by
his tax and insurance papers
At 118th Street and Park a .group of private citizens who
and is providing managerial
1
and technical assistance through Avenue, a sma:ll lot lies vacant. were convinced that private
Next to it stands an a1bandoned business, laibor and community
its Development Corporation.
five-story building slated for· leaders could make a significant
Companies Back Academies
demolition. In a few month:;, it contribU'tion to improving life
Another aspect of t he New is hoped, the site will be trans- in the nation's slums.
John Gardner, the formr r
York Ul'ban Coalition's wol'k is formed into a minipark.
Again, the New York · Urben Secretary of Heal~h. Education
evident at a street ·academy at
259 West 64rh Street, where 30 Coalition has been the catalyz- and Welfare, heads the national
youngsters who have dropped ing agent behind the project. organization, and Mayor Lindout of high school are getting Last summer the Ama:lgamated say and Andrew Heiskell,
an education.
Clothing Workers of America ohairman of Time Inc., are coThe first street academies gave the coalition $40,000 for chairmen of its steering committee.
were established by the New the construction of miniparks.
York Urban League several
The coalition turned about
years ago to dea1 with the $27,000 of this money over to
problem created by the grow- the Upper Pal'k Avenue Com- (cont. back page)
�THE NEW YORK TIMES, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1968
(continued)
Slow, Substantial Gains
The New York Urban Coalition was or,g anized last October with Christian A. Herter
Jr., vice president of the Mobil
Oil Corporation, as its chairman, and Mr. WaHen, a labor
mediator, as its president.
At first, progress was slow ,
It still does not come at breakneck speed, but Mr. Wallen
attribut.es this to the organization's "democratic character"
and to the complexity of the
problems i-t conf.ronts.
Yet there have been some
substantial gains in this first
year-both of a tangible and an
intangible nature, Mr. Wallen
says.
"One of the major accom-
plishments," he said as he sat
the other day •in his 35th-floor•
office at coalition headquarters,
60 East 42d Street, "is maintaining a continuing dialogue
between blacks and Puerto
Ricans, business and labor. We
don't have anything like that
anywhere else in the city.
"_And we've built an organizat10n and conducted a publicrelations campaign that articulated the concern of the white
estaib'lishment about ghetto
problems.
"A year ago, when the coalitfon was founded, it was an
idea. Now we're starting to
emerge."
The coalition, which has 48
full-time clerical and professional ernployes and about 100
volunteer workers, r.aised $4-
million in a fund drive this
year. It hopes to raise between
$6-rnil'lion and $IO-million next
year, Mr. Wallen said.
A third of its income has
been earmarl;{ed for Mayor
Lindsay's sumn1er program. But
short-term racial peace is not
the main objective of the New
York Urban Coalition.
"I can't say we can take any
credit for keeping the summer
cool," Mr. Wallen said. "As a
matter of fact, that isn't even
our purpose.
"We hope to involve the private sector in some of the basic
problems of preventing urba·n
blight, and that's going to
transcend the summer. It's a
long-term, long-pull proposition."
Businessmen Are Urged to Join
'Frontal Assault' on Cities' Ills
Special lo The New York Timcs
PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 4 - chairman of the Urban CoaliThe nation's urban problems tion, an organization of busiare too great to yield to "hap- n_ess, labor, civic and civil
hazard and limited solutions"; r!ghts lea?ers formed to help
they require a "frontal assault find sol_u~1ons to the problems
_
of the c1 ties.
that will not work without busi- Mr. Heiskell was the speaker
ness participation," Andrew at an alumni dinner of the UniHeiskell, chairman of Time versity of Pennsylvania's WharInc., said in a speech tonight. ton School of Finance and
Businessmen, Mr. Heiskell Commerce, held at the Bellevuesaid, must find ways to intensify stratford Hotel. He was
fy their interest, broaden their awaTded the Wharton ~old
perspectives and enlarge their Medal, pres~.nted annually s1_nce
commitment to the nation and 1_950, for personal contnb~its people.
t10n to _the progress of Amen.
.
can business."
Businessmen, he said, ca~ no Mr. Heiskell told the group
lo?~er affo1:d to be _spe:1ahsts. ~hat perhaps the single most
Our society, which 1s now 11:npormnt thing corporations
largely urban," he declared, could do was to encourage the
'.'will not continue to function young men who work for them
1f those of us in the priva~e "to find out about the problems
sector do not become pubhc of the community and to bemen as well."
come as expert at some aspect"
Mr. Heisk~ll Is chairman of o_f them as they are at producUrban America, Inc., and co- t1on or marketing processes.
The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street, N.W. • Washington, D. C. 20006
�Prepared by
,.._m:llma The Housing Staff of
The National Urban Coalition
\
�An Agenda
For Positive Action:
State Programs in Housing
& Community Development
November 1, 1968
A Report Prepared by
the Urban Coalition's Task
Force on Housing, Reconstruction
and Investment
�Preface and Acknowledgements
On July 9, 1968, the Urban Coalition Task
Force on Housing, Reconstruction and Investment met in New York City. At that time the
Task Force members discussed the potential
role of the states in helping cities meet urban
needs.
The discussion soon revealed that a few -states
had begun innovative programs, many of which
show promise of bringing better living conditions
to an increasingly urbanized population. The
Task Force accordingly requested the staff of
the Urban Coalition to draw together and analyze legislative actions that had been taken, and
which cQuld feasibly be taken, so that states considering enacting housing and community devel~pment programs might have guidelines for action. This report is the result of that survey and
analysis, and was prepared with the goals of the
Urban Coalition in mind. The Task Force reviewed and commented on the paper in draft
form and at its meeting on .September 23, 1968,
approved its publication.
The report is intended to enable those in each
_state responsible for administering, recommendmg and drafting housing programs to ask relevant questions and to be aware of possible patterns for :state involvement. The paper describes
an assortment of weapons in the armory of state
action which can be combined to achieve overall objectives. The Task Force believes each of
the tools described in this paper is worthy of serious consideration. It further believes that no ·
recommendations for state action in housing and
community development can be deemed complete without their consideration.
_Although responsibility for the judgments in
this document remains with the Urban Coalition
~ousing staff, helpful suggestions were received
rom many sources. Chief among them were Seylllour Baskin, Esquire, of Pittsburgh ; Ralph
Brown and Michael Herbert, Department of
Colllmunity Affairs, State of New Jersey ; Joel
Cogen of Joel Cogen Associates, New Haven;
Mrs. Glenda Sloane, National Committee
Against Discrimination in Housing; and Stephen
Ziegler, Esquire, of New York City. Each attended discussion meetings and critically reviewed the draft in detail.
Helpful advice, assistance or critical comments also were advanced by: S. Leigh Curry
and H. Ralph Taylor of HUD; Stanley Berman,
Esquire, of New York City; Peter Paul · and
William L. Slayton of Urban America; Professor Daniel Mandelker, Washington University
Law School, St. Louis; Richard Blakley, Illinois
State Housing Board; Eugene Rossland, National Bureau of Standards; James Martin of the
National Governors' Conference; Stephen D.
Moses of Boise-Cascade Corporation; and Warren Lindquist, Associate of David Rockefeller.
In addition, representatives of the Task Force
co-chairmen supplied support and guidance
from the inception of the study: Thomas Hannigan for Joseph Keenan; David Cohen for Walter
Reuther; and Richard Dowdy for David Rockefeller. Jack Davies of the Chase Manhattan Bank
and John Kolesar of the New Jersey Department
of Community Affairs provided valuable aid in
redrafting some of the material.
.
Helpful advice on presentation of the matenal
was received from Commissioner Paul N. Ylvisaker, Mayor Jerome Cavanagh and James
Rouse, members of a special Housing Task
Force Subcommittee which reviewed the fin al
draft.
.
Citations were checked and expanded by
Stuart Stiller.
Two reports previously published : "The
States and Urban Problems," a staff study of the
National Governors' Conference, and a preliminary report ("Action for Our Cities-Part IlHousing" ) of the States Urban Action Ce~ter,
Washington, D. C. , stimulated Task Force thmking at the outset.
�Table of Contents
and
Summary of Recommendations
Page
v
Page
Introduction
II. Increasing Housing Choice
I. Increasingcthe Supply of Low- and Moderate-Income Housing
1
2
2
3
4
5
6
6
6
ii
Program I:
Seed money loans,
technical assistance
and grants.
7
Interest-free seed money loans and technical assistance to
limited-profit and nonprofit developers of low- and moderate-income housing; grants to nonprofit developers of loW·
and moderate-income housing.
Program 2:
State-developed housing.
State-developed low- and moderate-income housing.
Program 3:
Below-marketinterest-rate
mortgage loans.
Below-market-interest-rate mortgage loans to limited-profit
and nonprofit developers of low- and moderate-incorne
housing.
Program 4:
Interest-free loans
to developers.
Program 5:
Construction loans.
Program 6:
Land acquis ition and
write-down.
Program 7:
Rehabilitation housing
acquisition and
write-down .
Program 8:
Property tax
abatement.
Program 9:
Administration.
8
9
Program I:
Comprehensive fair
housing law.
A comprehensive fair housing law establishing a strong enforcement agency.
Program 2:
Metropolitan area
housing information
centers.
Financial assistance to nonprofit metropolitan area housing
information centers to aid families in finding decent housing.
Program 3:
Priority assistance
for integrated
housing.
Priority assistance to developers . which have affirmative
plans to locate, promote and manage their low- and moderate-income housing projects to achieve integrated housing.
III. Improving Building Codes
Interest-free loans to limited-profit and nonprofit developers
to enable them to fall within federal cost limitations on JoW·
and moderate-income housing.
Construction loans to limited-profit and nonprofit develop·
ers of low- and moderate-income hou sing.
10
Program:
Model building code.
A model building code embodying performance standards
for permissive adoption by communities; a building codes
appeal board ; aids for building inspection.
IV. Improving Relocation Assistance
11
Financial assista nce for acquisition and sale or lease of hous.
rket
.
mg sites for low- and moderate-income housing at ma
value or less than market value.
Program:
Uniform relocation
program.
A uniform relocation program to assist communities to pay
relocation expenses and to provide relocation services to
families and businesses displ aced by state or local government action.
V. Equalizing Landlord-Tenant Relations
Financial assistance for acquisition of substandard housing
and its sale or lease at market value or less th an market value
for rehabilitation for low- and moderate-income housing.
. Reimbursement to communities for abatement of normal
' or moderate-income b 0 us·
~roperty taxes on public housing
mg; ~~yments to cover extra public service costs incurred b)'
localities on account of this housing.
Administration of low- and moderate-income hou sing as·
sistance programs.
12
13
13
Program I:
Means to secure
code compliance.
Permit a tenant to institute a housing c~de enforcem~nt ~roceeding, to obtain specific relief for inadequately mam~arned
premises, and to withhold rent to secure code compliance.
Program 2:
Evictions.
Prohibit "retaliatory" evictions.
Program 3:
Private obligation
to repair.
Require that every lease pledge that premises are fit_ to live
in when the tenant moves in and that the landlord will keep
them in good repair.
iii
�Page
Introduction
13
Program 4:
Public housing policies.
~equire local housing authorities to give reasons for evictmg tenants and establish a "Board of Tenants Affairs" for
public housing.
VI. Enhancing Community Development
15
Program 1:
Financial assistance
for community
development programs.
16
Program 2:
Urban Development
Corporation.
17
Technical and financial assistance to communities to draft
proposals for federal program grants.
Eliminte ~onstitutional prohibitions, if any on the involvement o pnvate enterprise in urban affairs. '
Program 6:
Zoning and planning
reforms.
18
A Decent Home and Suitable Living
Environment
Program 5:
Constitutional reform.
18
guarantees to owners of residential property and small
Lo~n
b
usmesses.
Program 4:
Assistance to obtain
federal grants.
18
~n ~rban Development Corporation with state-wide aut onty to combine state and private resources for the improvement of metropolitan areas.
Program 3:
Loan guarantees.
17
Provide a substantial portion of the required non-federal
share of federa~y aided community development programs
a_nd a su~stantial portion of the cost of non-federally assisted projects.
AC
..
_omm1ss1on to review and assess modern techniques of
zonmg an~ land use regulation and to recommend legislation
to moderrnze the state's zoning enabling act.
Program 7:
Improving
design quality.
· o f structures mvolving
.
Excellence in the d es1gn
the use of
nd


ta~e fu s or c_redi~ and the preservation of public buildings


n areas of h1stoncal or architectural significance.
VII. Developing New Communities
19
Program:
Aiding the development
of new communities.
21
VIII. Centralizing Administratio n of Housmg
. and Community Development Programs
P
rogram:
A centralized Department
of Housing and
Community Affairs.
References
iv
New ~ommunity development corporations with eminent
domam powers; deferral of property taxes during development ~eri?d; state approval of new community development
plans m lieu of other land use regulation.
~C~binet lev~l Department of Housing and Community
a'.r~ res~onsible to the Governor, with responsibility for
adm1mstenng a broad range of community aid programs.
At its Emergency Convocation in August 1967,
the Urban Coalition called upon the nation to
t~ke bold and immediate steps to fulfill the nat10nal goal to provide "a decent home and
suitable living environment for every American
family" with guarantees of equal access to all
housing, new and existing.
This goal requires a national effort vastly
larger than anything done in the past. The Coalition set an objective of building or rehabilitating
one million housing units a year for lower-income
families. The National Advisory Commission on
Civil Disorders later recommended construction
of an average of 1.2 million units a year for lowand moderate-income families over the next five
years. The Housing and Urban Development Act
of 1968 set a goal of six million units in the next
decade-an annual average of 600,000 units.
These goals exceed by a wide margin the current annual rate of production of less than 100,000 housing units for low- and moderate-income
families.
Why State Action? State action must be part
of any national program to provide the housing
to meet the very real needs and expectations of
millions of Americans.
The states have abilities and legal authority
unavailable to the other levels of government. If
these resources are withheld from national programs, the federal government, the cities and the
private sector will be seriously hampered in carrying out their roles. If the states apply their
authority and abilities creatively, they can enhance the effectiveness of the other partners in
programs aimed at providing a decent environment for the residents of our communities.
States have authority to assist cities in modernizing governmental patterns and to amend
laws that impede new programs for urban progress. States have great flexibility to experiment
with a wide variety of instruments and incentives
closely tailored to local conditions and requirements. States, moreover, have the capacity to
respond directly to urban problems as they arise,
and to work with cities in supplementing federal
and local programs and to adapt them to the individual challenges each city faces.
A few states have already enacted their own
housing and community development programs
covering a wide variety of problems. But these
programs are not as well known as they should
be at a time when many states are seeking new
avenues through which -to enlarge their assistance to local communities to improve the quality
of housing and community facilities.
The Purpose of This Report. This report on
possible state programs has been prepared by
the Urban Coalition's Task Force on Housing,
Reconstruction and Investment as a guide for
those in the public and private sectors concerned with greater positive action by the states
to assist cities in housing and community development.
The programs for state action outlined here
are designed to meet problems which fall into
eight categories:
V
�I
I
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
Increasing the Housing Supply
Increasing Housing Choice
Improving Building Codes
Improving Relocation Assistance
Equalizing Landlord-Tenant Relations
Enhancing Community Development
Developing New Communities
VIII. Centralizing Administration of Housing
and Community Development Programs
Programs in each of these categories are prefaced by a brief statement of needs and potentials
in the area. And federal programs are related to
state programs where a relationship exists.
The programs cited are designed to spur swift
and effective action. This report does not envision establishing at the state level another set of
complex administrative requirements alongside
the existing federal regulations. To the greatest
feasible ex tent, where states supplement or relate to federal programs, the federal appro val
should be the principal criterion to obtain the
additional state aid. Duplicating and possibly
conff,icting state requirements may only delay or
frustrate needed action.
Cities have built up a body of experience dealing with federal aid procedures, however complicated these rules may be. States must master
the same procedures before they can work effectively to improve them. A state administration
truly intent on helping cities thro ugh these programs will develop its own experienced and
capable staff. It will, consequently, -find its voice
significantly strengthened in shaping -the course
of federal action. Strong voices are indeed
needed, because in the last analysis increasing
the effectiveness of federal efforts, backed by the
far larger potential financial resources of the
federal government, will prove crucial. States
should join with their cities in working to channel these resources into urban needs.
Except for a suggested commission to revise
complex laws for zoning and land use, no proposals are made that require extensive research.
A suggestion is advanced for centralized state
administration, but with one exception, no at~
tempt is made here to deal with long-range con~titutional or fiscal reforms. Though such organic and fiscal change is unquestionably vital, to
maintain a sharp focus this report concentrates
on specific measures which can be readily taken.
Indeed, most of th e measures described are already being undertaken in some form in one or
more states.
In ~an_y states constitutional li mitations may
make it difficult to enact some of the provisions
vi
described here. States with restrictive constitutions are, however, already undertaking many
of these programs by the use of responsible and
imaginative legal counsel, financing devices and
careful draftsmanship. Before a sensible course
of action is piscarded because of assumed constitutional difficulties, the statutes of other states
should be carefully e?(amined for possible solutions to the constitutional problem.
The primary objective of the majority of these
programs is to attract greater federal aid-to
bring in several federal assistance dollars for
each state assistance dollar. A number of the
programs also act to attract wider private sector
involvement and to overcome legal and political
impediments to swifter and more effective progress. In many cases, state assistance can be seen
substantially to improve the scope and efficiency
of federal and private programs.
No model legislation for these programs is included since such legislation must necessarily be
drafted to fit the circumstances in each state.
However, citations to existing state programs
and other relevant sources are given in the references at the end of this report. These citations
are intended to be illustrative rather than exhaustive. The staff of the Urban Coalition is prepared to provide further information and assistance to those interested in carrying out any of
these programs in their states.
E ach state is urged to review these suggested
programs carefully within th e fra mework of its
own needs, priorities and resources. The programs outlined here could be combined or considerably altered to fit particular circumstances,
and there is still certainly a great need for experimentation . Each housing and community development project, moreover, should be related to
an ongoing local or metropolitan comprehensive
planning effort. Ideally, each state should seek
to combine new concepts and existing programs
into a well-coordin ated and effective effort.
It is a time to decide. It is a time to act. To
justify the role of the state as an innovatora laboratory for imaginative approaches to
urban problems-state leaders must dramatically increase state assistance to urban communities.
Enactment and adequate funding of a com·
prehensive state housing and community de•
velopment program which in some measure
includes the specific programs described in this
report would dramatize an important commit•
ment that states could make to their own
people.
I. Increasing the Supply of Low- and Moderate-
Program I
Income Housing
Interest-Free Seed Mo ney Loans and T echnical Assistance to Limited-Profit and Nonprofit
Developers of Low- and Moderate-Income
Housing; Grants to Nonprofit Developers of
Low- and Moderate-Income Housing.
,
Federal and state low- and moderate-income
housing assistance programs rely heavily upon
.
nonprofit housing sponsors. *
Nonprofit housing sponsors are e1the_r bro~dly-based housing development corpo_rat10ns _aiding or sponsoring a number of ho~smg proiects
in the community or individual proiect sponsors,
such as churches, charitable foundations , se~tlement houses, labor unions, fraternal orgaruza.
tions and other civic-minded groups.
As landlords or as organizers of cooperatives,
these groups are likely to follow enlightened policies. As sellers, they are likely to help lowerincome buyers adjust to homeownership. Th_e social motivation of many nonprofit corporations,
moreover, causes them to undertake t_he_bften
risky, tedious and difficult task o~ bu1ld~g or
rehabilitating housing in inner- city . or gray
areas " where many private profit-motivated de' will not enter.
velopers
Experience has shown, however, t_hat to?
many nonprofit groups are long on social dedication but short on money and skills. Thus, ~he
difference between good intentions and hous'. ng
in place is often assistance to nonprofit housmg
corporations in the forms of:
-seed money loam, (advances from a revolving loan fund needed to cover initial
costs, such as preliminary architectural fees,
engineering fees , site options, tenant surveys, market analyses, and legal an_d organizational expenses during the project development stage, which are recoverable
from the proceeds of the FHA-insured
mortgage ) ;
.
- grants for administrative costs, social services and other necessary expenses whic~
are important to the success o~ the organization and the project, but which may not
be recoverable fro m the mortgage proceeds;
-interim fina ncing ( construction loans
needed when private construction loans are
not available as described in program 5
below) , and
- technical assistance (expert aid needed to
train personnel, develop projects, se_cure
project approval and oversee construct10n).
• A used ;,, this paper references to 11011 profit deve lopers or n~npro{it sponsors include nonprofit cooperatives as well as ot er
non profit entities.
�/
The availability of grant money is particul arly
important to housing development corporations.
These broadly based nonprofits need start-up
and operating money that will not be recaptured
from the proceeds of housing project mortgages.
Seed money loans interim loans and technical assistance might also be made available to
limited-profit housing developers in need of this
assistance.
The federal Housing and Urban D evelopment
Act of 1968 (hereafter the 1968 Housing Act)
provides similar assistance to nonprofit developers of low- and moderate-income housing. It
directs the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (hereafter HUD) to provide information , advice and technical assistance. It also
authorizes HUD to make 80 percent interestfree seed money loans to nonprofit corporations
from a small, newly created revolving fund. It
creates a government-chartered, nonprofit, private corporation known as the National Homeownership Foundation to encourage private and
public organizations to provide increased homeownership and housing opportunities fo r lowand moderate-income fa milies.
A state assistance program, however, would
provide an additional and more flexible source
of aid to developers of low- and moderate-income housing. A state program could be used to
give encouragement to the form ation of limitedprofit and nonprofit housing groups within the
state, when federal assistance is not available.
A state program, moreover , might put more
emphasis on making non-recoverable grants,
rather than recoverable seed money loans-the
thrust of federal aid. Grants, rather than loans,
are needed to help finance housing development
corporations and pay fo r the extra costs of housing low-income people, such as the provision of
important social services.
Program 2
State-Developed Low- and Moderate-Income
Housing.
Developing housing for low- and moderate-income families requires a great deal of expertness. The services qf a lawyer, real estate agent,
builder, banker and administrator at a minimum
are generally required. In many smaller communities it is difficult to find people who are both
qualified and willing to render these services to
a housing sponsor.
Thus, as a logical alternative to state or federal
technical assistance to help local groups become
qualified to develop housing projects, the state
may wish itself to develop either public housing
2
or moderate-income housing. It should only do
so where there is no functioning local p ublic
housing authority or moderate-income housing
developer to build the housing.
To produce public housing, the state would
establish a public housing authority which could
provide the necessary public housing anywhere
in the state. R ecent changes have added great
flexibility to the federally assisted public housing
program. A public housing authority can now
lease as well as bu ild or purch ase housing, and
can sell the housing to its tenants. State-wide
public housing authorities are eligible to receive
federal public housing assistance.
To build moderate-income housing, the state
could create a nonp~ofit housing development
corporation to develop this housing anywhere in
the state. The corporation generally would serve
as developer of the project. It would only serve
as sponsor (i. e., the owner and maintainer of
rented housing) in the absence of a local group
which could serve as th e sponsor.
In developing either public hou sing or moderate-income housing, the state would act in
close cooperation with local public and private
groups. And the state would not itself construct
the housing; construction would be done by a
private contractor under the " turnkey" system.
Program 3
Below-Market-Interest-Rate Mortgage Loans to
Limited-Profit and ·Nonprofit Developers of
Low- and Moderate-Income Housing.
States may use their power to borrow cheaply
through the issuance of tax-exempt bonds to finance moderate-income housing projects at
mortgage interest rates several percentage points
below commercial rates. On long-term mortgages (usu ally forty years) , this lower interest
rate can be of substantial assistance in reducing
the cost of housing. New York pioneered this
assistance with its highly successful "MitchellLama" program.
F ederally assisted moderate-income housing
programs also aid the production of housing by
reducing interest rates. The FHA section 221(d)
(3) program, for example, provides fin ancing at
a three percent interest rate. Nevertheless, at
least five states have enacted their own belowmarket-interest-rate programs to supplement the
federal programs.
There are many good reasons for states to
establish their own below-market-interest-rate
housing programs.
Com prehensive Program. A state agency may
find it difficult to undertake a comprehensive
Substantial reasons still remain, however, fo r
program fo r encou raging the development of
moderate-income housing without itself being states to make supplemental loans to developers
able to assist in the mortgage fin ancing of this to enable them to qu alify fo r federal assistance
housing. Without its own below-market-inte_r<:st- when they otherwise would not.
The FHA and the Housing Assistance Adrate mortgage program, the important decIS1on
(HAA) continually have under conministration
of whether to fin ance a proposed housing projproposals
for housing projeots which
sideration
ect would be made exclusively by th e Federal
or
fo und infeasible because
have
been
slowed
Housing A dministration.
proposed
costs
exceed
maximum fe~er_al ~ost
Flexibility . M any FHA programs can only be
limits.
In
many
cases
federal
cost hm1tat1ons
used to assist housing developers in communisimply
may
not
adequately
re~ect
lo~al cost facties which have enacted . a "workable program
might,
for. extors.
Costs
per
unit
for
a
proiect
for community improvement"- an overall plan
ample, exceed the federal maximum by as little
of action for meeting problems of slums and
blight, and for guiding community development. as five to ten percent; yet, as the ~evelo? er
This "workable program requirement" greatly spends perh aps months redesigning ~1s ?roiect
restricts the use of important FHA programs in to bring unit costs in line ( often sacr~cmg demany states where such a program has not been sirable design features in the process)'. m~reases
in construction costs during the redes1gnmg_ peadopted by a locality. A state program would not
riod might well consume wh atever other savmgs
be subj ect to this restriction.
The FHA allows a maximum six percent book were managed. This tedious proce~s causes many
units of badly needed housing to die on the draftreturn to limited-profit housing developers. To
. il
encourage greater participation, a state program ing boards.
State assistance can remedy this and s1m ar
may allow a greater maximum return , such as the
cost problems. To reduce th~ t~tal fed_eral morteight percent return allowed under the New Jergage assistance amount to w1thm m~x1mu~ fedsey program.
.
eral cost limits, the state could provide an mterL essComplexAdministration. FHA processmg
est-free loan to the developer of up to t~n percent
of moderate-income housing proposals is comof his cost to supplement his FHA-msured fiplex and generally time-consuming. An adenancing. R epayment of the state loan would ~e
quately staffed state program may be able to
deferred until after the fed eral mortgage loan is
simplify its rules and regulations and thus spee~
.
processing time. And based on its own expe~I- ·paid off or refinanced.
The state loan is secured by a state lien on the
ence, it may be able to suggest .improvements m
project. T he loan is subordinated t~ the FHAFHA regulations.
insured mortgage. It becomes a first hen af~er the
Experim entation. States may wish ~o i_nnovate
with their own programs, such as Ilhno1s, M as/" . M sac/111setts and N ew Jersey also
sachu setts and New Jersey are doing with "rent • To lower rents, II m o,s, b -:;-' programs to pay the di ffe rence
~~"~\ ~om_e family can afford to pay
skewing." Through rent skewing, rents in a 143.215.248.55,~e:~a~;:etd : :~:,,,~~n!
state-assisted pro1ects.
and the ren s o n
'
may wish to delay initiating rent supmajority of apartments are raised slightly_ to
Other states, howe'r~[· they see how two new sections of the
plem ent programs un 1
••
low larger reductions in the rents of a mm~nty
· A ct are adnumstered.
b
68 H
19Secti;:s143.215.248.55(b) allows f';deral rent supplem ent payments to e
of apartments. R ent skewing allows a wider
.
. t made t_o st~~6't/if~r,~::;0 ;,~;t~;ew fe deral interest reduc tion pa?;range of tenants' income~ in a hous'.ng f roi ec
Sect,onb
de for state-assisted housing. These payments_ w1 I
m ents to e ma
b t ee n normal rents on a state-assuted
th an would be possible without skewmg.
ma~e up the dlfferenc{ ,:h;; ,. tenants can afford to pay ii they


u-


pro1ect and the re nta_ s ·ncome for rent . Tir e paym ent cannot ex-
P rogram 4
Interest-Free Loans to Limited-Profit and Nonprofit Developers to Enab le Them to Fall Within
Federal Cost Limitations on Low- and Moderate-Income Housing.
Federal programs have almost excl u_sively assisted housing by reducing fin ancmg costs
through mortgage lo ans, mortgage in_surance and
interest subsidies. T he 1968 H ousmg Act ex~
pands these programs. Due to th e ex istence of
substantial federal ass istance some states ~ ay
not wish to engage in the same form of assistance. ( As desc ribed in P rogram 3 above.)
pay 25 percent of 1•.e~ 'vo11ld lower the effective interest rate on
ceed an am ount w uc , 'd I om the rentals to less than one perthe project mortgage pa, r
cent.
. .
f state m ortgage loan and federal rent
Th ese comb1'.1at1ons :eduction payments give pro mise of lwussupplem ent or mtere~t
in state-assisted housing.
Ing families of low m co;"e ver that in many cases the state
Jt does not appear, ,owe t ~ e loan and the federal in terest
below-mark et-interest-ra!lel m ar bg ·,g,e to reduce rents below the
.
. tance w, com ,
.
d
reduction ass1s
I the m ortgage were FHA-msure at
amount _they would be di ti e fe deral program , and not statemarke t-mterest rates un er 1
1 1 arket-in terest rates.
. 11
assisted at b e O H- m
0 m ent m ay not exceed the
T he federal interest"i:e!~~f'~teJ' t~ pay under the mortgage"
amount a m ortgago~,
Id b! obligated to pay if the m ortgage
and the am o unt he ,!vo~t ti e rate of one percent. To the ex tent
we re to bear inte~es! ~
' federal assistance com es into play .
this one percent l1111k1tat1? 1t1 orenst-rate m ortgage loan wo uld simply
.1 re below-m ar e t-Ill e
I
t ,e ., a
f d I b itli• by lowering th e am ount the mortgagor
'i,,
reduce the e era ·"'.,
the absence of the state below-market"is obligated to pay. 1
the federal government would make
interest-rate mortgage ,oa,b,, . of FHA -insured market interest
higher payments on t ,e
rate morgage.
as,s
3
�financing of federally insured housing for lowand moderate-income families. This action was
instrumental in clearing the backlog in Illinois in
221 (d)(3) housing.
As of October 1968, $288 million were allocated to qualifying banks in proportion to ,their
outstanding loans. Additional sums for time deposits have been made available where needed
by banks to meet special public needs. Those
varied needs have included programs other than
housing.
The Illinois plan involves no sacrifice to the
state of earnings on its investments, or greater
risks of loss.
Where this state stimulus is not possible and
construction financing is difficult to secure, states
might make or participate in providing interim
construction loans at below-market-interest rates
to developers of low- and moderate-income
housing. A state could borrow its loan money
through the sale of tax-exempt bonds and establish a revolving loan fund. Since construction financing is short-term, such a revolving fund
would have a rapid turnover. Thus, a limited
amount of money could finance a large number
of projects. No net cost ,to the state would be
incurred, and a state could in fact earn a sum on
its Joans sufficient to pay borrowing costs and
the costs of administering the program.
FHA-insured mortgage is paid off. (FHA has indicated approval of this type of state assistance
since_ t~chnically it does not constitute currentl;
proh1b1ted secondary financing.)
The state loan is well secured. Even were the
improvements on the property to be depreciated
completely by the end of the FHA-insured mortgage period, the land would still remain to secure it.
The small state loan brings high returns. If the
state w~re, for example, to finance ten percent of
the proJect cost With its supplemental loan, the
state loan would call forth ten times its amount
in private and federal investment.
Program 5
Construction Loans to Limited-Profit and Nonprofit Developers of Low- and Moderate-Income
Housing.
The recent tight money situation and the general
shortage of long-term mortgage financing in
some areas have hampered the development of
low- ~nd moderate-income hom;,ing. Despite a
commitment on the permanent financing by the
federal government and in some cases FHA insura~ce of the interim construction loan, conventional loans have often been unavailable to
finance the construction of housing in the interim
period before the permanent financing takes
place.
When interim construction financing is available for lo:V- and moderate-income housing, the
~eveloper is often required to pay high rates thus
mcreasing housing costs.
'
The shortage and high cost of short-term construction financing can thus be a substantial
bottleneck to the production of large amounts of
low- and moderate-income housing.
State authority to invest millions of dollars of
cash resources not immediately required for expenditure provides leverage to encourage banks
to meet public objectives.
In January 196 7, the sta:te of Illinois announced a Sta~e Investment Program to forge a
new partnership between the public and private
sectors-between public treasuries and private
ba~s._ The_ program was implemented through
adm1mstrat1ve action by the state treasurer.
Under this program deposits of state funds
are made in banks agreeing to make interim financing available for construction of low- and
moderate-income housing. Working with FHA
and several banks in the Chicago area, the state
agreed to deposit, at competitive interest rates
about $90 million in those banks which in tur~
were willing to invest equivalent sums for interim
4
Progra1n 6
Financial Assistance for Acquisition and Sale or
L ease of Housing Sites for Low- and ModerateIncome Housing at Market Value or L ess Than
Market Value.
..
A state program of assistance for land acquisition can: (1) increase the incentive of limitedprofit developers to construct low- and moderate-income housing; or (2) help assemble large
housing sites and, where justified, lower the cost
of housing by writing down the cost of the land
through its sale or lease to a nonprofit housing
developer at less than fair market value.
(1) Increasing the incentive of limited-profit
developers to construct low- and moderate-income housing.
Nonprofit housing sponsors alone cannot
build or rehabilitate six million houses in the
next five years. The private developer can produce a large share, either by building "turnkey"
public housing (public housing developed by a
private developer rather than the local public
housing authority) or by operating as a limitedprofit sponsor developing low- and moderateincome housing. Since 1961, when FHA assistance for moderate-income housing began, 42
percent of its projects have been built by limitedprofit sponsors and 58 percent by nonprofit
sponsors.
As a limited-profit sponsor the private developer is allowed a regulated return before taxes
on its equity investment in a housing project. In
FHA programs this is usually six percent. With
the benefit of early writeoffs and other favorable
investment factors to which a developer is entitled under the law, he can substantially increase
his after-tax return above this amount.
Yet even with the favorable rate of return
presently allowed under the law, only a small
number of units of low-r,isk, moderate-income
housing projects have aotually been built by limited-profit developers, principally at times when
other construction business has been slow.
To increase the incentive for a limited-profit
developer to build low- and moderate-income
housing, states could leverage the federal program by financially assisting communities to purchase land and to lease it to a developer at favorable terms without loss to the states or the
municipalities. Land purchase and lease frees
the developer from investing substantial capital
in land, which cannot b_e depreciated, and substitutes an annual rent on the lease which is a
deductible expense, thus increasing his after-tax
return.
Such land purchase and lease would also
lower the cost of housing by enabling lower sales
prices or rents.
States may be able to obtain the money
needed to help municipalities purchase and lease
land by floating state-guaranteed, tax-exempt
bonds which are repaid from rent receipts
under the lease. The financing is analagous to
state financing of industrial parks.
(2) Assembling land and ·reducing the cost
of low- and moderate-income lwusing .
The increasingly high cost of suitable land in
metropolitan areas is a major factor in boosting
housing costs beyond the reach of low- and moderate-income families.
The federal government does not provide
financial assistance in writing down land costs
for housing except in urban renewal area ,
which, for the most par·t, have been in the central city. Section 506 of the 1968 Housing Act,
however, now allows federal assistance for
"write downs" of open land in declared urban
renewal areas for low- and moderate-income
housing. But designating urban renewal areas
and receiving federal funds is a long and cumbersome process, involving more than writing
down land costs for housing projects.
Additional state assistance to communities
5
�j
assembling and developing land for low- and
moderate-income housing outside of urban renewal areas would give substantial aid to the
large-scale production of low- and moderateincome housing. By use of the community's
eminent domain powers, large tracts of land
could be assembled. With state aid a municipality could sell or lease the land at less than market
value to nonprofit developers where the write
down was to be reflected in lower rentals or
sales prices.
Program 7
Financial Assistance for Acquisition of Substandard Housing and Its Sale or Lease at
Market Value or Less Than Market Value for
Rehabilitation for Low- and Moderate-Income
Housing.
Systematic rehabilitation of housing in the core
or "gray areas" of cities is an important part of
the nation's housing program. The federal assistance needed to clear these areas for the development of new housing is greater than is likely
to be made available in the foreseeable future.
Even if the money were available, •the dislocation
and disruption involved in clearance and reconstruction would weigh heavily against total reliance on c;learance as a renewal instrument.
Of the six ml'llion standard houses that the
Department of Housing and Urban Development sets as a production goal, two million ( one
third) are intended to be rehabilitated structures.
Housing rehabilitation could be increased
greatly if the states were to help municipalities
purchase substandard houses and resell or lease
them to nonprofit developers which would rehabilitate them for sale or rental as low- and
moderate-income housing.
With state aid a municipality could sell or
lease the substandard houses at less than market
value where the write down was to be reflected
in lower rentals or sales prices.
In addition, a judicious use by a locality of its
power of eminent domain would enable a systematic rehabilitation of all declining properties
in a neighborhood or on a block, rather than the
rehabilitation of only those houses which are on
the market, as is now generally the case. This
systematic rehabilitation has a greater effect in
upgrading entire neighborhoods.
Program 8
Reimbursement to Communities for Abatement
of Normal Property Taxes on Public Housing or
Moderate-Income Housing; Payments to Cover
6
Extra Public Service Costs Incurred by Localities on Account of This Housing.
Under the federally assisted public housing program,communities are required to abate real estate taxes on the project. They receive a payment in lieu of taxes of approximately ten percent of the rentals of the project. This reduction
of tax income to communities has proven to be
an important barrier to the production of public
housing. State payments to make up the difference between what the public housing pays in
taxes and the normal tax bill would help communities to provide needed public housing.
On the other hand, local property taxes often
account for between twenty arid thirty percent of
the rents paid by occupants of FHA-assisted
moderate-income housing. These projects are
usually taxed as though they were conventional
apartments even though the rental income they
produce is limited by FHA. State payments to
communities to reimburse abatements of normal local property taxes on federally and stateassisted housing would be a potent device to
lower rents.
An additional barrier, even if full taxes are
paid by or on behalf of low- and moderateincome housing projects, is the higher cost of
public services for occupants of higher density
housing, e.g., schools, playgrounds, social services.
State payments to communities in excess of
local taxes to meet these extra costs would provide an inducement to communities to accept
low- and moderate-.income housing. This inducement would assist in locating low- and moderate-income families outside central cities,
closer to places of expanding employment. Gearing these payments to an industrial development
program would help relieve labor shortages
which increasingly inhibit economic growth of
outlying areas.
Program 9
Administration of Low- and Moderate-Income
Housing Assistance Programs.
States administer housing assistance Programs
one through eight in varied ways. A pattern of
clustering programs designed to encourage the
construction of low- and moderate-income housing-seed money loans and grants, technical
ass istance, construction loans, tax abatementaround the core program of making belowmarket-interest-rate loans to developers has,
however, emerged in several states .
These programs are then either administered
directly by the state with the below-market-
interest-rate loans being made from a housing II. Increasing Housing Choice
development fund . Or they are administered by
a separate public benefit corporation, sometimes
called a Housing Development Authority or
Housing Finance Agency. State constitutions
may well dictate this choice.
The important factor in administering these
programs is to assure that one responsible
agency has the authority to combine them imaginatively.
For example, a state seeking to increase the
production of low- and moderate-income housing and homeownership by low- and moderateincome families, might administer each of the
first eight assistance programs described.
The state could make seed money loans or
grants and give technical assistance to help establish sponsors.
.
It could help finance projects by makmg construction loans and permanent mortgages to developers. And it could make additional loans to
lower the costs of projects which exceeded FHA
maximum cost limitations.
Where sponsors did not exist it could develop
projects itself.
It could assist. communities in purchasing and
leasing housing sites or houses for rehabilitation. The sales or leases could either recover fully
the state's costs or, if needed, could assist the
project by recovering less, i.e. , by writing down
the land.
·. f
It could help to reimburse commumties or
abated taxes where needed.
And in addition to the first eight programs,
the stat~ might be given some unearmarked de_monstration funds to devise new ways of meetmg
its housing problems.
For example, using demonstration money, the
state might:
-make equity loans to developers of ~ooperative housing to enable moderate-mcome
families to purchase their houses on a cooperative basis with a minimal down payment and liberal financing of the balance Program 1
A Comprehensive Fair Housing Law Establish.
over a period of years, or
- establish a rent assistance program to fill m ing a Strong Enforcement Agency.
gaps in federal programs whereby houses
The landmark June 17, 1968, Supreme Court
would be purchased or leased by ,~ e state
decision, Jones vs. Mayer Company (20 L.Ed.
and then leased or sublet to low-mcome
2nd 1189), interprets an 1866 Civil Rights law
families at reduced rentals.
(guaraillteeing to all citizens the right "to inherit,
To fin~nce loan-type programs, such as seed
purchase, loan, sell, hold, and convey real _an?
money loans, construction loans, below-m~ketpersonal property") to prohibit ra~ial discnnninterest-rate loans, and purchase and leasmg of
.
land, the state would issue tax-exempt bon~s nation in the sale or rental of bousmg.
The Jones decision, however, is not a substi(guaranteed by the state where the state constItute for a comprehensive fair housing law . .It
tution permitted). Grant programs and other ~scovers only racial discrimination and not_ dissistance would be financed by state appropnacrimination on the grounds of religion or national
tions.
7
�origin. It does not deal with discrimination in the
provis,ion of services or facilities in connection
with the sale or rental of a dwelling. It does not
prohibit advertising or other representations that
indicate discriminatory preferences. lit does not
cover discrimination in financial arrangements
or in the provision of brokerage sources.
Nor does it provide for administrative assistance to aggrieved parties or enforcement. And
although courts can fashion effective remedies to
enforce the 1866 statute, ,the statute contains no
provision expressly authorizing a federal court
to issue injunctions or to order payment of damages.
The 1968 Civil Rights Act, on the other hand,
covers these specific acts of discrimination
omitted in the ·1866 s,tatute and fashions administrative and legal remedies as well. The remedies, however, are not strong enough to provide
adequate relief in many cases for those who suffer discrimination. The Secretary of HUD may
investigate complaints. His powers, however,
are limited to conference, concilia-tion and persuasion. He may not issue an enforceable administrative remedy.
For enforceable relief under federal law, the
aggrieved party must himself generally go to
court. (The Attorney General may bring suit
based on a pattern or practice of discrimination
or a denial of rights to a group of persons that
raises an issue of general public importance.)
The 1968 Civil Rights Act, however, invites
strong state action to gu arantee fair housing.
Section 81 0 ( c) provides that wherever a state
(or local) fair housing law provides rights and
remedies at least substantially equivalent to
rights and remedies in the 1968 Act, the federal
government will defer to the state in its enforcement activities.
Thus, in enacting a comprehensive state fair
housing law and in establishing a strong state
fair housing agency to secure the constitutional
rights of raci al and other minority groups, states
would be filling the gap in federa l legislation and
taking advantage of the priority extended to
state legislation by section 810 ( c ) of the 1968
Act.
A strong and comprehensive state fair housing law should :
-establish an enforcement agency with adequate staff and appropriations to enforce
the law;
-empower the enforcement agency to receive complaints fro m citizens, from appropriate state officials, and to initiate complaints on its own motion;
- ban all discrimination on the grounds of
8
race, religion, or national origin in the sale
or rental of all property, including:
-refusal to sell or rent,
-discrimination in the terms or conditions
of a sale or rental,
-use of advertisements or applications
which express or imply any such discr-imination,
-discrimination by real estate salesmen or
brokers, or
-discrimination by lending institutions;
-empower the enforcement agency to use
temporary injunctions on sale or rental during its investigation of a complaint;
-empower the enforcement agency to conciliate, issue cease and desist orders, require appropriate affirmative acts to cure
the discrimination ;
-provide penalties for a failure to comply
with the enforcement agency's orders;
-subject the enforcement agency's orders to
judicial review, and
-empower the enforcement agency to carry
on appropriate research and education programs to eliminate hous.ing discrimination.
ment, state and federal grants.
There is presently no regular source of funds
for the support of housing information centers.
States might make grants to help establish and
operate such centers.
Progran1 3
Priority Assistance to Developers Which Have
Affirmative Plans to Locate, Promote and Manage Their Low- and Moderate-Income Housing
Projects to Achieve Integrated Housing.
Racial integration of housing projects or neighborhoods rarely occurs without deliberate measures by developers.
Low- and moderate-income housing must be
located in areas where housing for these families
does not exist in great numbers.
The housing must be affirmatively marketed
with minority communities not accustomed to
considering housing so located.
Rental projects, if they are to become and remain integrated, must be managed with ,this objective always in mind.
A state can encourage developers to locate,
market and manage projects with the objective
of achieving integration by giving priority on its
state assistance (Programs one through eight)
to developers with affirmative and practical integration plans.
Program 2
Financial A ssistance to Nonprofit Metropolitan
Area Housing Information Centers to Aid Families in Finding Decent Housing.
In most communities the existing supply of decent housing for low- and moderate-income
families is not limited to the central city ghetto
or to its gray areas. It is often found in other
p arts of the metropolitan area as well. The lack
o f information on available rental and sale housing throughout the metropolitan area, however,
is a substantial barrier to the movement of families out of declining neighborhoods of the central city. F amilies in the housing market need
help in finding housing they can afford, convenient to their jobs, and located in good school
districts.
A nonprofit metropolitan area housing information center would list available housing,
i nteres t low- and moderate-income families in
moving to areas with which they are initially unfa miliar, escort them on inspection of houses,
ed ucate the community to the need for providing
more housing fo r low- and moderate-income
families and undertake other associated activities.
The Metropolitan Denver F air Housing Center, Inc. is the principal example of a housing
information center providing these kinds of
services. It is supported by private, local govern-
\
,I
9
�Ill. Improving Building Codes
P rogram
IV. Improving Relocation Assistance
A Model Building Code Embodying Pe,jormance Standards for Permissive Adoption by
Communities; A Building Codes Appeal Board;
A ids for Building Inspection.
Program
In most states, communities enforce differing
and generally outdated building codes. This profusion of outdated codes has tended to raise
building costs by perpetuating the outmoded and
uneconomic use of building materials and building techniques and by restrieting the natural play
of economies of scale in the construction industry. Higher building costs, in turn, unnecessarily
restrict the availability of decent housing for
low- and moderate-income families.
States might assist communities to improve
their building codes and building codes enforcement. Specifically they might:
- authorize the development of a state model
building code utilizing to the greatest extent possible performance standards for
permissive adoption by communities. (To
maintain uniformity the state should specify that the code would be automatically
amended when state amendments were
adopted, and that communities might only
alter the model code upon specific approval
of the administering agency) ;
- establish an appeals board to hear appeals
from decisions on the administration by
communities of the state model code or
other codes adopted by communities;
- require that state and local government
agencies utilize the state model code for
public construction;
- require that the state model code be used
for federal or state-assisted nonpublic construction ;
-establish professional qualifications for
building inspectors, train and license them;
- establish minimum staffing requirements
for community building inspection departments;
--offer building inspection services to communities which do not wish to maintain
their own building inspection departments .
10
A Uniform R elocation Program to Assist Communities to Pay R elocation Expenses and to
Provide R elocation Services to Families and
Businesses Displaced by State or Local Government Action.
Communities cannot be rebuilt for public objectives without uprooting families and businesses.
The public has the obligation to compensate
these dislocated families and businesses for the
costs of dislocation, and to see that they are relocated in suitable accommodations.
Unfortunately, famil ies displaced by public
action are often those with the least freedom in
the housing market- the poor, minorities, large
families and elderly. Special government efforts
therefore must be made to relocate these families successfully.
States might establish a uniform relocation
program for families and businesses displaced
by state and local government programs. It
would give financial assistance to communities
in making relocation payments and providing
relocation services where federal assistance is
unavailable.
To reduce inequities in the treatment between
families displaced by federally assisted activities
and families displaced by state or local activities,
to the extent possible there should be uniformity in the relocation assistance offered to fa milies or businesses displaced by any public action- federal, state or local.
Federal urban renewal relocation assistance
includes :
- relocation payments to families and individuals which may not exceed $200 for
moving costs and property loss;
-relocation adjustment payments totaling up
to $1000 over a two-year period to fa milies and elderly individuals to assist them
to relocate in standard accommodations;
-an additional payment to owner-occupants
of residential property acquired for an urban renewal project ( in lieu of a relocation
adjustment payment) to enable them to
purchase a replacement dwelling within
one year. (This payment would be that
amount not in excess of $5,000, which,
'
when added
to the acquisition price paid
for the owner-occupant's borne, equals the
average price for an adequate replacement
home in the community, and
- relocation payments for moving expenses
and re.imbursement to business concerns or
nonprofit organizations for property loss,
up to $3,000, incurred in their move. (If no
property loss is claimed, reimbursement
for moving expenses can be made up to a
maximum of $25 ,000.)
Such payments are covered in full by a
federal relocation grant made to the appropriate local agency. If the moving expenses
of a business concern exceed $25,000, the
locality may elect to reimburse the excess
costs through a local cash payment which
will be shared by the federal government
through a relocation grant in the same percentage as other urban renewal project
costs.
State-assisted relocation agencies should be
required to:
-establish a single central relocation agency
to offer services to all families needing relocation in a metropolitan area ;
- formulate a single reloc-ation plan covering
all foreseeable relocations by all government programs;
- see that displaced families are relocated in
. standard housing that is decent, safe and
sanitary ;
- relocate families to the greatest possible extent practicable outside of declining areas
of the community;
-provide for temporary relocation of displaced fa milies in decent housing where
permanent housing is not immediately
available;
-pay the expenses of moving the displaced
family or business and fix payments to
cover other expenses, and
- provide social services to relocated families
with such needs.
11
�V. Equalizing Landlord-Tenant Relations
The law governing the relationships between
landlord and tenant in the Anglo-American system has not changed substantially since feudal
times. Historically the law viewed a lease, not as
a contract recording mutual obligations, but as a
conveyance of an interest in land subject to conditions. Consequently, the law as formulated by
the courts does not adequately, with some recent
notable exceptions, reflect the new aspiratiions
and economic realities of an urbanized society.
An updating of these archaic laws" not only will
tend to reduce tensions in our cities by responding to the just claims of tenants, but may instill
greater respect for law -in general and provide
greater incentives for the maintenance of property by ,those who occupy and own it. At the
same time, responding to the valid claims of
tenants while ignoring the legitimate interests of
those who own and finance housing would not
be productive.
Landlord-tenant relations have attracted legislative attention recently in Illinois and Michigan. The Illinois Legislative Commission on
Low-Income Housing, in a 1967 report entitled
"For Better Housing in Illinois,"examined many
of the inadequacies in the laws governing landlord-tenant relationships and the enforcement of
housing codes in that state. Revisions of these
laws were recommended in ways which may be
applicable to other states.
Five laws that significantly equalize the rights
of tenants have recently been enacted in Michigan. These laws and similar provisions in other
states are the basis for the following guidelines.
Program 1
Permit a Tenant to Institute a Housing Code Enforcement Proceeding, to Obtain Specific R elief
for Inadequately Maintained Premises, and to
Withhold R ent to Secure Code Compliance.
Anti-trust laws, securities laws and other modern regulatory measures have commonly provided for private as well as public enforcement.
By contrast, although the tenant is a critically
interested party, the enforcement of housing
codes has been heretofore generally a two-party
affair between the public enforcement agency
and the landlord. Tenants have not been allowed
to initiate or control enforcement proceedings.
Yet their critical concern is justified in view of
the fact that in many instances the proceedings
can lead to the abandonment of the building, the
eviction of the tenants, or a major increase in
rent; and the failure to take action would result
in the continuance of substandard and often intolerable conditions.
12
The Michigan law makes housing code enforcement a civil rather tha'Il a criminal matter,
allowing a tenant to begin court action. The law
also creates a variety of court actions that may
be taken against landlords, including injunctions
or orders permitting the tenant, a receiver or the
city to make necessary repairs. The repairs can
be paid for out of rents withheld in an escrow
fund or by a lien on the property when the landlord is at fault, or by an assessment against the
tenant when he is at fault. In Connecticut, state
law authorizes municipalities ,to create repair
receivershipt with the state advancing the cost
of the repairs until rent receipts replenish the
fund.
These rent receivership or rent withholding
measures are also a housing code enforcement
technique. The state of New York, because of
its dense patterns of urbanization, as long ago as
1930 allowed New York City residents to pay
rent into court rather than to the landlord when
a certified code violation exists. The court retains
the rent, and evictions are stayed, until ,t he violation is corrected. To stimulate prompt remedial
action by the landlord, the law was amended in
1965 to permit the tenant to arrange for heat,
electricity, janitorial service or make repairs and
apply to the court to have bills paid out of the
rent on deposit.
Another method of rent withholding, applicable to New York City tenants, permits onethird of the tenants in an apartment to bring
action against landlords when conditions in the
building are dangerous to "life, health or safety. "
The court may appoint an administrator to collect rents and use them to remedy defects.
Rhode Island, Pennsylvania (limited to Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Scranton) , M assachusetts and M aryland (limited to Baltimore) have
recently enacted similar measures. In a rela,ted
problem area, some states (Illinois, New York
and Michigan among them) have enacted legislation suspending the legal duty of a welfare recipient to pay, and the right of a landlord t? collect rent for housing in violation of applicable
housing codes.
Program 2
begin eviction proceedings without giving any
reason. A few courts, however, have begun to
rule that retaliatory evictions violate the tenant's
constitutional right to petition for redress of
grievances.
The Michigan law enables a tenant to resist an
eviction by contending that it is in retaliation for
exercising lawful rights, such as complaining to
public code enforcement authorities. In addition,
the new law reverses the general common law
rule that the breach by the landlord even of an
explicit promise to make repairs does not excuse
the tenant from payment of rent. Thus the tenant
may withhold his rent until the landlord makes
the repairs he has promised.
Program 3
R equire that Every Lease Pledge that Premises
Are Fit to Live in When the Tenant Moves in
and that the Landlord Will Keep Them in Good
R epair.
The common law provides a tenant with little
assurance that his dwelling will be comfortable
or even habitable. No duty to repair is imposed
on the landlord and he is under no duty, in the
absence of express agreement to the contrary, to
maintain or repair the premises. This rule is so
firmly entrenched it is widely felt that specific
legislation is required to override it.
In o rder to correct some of the injustices of
the basic rule, courts long ago adopted the fiction
of a constructive eviction-which permitted the
tenant to move out without payment of further
rent if he lost the beneficial use and enjoyment
of the premises through lack of beat -or light or
some similar gross defect. The right to leave,
however, is an empty one for the slum dweller.
The Michigan statute, accordingly, specifically places upon the landlord the duty of repair
during the term of the lease, and the duty to comply with applicable health and safety laws, except when the disrepair or violation has been
caused by the tenant. Presumably, the courts will
construe this to give the tenant the right to sue
for damages, consisting of the difference in the
rental value of the premises as they are and their
value if in the condition warranted by the landlord.
Prohibit "R etaliatory Evictions."
The term "retaliatory eviction" refers to an eviction undertaken in retaliation for the tenant's
complaint to municipal authorities of violations
of housing and health regulations: W~ere landlords have resorted to this practice it has not
been challenged. This may result from the law
prevailing in most states, where a landlord may
Program 4
R equire Local Housing Authorities to Give
R easons for Evicting T enants and Establish. a
"Board of Tenants Affairs" for Public Housing.
Local housing authorities are instruments for
local, state and federal housing policies. Such
13
�authorities are created by the state, subsidized
by the federal government, and their members
are appointed by the cities. Unlike the private
landlord, the local housing authority is not motivated by profit.
The admission and eviction of tenants is the
source of most controversy in public housing
practices. Because of the silence of most state
enabling statutes and the special concern of the
federal government with financial aspects of subsidized housing authority operations, the local
authority typically sets its own admission and
eviction policies. These standards may not be
published, or if published may not be clear; they
often relate to the "social desirability" of prospective or existing tenants as determined by the
management.
Nevertheless, tenants seeking to resist their
eviction from public housing projects have
found the courts frequently an alogizing public
landlords with private landlords, or using other
rationales to avoid reviewing the merits of such
cases. Although there have been exceptions to
this rule, the results of most cases leave local
housing authorities with power legally to evict,
or refuse admission to anyone, without cause.
Corrective regulations aimed at " upgrading . . .
outmoded management policies" addressed to
procedural problems have been issued by HUD.
Section 3.5 of the HUD Low-Rent Management
Manual ("Procedures Prescribed for the Operation of Federally Aided Low-Rent H ousing" )
requires a local authority to adopt and publicize
its admission policies, but does not prescribe
policies beyond those imposed by law relative to
income, age, disability, race, etc. Section 3.9
prohibits evictions witho ut giving the tenant
notice of reasons and affording him "an opportunity to make such reply or explanation as he
may wish." Although these rules are intended as
mandatory by federal officials, it is not clear that
local authorities view them in the same light.
In the absence of an adequate supply of decent low-income housing, the refusal to confer,
or the withdrawal of the benefits, of a dwelling
in public housing constitutes substantial injury
to a potential or existing tenant. It is within the
pu rview of the state to prescribe the manner in
which housing authorities deal with applicants
and tenants. The ingredients of a policy reflecting commonly accepted standards of fairness
might be:
- applicants for admission to public housing
should be apprised with in a specified period of
a determination of ineligibility and given a right
to appeal to a body other than the management;
- the reasons for an unfavorable decision
14
should be clearly and concisely stated in relation
to precise standards of admission;
- leases should be written in simple language and effective on a self-renewing basis
terminable (for a cause other than exceeding
income limitations or nonpayment of rent) only
for conduct injurious to other tenants or substantially injurious to the project;
- evictions should be permitted only for
good cause with the opportunity for a fair hearing; and
- rights of privacy of tenants should be respected and harassment in the form . of fines ,
charges for repairs, threats of eviction, etc. , prohibited.
The Michigan law adopts many of these principles.
Another essential ingredient of a soundly administered public housing program is an increased effort to involve tenants in the management of projects. This may be done through the
creation of representative tenant organizations
or the representation of tenants on the local
housing authority board.
The Michigan law creates for public housing
in the City of Detroit a " board of tenants affairs ," one-half of which is composed of elected
tenant members and one-half by appointees of
the mayor. The board may veto rules and regulations of the authority and acts as a binding
board of review on decisions of project management or the authority with respect to matters
such as denial of admission to or eviction from
public housing and rent increases.
A similar Rhode Island measure creates a
board of tena~ts affairs for each city in the state
with a public housing project. One-half the
board is elected from among tenants occupying
housing proj ects, the others to be appointed by
th e mayor from residents of neighborhoods in
which the projects are located. Thi s board advises the housing authority on tenant welfare,
may veto authority rules on admission, occupa ncy, and eviction policies, and sits as a board
of review for individual compl aints on these
matters.
VI. Enhancing Community Development
Housing without stable neighborhoods served_by
adequate community facilities will not provide
long-term values to our cities and their people.
States can take important steps to enhance the
environment which supports new and rehabilitated housing. Just as an expanded supply of
well-designed housing requires the stimulation
of private initiative and assistance to local units
of government, balanced community d~velopment cannot take place without a contmuous
partnership between government on all levels
and private groups.
Program 1
Pro vide a Substantial Portion of the R equired
Non-Federal Share of Federally A ided Community Development Programs and a Substa~tial
Portion of the Cost of Non-Federally Assisted
Projects.
The federal programs to aid local comm~nity development require contributions to project cost
from non-federal sources. These are often in the
form of cash but usually in the form of non-cash
items ·such as staff services, parks, schools or
other facilities related to the project.
Increasingly, the ability of many localities t_o
utilize these programs is dependent upon their
ability to finance the non-federal share of a
.
project.
Connecticut has recently implemented comprehensive community development legislation
which, among other programs, extends state financial assistance to localities in the form of
contributions to the non-federal sh are of _fe~erally assisted projects. In some instances this kmd
of help has spelled the difference between federal
funding and no local program at all.
Connecticut, for example, fund s one-half of
the local share of fed erally assisted urban renewal projects, demolition of unsafe or uninhabitable buildings, construction of neighborhood facilities, and open-space land acquisition.
The state contribution to the non-federal share
of urban renewal projects actually began in 1955
and has contributed materially to the flow of
federal urban renewal fu nds to cities in that state
ever since. A Connecticut city need supply only
one-sixth instead of one-third of net project cost.
As a result, one dollar of city funds (supplemented by one state dollar) generates four federal dollars instead of only two. The form of state
assistance was inaugurated in Pennsylvania as
early as 1949, the year the federally assisted urban renewal program was enacted.
Neighborhood facilities, in particular, embrace a wide range of horizon-expanding centers
15
�for persons of low- and moderate-income. These
centers house health, recreational, social service,
civic, educational, cultural and youth activities
that can give residents a sense of identity, community pride and participation. In Connecticut,
the state pays half the non-federal share of the
cost of building these modern-day settlement
houses, and there have been proposals to extend
state aid to non-federally aided neighborhood
facilities.
In Connecticut, a special state program also
assists the development of child day-care centers
for disadvantaged children by funding two-thirds
of the operating cost to the locality ( or an antipoverty agency) . The state normally relies on the
application approval by the federal authorities
in allocating its own contribution to the locality,
thus avoiding unnecessary paperwork by municipal officials.
In New Jersey, the state, in addition to providing one-half of the local share, allows a flexible formul a (up to 100 percent) for contributions to the local cost of federally assisted urban
renewal projects to the extent they are devoted
to public uses.
As a prerequisite to aid for community development programs, Connecticut requires localities to prepare a Community Development Action Plan (CDAP). The CDAP is a community's
survey and estimate of its problems and the physical, economic and human resources for dealing
with them. T he state provides three-fourths of
the cost of preparing the CDAP ; some of these
costs to the state, with respect to CDAPs for
communities under 50,000 are in ,t urn funded by
HUD. It is vital, however, for a state to assure
that these planning requirements do not become a
substitute for or an inhibitor of program actions.
The Connecticut Community Development
Act, moreover, permits state aid to many projects that do not receive federal funding. In such
cases the state provides two-thirds of the cost of
the project. A state which participates in the
funding of federally assisted projects should retain this flexibility. Some deserving applications
will not receive federal funding fo r a variety of
reasons. The state may wish ,to help localities
that have sought federal fund ing but have not
been able to obtain it for reasons unconnected
with the merits of the project.
Pennsylvania, for example, has launched an
ambitious open-space land acquisition program
financed by proceeds of a $500,000,000 bond
issue. This pays for one-half of project cost to
the locality.
Although Connecticut only makes grants for
specific programs set forth in its statute, states
16
might consider making a portion of their grant
money available in block grants to cities for programs which do not fall within established categories of federal or state assistance. This will
encourage ·1ocal initiative and will help meet individual locality needs.
Program 2
An Urban Development Corporation with StateWide Authority to Combine State and Private
R esources for the Improvement of Meiropolitan
Areas.
There are many factors inhibiting private, profitmotivated entrepreneurial participation in city
renewal efforts on the scale demanded by current
needs. Profit-motivat¼d entrepreneurs are used
to assuming normal business risks. They are less
accustomed to the political and public relations
risks associated with publicly assisted programs.
And they are disinclined to shoulder the additional commitment of personal and fin ancial resources occasioned by protracted negotiation
and processing which often lengthens the development period.
One way to bridge the gap between public
control over land use and private entrepreneurial initiative has been indicated in New York.
The state has recently created the New York
State Urban Development Corporation (SUDS) .
SUDS is empowered to draw upon the combined
talents and resources of the state and private
business to work with local governments to produce development and redevelopment projects
throughout the state. These projects are intended to include balanced combinations of
housing, light industri al, commerci al, recreational and cultural developments. As requested
by agencies of the state or by cities, the corporation is to consider implementing projects within
ex isting state and city programs.
The corporation board of an urban development corporation similar to SUDS could be onehalf comprised of public officials and one-half
chosen from the private sector. Initially, the corporation could be funded by the state through
the issuance of tax-exempt revenue bonds. Conceivably, the corporation would eventu ally genera te sufficient earnings to cover operating expenses with o nly investment capital furni shed by
the state in the form of loans at a rnte approximating that of the state's cost of borrowing.
The corporation would plan projects and assemble the land, through eminent domain if
necessary. In New York, SUDS has ultimate authority to override local building and zoning
regulations. Although SUDS has extensive statu-
tory authority in these respects, it is likely that it
will oper-ate most effectively and perhaps exclusively in communities where local governmental
and planning bodies are cooperating with the
corporation.
Rather than tie up its capital in the actu al development of a project, the corporation could
encourage private developers to undertake this
work.
The corporation could also act as a developer
itself where necessary. In such instances, after
the project was completed, with long-term financing in effect and the project fully rented or
functioning according to plan, the corporation
would undertake to sell the project to a private
investor or investors. The proceeds of the sale
would be applied to the retirement of state loans
to the corporation. Pursuant to conditions to be
defined, some portion of the proceeds could be
retained by the corporation. In some instances,
the corporation might find it necessary to take
back a lease in order to relieve the investor of the
operating or supervisory burdens of ownership.
Conceivably the corporation might eventu ally
cause various real estate investment trusts to be
organized. Projects would be sold to the trust
with a lease-back by the corporation. If feas ible,
this could be a method of mobilizing and channeling substanti al amounts of priva te capital into
investments to which it would ordin arily not be
attracted. Direct investment in real estate and
development requires experience, sophistication,
and fixed amounts of equity money, with the ·a dditional diffic ulty, especially in the case of residential real ~state, of responsibilities to tenants,
legal, public relations and political hazards.
However, purchasers of the real estate investment trust certificates could enj oy the benefits of
real estate ownership and be substantially free
of its hazards.
Progra1n 3
Loan Guarantees to Owners of R esidential Property and Small Businesses.
Private initiatives are necessary to reh abilitate
the economic life and physical fac il ities of
blighted communities. But often th ese are not
forthcom ing unless th e addition al risk of inve tment in deteriorated areas is reduced.
When needed capital, or bonding capacity, is
not otherwise a~a ilable, states might provide an
urban development guarantee fund to guarantee
loans made by conventional lenders to owners of
resi dential property and small businesses.
A loan to an owner of residential property
would have to be intended to provide housing
for persons and families who could not obtain
safe and sanitary accommodations provided by
the unaided operations of private enterprise. A
business would qualify for a guaranteed loan if
it were unable to obtain adequate financing to
maintain a stabilized work force or increase job
opportunities by virtue of (a) its location ; (b )
its net assets ; or ( c) its doll ar volume.
The New York Urban Development Guarantee Fund loans are to be used for the purposes of
construction rehabilitation, or refinancing of
properties a~d, in the case of small business pr_ojects, for equipment, stock in trade or wor~mg
capital. The monies of the fund are den ved
through the sale of debentures and from gifts.
The fund is empowered to invest funds held by
it and to charge a premium for its guarantees. In
the event of default, the fund would pay to the
lender the net amount of the loss.
Program 4
Technical and Financial Assistance to Communities to Draft Proposals for Federal Program
Grants.
The increasing complexity of application requirements fo r some federal yrograms, eve~
those whose ultimate objective 1s frankly expen1:1-ental, has outrun the staff resources of many
small er communities.
The federal "Model Cities" progra m, for example, is intended to demonst rate how th~ ~nvironment and general welfa re of people hvmg
in slu m and blighted neigh borhoods ca n be substanti ally improved through the orchestrati~n of
federal, state and local governmental and pnvate
efforts. Cities must submit proposals fo r planni ng grants. T hese proposals are to analyze the
social, economic and physical problem~ of the
model neighborhood area, what the city proposes to do about t~em, ~n? the strategy and
adm inistrative machmery 1t mtends to employ.
Under the program, cities with approved
planning grants will become eligible fo r s~e~ial
grants supplementing assistance under_ ex1stmg
federal 1rrant-in-aid programs. T he reqwred nonfederal 0 contribution to every federally as isted
project or activity carried ou t as part of an approved model cities program serves as the " base"
fo r computing the special supplemental grant.
The special grant may be up to 80 percent of
the total non-federal contri bution.
The development of a model cities or urban
renewal proposal places a demand on the financial and techn ical capabilities of many localities.
To help them obtain the e grants, the state
might:
17
�--l
I
( a) assist in drafting proposals for federal
grants for communities which request
technical assistance, and
(b) make grants to enable those communities which wish to draft their own proposals to hire competent staff and consultants for this purpose.
The stategic injection of assistance in this
manner can help to enhance the flow of federal
dollars to communities within the state. The purpose of this kind of assistance, however, should
be the development of local competence to handle these administrative tasks in the future. It
can be applied to a variety of federal grant-inaid programs.
The New Jersey Department of Community
Affairs has been particularly active in helping
communities with Model Cities applications to
HUD. Pennsylvania, through its Department of
Community Affairs, provides similar help with
applications for federal assistance for a broad
range of programs.
HUD is authorized to make grants to states
to provide technical assistance to communities
under 100,000 in population. A state program
as described here, organized as a special technical assistance effort, might be eligible to receive a 50 percent grant from HUD to cover its
cos ts.
Program 5
Eliminate Constitutional Prohibitions, if Any, on
the Involvement of Private Enterprise in Urban
Affairs.
A concerted attack on the problems of urban
housing and community development requires a
public-private partnership. New legal and financial tools and interrelationships must be devised
to permit states, local units of government and
private groups to marshal their resources in ways
not foreseen years ago. Some state constitutions,
however, specifically prohibit the use of the
state's credit for private undertakings or contain
provisions which have been interpreted as precluding tax abatement and other desirable public-private cooperative arrangements.
The Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental R elations, a permanent, bi-partisan body
esta blished by Congress to study relationships
among local, state and national levels of government, has recommended the following constitutional language to facilitate general cooperative efforts between state and local public agencies and private enterprise :
Notwithstanding any other provision of
this constitution, the state, its political sub18
divisions, and any public corporation may, as
provided by law, where a public purpose will
be served, grant or lend its funds to any individual, association, or private corporation
for purposes of participating or assisting in
economic and community development.
These basic constitutional changes are important. It is nonetheless vital to recognize, for example, that a program of state aid to localities
for urban renewal under existing constitutional
provisions can go far ,to bring about a constructive public-private partnership.
Program 6
A Commission to Review and Assess Uodern
Techniques of Zoning and Land Use Regulation
and to Recommend Legislation to Modernize
the State's Zoning Enabling Act.
The period of rapid urbanization since the war
has proven the inadequacy of present zoning
statutes to control urban sprawl.
The American Law Institute is presently drafting a Model Land Development Code to overhaul antiquated state zoning enabling statutes
and provide much needed new tools to communities for shaping urban development.
States should authorize the establishment of a
commission to review and assess modern techniques of zoning and land use regulation and to
recommend legislation for modernizing the
state's zoning enabling act. A legislative committee of this nature is now at work in Connecticut
having the benefit of a report on th at state's plan~
ning legislation . It is drafting specific measures
that may have applicability in other jurisdictions.
The prime objective of such a review would be
to introduce greater flexibility into typically rigid
requirements which inhibit imaginative and progressive land use for community development,
and to eliminate the use of zoning powers to undergird economic segregation in residential development.
Program 7
Excellence in the Design of Structures In volving
the Use of State Funds or Credit and the Preservation of Public Building,r and Areas of Historical or Architectural Significance.
Stimulation of massive increases in needed housing and community facilities will not achieve durable improvements in urban life unless conscious
and unremitting attention is paid to the quality
of the structures and public spaces and their sensitivity to the needs of people.
Design quality is not a matter of style or pa-
tina or the application of cosmetic effects. It goes,
rather, to the heart of the process by which space
is shaped. Delay, inadequate fee arrangements,
resistance to innovation, imprudent concern with
short-run savings at the expense of long-run viability-any of these will drive superior talent
away from design responsibilities in subsidized
projects. Great architecture, it has wisely been
said, requires great clients. The state, in its manifold direct and indirect role as a potentially
"great client," should impress all those who deal
with it or serve it as functionaries with ,t he understanding that excellence in the end product is a
keystone of .the state's housing and community
development policies.
The creation of a State Council on Architecture is one means of implementing these objectives. Such a Council has been created in New
York to:
-encourage excellence in design of all buildings constructed by the state or under supervision or with assistance of any state
agency;
-stimulate interest in architectural excellence
in public and private construction throughout the state;
-accept gifts to further its objectives;
-obtain from other agencies of the state necessary cooperation and assistance;
-make grants to municipalities to rehabilitate structures of historical or architectural
significance for public purposes.
Whether a council or some other instrument
is created is secondary to assuring that what is
designed, who is involved in the process, and
how the process works is sensitive to user needs
and community values as well as the normal economic structures. Even in purely economic
terms , costs of managing, maintaining ( and protecting) a structure may be sharply reduced by
appropriate design in the first instance. The responsibility for analyzing and changing the manner in which public funds are employed in designing community facilities from capital budgeting to maintaining the end result-must be
centralized and highlighted.
VII. Developing New Communities
Program
New Community Development Corporations
with Eminent Domain Powers; Deferral of Property Taxes during Development Period; State
Approval of New Community Development
Plans in Lieu of Other Land Use R egulation.
States can participate directly in solving urban
problems by encouraging the development of
new comunities on raw land outside of existing
urban concentrations.
New communities offer opportunities both
for alleviating the problem of overcrowding in
the central city and for overcoming the ugly
patchwork sprawl on urban fringes .
By providing a wide range of housing at varying prices, including low-income housing, new
communities give promise of economically and
socially integrated cities.
Through comprehensive planning, new comi;nunities can provide for orderly urban growth
using the most desirable locations, timing their
development to correspond with area-wide or
regional development plans or objectives.
Internally, new communities can use land
more efficiently, thereby cutting costs and providing better public services. They can br~ak
away from conventional thinking, devel?p~ng
new arrangements in such fields as bu~dmg
codes, land use controls, zoning regulations,
public services and governmental structures: .
New communities offer unique opportumttes
to enlist the talents and energies of the private
sector in the inevitable expansion in the nation's
metropolitan areas. They offer 'large-scale investment opportunities and new markets. Moreover, they offer a dramatic chall~~ge to ~e
private sector to demonstrate its a~1hty to ~mld
new urban environments in a settmg relatively
free of the many constraints which hamper private initiative in existing cities.
A first step in undertaking a state new community program could be to inventory land now
owned by the state which may be deemed surplus to its needs. It may be found , fo r example,
in many states that thousands of acres were purchased in the last century for penal or mental
19
�institutions and hospitals in then rural areas
which are no longer required in the light of mod~
em medical or penal practice. Such land could
be retained by the state, but leased to new community developmeat corporations.
To help fin ance approved new communities
Title X of the H ousing and Urban Developmen~
Act of 1965 provides FHA insurance of mortgages fin ancing land and improvements for new
communities. T itle IV of the Housing and Urban
D evelopment Act of 1968 provides a federal
guarantee of debt obligations of private new
community developers. These provisions should
ease the financing difficulties of new community
developers.
S~ates, however, can remove three other major
barners and thus stimulate the development of
new communities within their borders.
F irst, they might charter new community
development corporations which would be authorized to use the power of eminent domain to
assemble _large tracts of land necessary for the
construction of new communities.
S_econd, they might defer local property taxes
dunng the development period of the new communjty by temporarily reim bursing developers
for local property taxes paid, as an interest-free
loan to be repaid when the property is sold, but
not la~er than the end of a stated deferral period.
Third, they might provide for state approval
of new community development plans wpich
would supersede local land use regulation that
would otherwise apply to new com munity tracts.
In many areas where new communities would
be located, largely rural local government is
unable t~ respond effectively to the needs of new
commumty developers. Direct state action is
~eede~ to speed development or, indeed, to make
it ~oss1ble. State authority would then be relinq~1shed to the government of the new commumty, once it was established.
A state land should not be leased eminent
domain powers granted , the deferral of local
property .taxes made, nor state approval of new
commumty development plans given unless a
state finds that:
- the development of a new community will
make a substantial contribution to the
economic and social development of the
area in which it is situated ;
- the site ~elected fo r the new community is
sound with regard to projected population
trends, the availability of land required ,
the absence of undesirable topographical
or geological features, and the availability
of transportation;
- the proposed new community will have a
20
sound economic b ase and sound land-use
patterns;
-adequate provision has been made for local
self-government;
- adequate provision has been made for all
necessary public utilities and facilities including those n eeded for education, he;lth,
transportation, open sp ace, sites for industrial and residential uses, a central business
center, and cultural and recreational facilities, and
- adequate housing is available to meet the
needs of families of a wide variety of income levels, including a substantial number of families of low- and moderateincome levels.
VIII. Centralizing Administration of Housing
and Community Development Programs
Program
A Cabinet L evel Department of Housing and
Community Affairs R esponsible to the Governor, with R esponsibility for Administering a
Broad Range of Community A id Programs.
A state's ability to help communities tackle the
tough urban problems of poor housing and inadequ ate community facilities could be greatly
increased if responsibility for aid to urban communities were centralized in a single dep artment,
agency or individual. Yet, today only a score of
states have centralized a uthority for housing and
community affair s programs.
A centralized agency for community affairs ,
With adequate authority to administer a broad
range of community aid programs like those described above, should be able to:
- help communities attract private capital investment a nd business skills in ,solving
community p roblems;
- help communities attract and effectively
utilize greater amounts of federal assistance;
- help communities attract the financial assistance of private foundations ;
- fill the gaps among existing federallyassisted community programs;
- help local governments improve their planning and management of community programs, so that they can better assess
community needs and decide the kinds of
federal and st ate assistance that are required ;
- help communities develop new approaches
to commun ity problems through smallscale pilot programs which, if successful,
could be widely repeated;
-marshal state resources for more effective
assistance to communities;
- provide needed technical assistance to public and private groups, and
- be a clearinghouse fo r information on a ssistance available to communities and a
coordinator among communities, between
state and communities, and between the
federal government and communities.
The form a centralized state authority for
community affairs will take must fit into the administrative pattern of the state. At least three
variations of centralized authority have been
adopted :
- a department of housing and community
affairs with broad statutory authority ( e.g.,
Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Rhode Island ) ;
- a housing and community affairs administrator with narrower statutory authority
(e.g., Alaska, Illinois, Vermont);
- a special assistant to the Governor for housing and community affairs without statutory authority (e.g., Kentucky, Kansas, and
North Carolina).
.
A department of housing and community affa irs responsible to the Governor and armed
with a full range of community assistance programs is, generally speaking, the best administrative arrangement. It dramatically demonstrates the state's commitment to assist its communities on a continuing basis; it allows the
Governor to assert executive leadership, and it
may make possible a marshalling of state resources in other programs toward solving community problems. A principal task of the department would be to see that state assistance
progra ms are more directly aimed at aiding communities to solve u rban problems.
At the same time, the department as its principal task must direct its energies to helping
communities to help themselves. This requires
an able staff familiar with both local needs and
the federal and state resources available to meet
them. It also requires sufficient funding to create
incentives to attract community support and
capable personnel convinced of their value to
the localities they are assisting.
A special program of federal matching grants
has been authorized to assist states in providing
special training for professional, sub-professional and technical persons to be employed in
housing and community development. Many
states have already filed plans spelling out specific proposals, but these await federal funding,
which is now anticipated. This program m ay
thus provide the key resource for departmental
staff development.
21
�References
New Jersey :
Other:
I.
Increasing the Supply of Low- and ModerateIncome Housing
Program 1: Seed money loans, technical assistance and
grants.
Connecticut:
Illinois:
Michigan:
New Jersey :
New York :
Other:
8 Connecticut General Statutes Annotated, secs. 218, 220 (P.A. 522,
laws of 1967, sec. 20-21 ) .
Chapter 67 1/2 Smith-Hurd Illinois
Annotated Statutes, secs. 308-309.
12 Michigan Statutes Annotated
secs. 16: 114 et seq.
'
52 New Jersey Statutes Annotated
secs. 27D-59 et seq. (P.L. 1967 c'.
82).
41 McKinney's Consolidated Laws
article 11.
'
Urban America, Inc., Proposed
Kentucky Housing D evelopment
Fund; Proposed W est Virginia
H ousing D evelopment Fund.
Contact:
James Twomey, Director
Nonprofit Housing Center
Ur ban America, Inc.
I7i7 M assachusetts Avenue,
N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036
202/265-2224
Program 2: State-developed housing.
Alaska:
Alaska Statutes, secs. 18.55.010 et
seq.
Hawaii :
8 Revised Laws of Hawaii, 1955,
secs. 74-1 et seq.
Vermont:
Acts of 1961 , no. 21 2 ( as amended
by H.B. 447, laws of 1968) .
Program 3: Below-m arket-interest-rate mortgage loans.
Illinois:
67 I /2 Smith-Hu rd Illinois Annotated Statutes, secs. 310 et seq.
M assachusetts : 2A Massachusetts General Laws
Annotated, Chapter 23 A.
12 M ichigan Statutes Annotated,
Michigan :
secs. 16.114 et seq.
New Jersey:
55 N ew Jersey Statutes Annotated,
sec. 141-5 (P.L. 1957 c. 8 1); 52
New Jersey Statutes Annotated,
sec. 27D -66 (P.L. 1967 c. 82).
New York :
41 McKinney's Consolidated Laws,
article 2.
Program 4: Interest-free loans to developers.
New Jersey :
Senate Bill 859, introduced June 13,
1968.
Program 5: Construction loans.
Illinois:
67 1/2 Smith-Hurd Illinois Annotated Statutes, sec. 3 IO.
Massachusetts: 2A Massachusetts General Laws
Annotated, Chapter 23A.
RI
144 New Jersey Statutes Annotated,
sec. 141-5 (P.L. 1967 c. 81).
Urban America (see Program
above).
Program 6: Land acquisition and write-down.
Connecticut :
8 Connecticut General Statutes Annotated, sec. 214 (P.A. 522, laws of
1967, secs. 16, 17).
Program 7: Rehabilitation housing
write-down.
New Jersey:
acquisition and
Senate Bill 859, introduced June 13,
1968.
Program 8: Property tax abatement.
Connecticut:
Michigan:
New Jersey:
New York :
8 Conn~cticut General Statutes Annotated, secs. 215, 216 (P.A. 522,
Jaws of 1967, secs. 18-19) .
P.A. 1968, No. 334.
52 New Jersey Statutes Annotated,
sec. 27D-51 (P.L. 1967, c. 80).
41 McKinney's Consolidated Laws,
article 11, sec. 57 5.
Program 9: Administration.
Illinois :
67 1/ 2 Smith-Hurd Illinois A nnotated Statutes, secs. 308 et seq.
M assachusetts: 2A M assachusetts General Laws
Annotated, Chapter 23A.
Michigan:
12 Michigan Statutes Annotated
sec. 16.114 et seq.
'
New Jersey :
55 N ew Jersey Statutes Annotated
secs. 14J-1 et seq. (P.L. 1967:
C. 81 ) .
41 McKinney's Consolidated Laws
New York:
article 3.
'
II.
Increasing Housing Choice
Program ]: Comprehensive fa ir housing Jaw.
Alaska :
Alaska Statutes, secs. 18.80-010. 160.
Colorado:
69 Colorado Revised Statutes, article 7.
New York:
18 McKinney's Consolidated Laws
article 15.
'
Program 2: Metropolitan area housing information
centers.
New York:
Senate Bill 4099, Assembly Bill
6026.
Contact:
State Senator Whitney North Seymour, Jr.
State Capitol
Albany, New York
Other:
Paul D avidoff, Neil G old, Harry
Schwartz, A H ousing Program for
N ew Y ork State (1 968) .
Contact :
Paul D avidoff, Chairman
Urban Planning Program
Hunter College of the City U niversity of New York
N ew York, New York
Metro Denver F air Housing Center,
Inc.
Contact :
Richard E. Young, Chairman
130 West Twelfth Avenue
Denver, Colorado 80204
303 / 534-1263
Other :
Program 3: Priority assistance for integrated housing.
III.
Improving Building Codes
Program: Model building code.
18 McKinney's Consolidated L aws,
New York :
ar ticle 18.
Advisory Commission on IntergovOther:
ernmental Relations, 1968 State
L egislative Program , pp. 287 et seq.
IV.
Improving Relocation Assistance
Program: Uniform relocation program.
Connecticut :
8 Connecticut General Statutes Annotated, sec. 219 (P.A. 522, laws of
1967, sec. 24) .
Maryland :
33A Annotated Code of M aryland,
sec. 6A.
New Jersey:
52 N ew Jersey Statutes Annotated,
secs. 31B-1 et seq. (P.L. 1967 c. 79).
Other:
Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, 1968 State
Legislative Program, p. 264.
V.
Equalizing Landlord-Tenant Relations
Program I: Means to secure code compliance.
Connecticut:
Community Development Act.
Illinois:
"For Better Housing in Illin ois," Report of the Legislative Commission
on Low-Income H ousing ( April 10,
1967).
Maryla nd :
Code of Public Laws, Baltimore
City, 1949 ed., sec. 459A.
Massachusetts : M ass. Gen. Laws Anno., Ch. 111,
sec. 127H (1967) .
New York:
Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law, sec. 755 (McKinney
Supp. 1966).
Pennsylvania : Pa. Stat. Anno. Lit., 35 sec. 1700-1
(Supp. 1967 ) .
Rhode Island: R. I. G en. Laws Anno., 45-24.2-11
(1956) .
( Rent withholding by welfa re agencies ) :
Illinois:
Ill. Rev. Stat., Ch. 23, secs. 11-23
( 1967 ) .
Michigan :
M ich. Stat. Anno., sec. 16.414 (3)
(Supp. 1968 ).
New York:
N.Y. Social Services Law, sec. 143-b
(McKi nney 1966) .
Program 2: Evictions.
Michigan :
Laws of 1968, P.A. 297.
Program 3: Private obligation to repair.
M ichigan :
Laws of 1968, P.A. 295.
Program 4: Publ ic housing policies.
M ichigan:
Laws of 1968, P.A. 267, 344.
Rhode Island: R.I. Gen. Laws Anno., 45-25-18
(House BiJI No. 1605, Laws of
1968).
VI.
The American Bar F oundation, under contract to the U.S. Office of
Economic Opportunity, is preparing a "Model Landlord-Tenant
Code." The final report, expected
to be available by January 1969,"
will consist of a statutory text together with relevant notes and comments. Its purposes include the codification of existing Landlord-Tenant Law, as well as the suggesting
of useful changes. The Code is designed for eventual submission to
the various state legislatures after
initial submission to the National
Conference of Commissioners on
Uniform State Laws.
Contact:
Philip Hablutzel
American Bar Foundation
1155 East 60th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60637
Enhancing Community Development
Program J: Financial assistance for community development programs.
Community Development Act, P.A.
Connecticut:
522, Laws of 1967.
N ew Jersey:
State Aid for Urban Renewal Projects, Laws of 1967, c. 80 (NJSA
52:27D-44 et seq. ).
Program 2: Urban development corporation.
New York :
Chap. 174, Laws of 1968.
Program 3: Loan guarantees.
New York:
Chap. 175, Laws of 1968.
Program 4: Assistance to obtain federal grants.
Laws of 1967, c.82 (NJSA 52:27DN ew Jersey:
59 et seq. ).
Program 5: Constitutional reform .
Advisory Commission on lnter~ovOther :
ernmental Relations, State L eg1s/atio11 Program for 1969.
Program 6: Zoning and plan ning reforms.
Connecticut :
New Directions in Planning Legislation, American Society of Planning Officials.
1313 East 60th Street
Chicago, Illinois 60603
American Law Institute, Model
Other:
L and D evelopment Code.
Contact:
Allison D unham , C hief Reporter
101 N . 33rd Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
Program 7: Improving design quality.
Chap. 982, Art. 22, Laws of N.Y.
New York :
Contact:
John P. Jansson, Executive
Director
New York State Council on
Architecture
545 Madison Avenue
New York, New York 10022
R2
�VII.
Developing New Communities
Program: Aiding the development of new communfries.
New York :
Laws of 1968, Chapters 173, 174.
Other:
Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Rel ations, 1969 State
Legislative Program, pp. 507 et seq.
VIII.
Centralizing Administration of Housing and
Community Development Programs
Program: A centralized department of housing and
community affairs.
Connecticut :
8 Connecticut General Statutes Annotated, secs. 201 et seq. (P.A. 522,
Laws of 1967.
New Jersey :
52 New Jersey Statutes Annotated,
secs. 27D-1 et seq. (P.L. 1967,
c.293).
Pennsylvania : Reorganization Plan 2, Act 582,
1965, Reg. Sess.
Further information concerning the operation of the
state programs referred to can be obtained from the
follow ing officials :
A laska
Larry Montgomery, Director
Local Affairs Agency
Pouch AB
Office of the Governor
Juneau, Alaska 9980 l
907 /586-5 386
Connecticut
LeRoy Jones
Commissioner of Commun ity Affa irs
1179 Main Street
P.O. Box 786
Hartford, Connecticut 06120
Ha waii
Yoshio Yanagawa
Executi ve D irector
Hawaii Housing Authority
1002 North School Street
Honolul u, Hawaii
/1 /in ois
Richard Blakley
Managing D irector and Secretary
Illinois State Housing Board
160 LaSalle Street
Chicago, Illinois 60601
3 12/ 346-2000
Kansas
John I va n
Special Ass istant for Urban Land
Community Affairs
The Governor's Office
State Capitol Building
Topeka, Ka nsas 6661 2
913/ CE5-00l I , Ext. 261
K entucky
John Vanderweir
Director of Division of Land Development
Assistance
Kentucky Program Development
Office of the Governor
Frankfort, Kentucky
502/564-3840
Massachusetts
Julian D. Steele
Commissioner
Department of Community Affairs
State Office Building
JOO Cambridge Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02202
617 /727-3238 ..
Michigan
Robert McLain, Director
State Housing Development Agency
Department of Social Services
Lewis Cass Building
Lansing, Michigan
5)7/ 373-2000
N ew Y ork
Edward Logue
President and Chief Executive Officer
New York State Urban Development Corporation
22 W. 55th Street
New York, New York 10019
212/ JU 2-7030
N ew Jersey
Paul Ylvisaker, Commissioner
Department of Community Affairs
State of New Jersey
363 W. State Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08625
609 I 292-6420
North Carolina
Luther C . Hodges
Housing and Urban Affairs Land Specialist
State Planning T as k Force
405 State Adminjstration Building
P.O. Box 1351
R aleigh, North Carolin a 27602
919/829-4131
Pennsylvania
Joseph W. Barr, Jr.
Secretary of Communit y Affairs
State of Pennsylvania
201 South Office Building
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 171 20
717/78 7-7160
Rhode Island
Rev. Arthu r L. H ar dge
Director
Department of Community Affairs
State House
Providence, Rhode Island
401 / 52 1-7100
Ve rm ont
J ames F in neran
Executive Director
State Housing Authority
Mo ntpelier, Vermont
802 / 223-23 I l
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"
�I,
December 1968
I
Community
The following statement is an excerpt fr.om a
recent speech by John W. Gardner, cha(rman
of the Urban Coalition:
l
Today one of the gravest handicaps to the
local community, dne of the things that prevents
it from pursuing any of its.purposes effectively,
is the fragmentation of the community itselfand the fragmentation of community leadership.
I saw_this at first ·h and when, as Secretary of
Health, Education and Welfare, I had to visit all
of our major cities-and many not so major.
I found that the typical American city was split
up into a variety of different worlds that were
often wholly out of touch with one another.
The suburbs were out of touch with the central
city. Business, labor and the universities were
three wholly separate worlds-as far apart as
worlds can be, City Hall was usually out of touch
with the ghetto and often out of touch with the
ablest and most influential people in the city.


The most omin6us rifts, of course, were the rifts


involving various minority communities, most
commonly the black community, but in some
parts of the country the American Indian or
Mexican-American_community.
As I traveled around, I observed that these
fragmented worlds were often terribly ignorant
of one another, and that the ignorance bred fear,
and the fear bred hostility. These cities were
not communities. They were encampments of
strangers.
Is it surprising that cities so fragmented have
great difficulty in solving their problems, great
difficulty in even formulating their problems?
Long before the riots, it was apparent to everyone who studied these matters closely that
communities so riven could not weather a ~to:rm
without cracking wide open. ,
The stqrms came-and they cracked wide
-open. One after another. Like all structures
under stress they cracked along the lines of
their internal weaknesses. The rift between
black and white communities was usually the
main issue but when the city tried to pull itself
together to face that issue, it found its capacity
to do so greatly c:Liminished by the other rifts
within the community-between business and
labor, between suburb and central city; between
police and citizen, between young and old.
Nothing is more clear than that no major city
can or will solve its problems without first
repairing some of those devastating gaps in
communication.
_ In some respects it is harder to accomplish
that repair after the troubles that have occurred.
In some respects, of course, it is easier. Some
people respond to trouble affirmatively, redoubling their efforts to act constructively. But
others, both black and white, respond to the
interplay of violence and counter-violence with
deepened anger, fear, hostility and a desire
to strike back.
We shall see a good deal more of those
emotions before we're through. But they won't
,5olve a thing.
Sooner or later we are going to have to sit
down together and figure out how we can create
communities that we can all live in, all believe
in, all be proud of, all defend.
�i
The sooner we get on with it the better.
There are issues so explosive that if we ignore
The Urban Coalition was formed precisely
them we shall be overtaken by events-and then
with that task in mind. I would emphasize the
every problem on the list will be infinitely
importance oithe coalition principl\;!. Some
harder to solve.
people think of the Coalition as just another
The goal that takes precedence over all
organization tackling the tough urban problems
others is to begin to heal those rifts that are now
of the day. But it is unique. Our distinction is
,makin& many American cities quite incapable
that we bring together segments of American
of any kind of healthy problem solving. We can
life that do not normally collaborate in the
heal those 'rifts. We can heal them through the
solution of public problems.
' process of coalition, if the PJOSt influential
Becaus·e of the need for such collaboration at
citizens in the community will lend their ~trength
the local level, the national organization has
and their presence, if all significant elements in
helped to form local coalitions. There are now '
the community are fairly represented and if all
local coalitions in 39 cities. As in the case of
concerned are unsparingly honest in facing
the national, each local organization includes
the toughest issues.
,
representatives from a variety of leadership
In a number of American cities today those
segments in the community-the mayor, busicondifions are being met in local urban coalitions
ness, labor, minority groups and religion. And
-the most i.nfluential citizens hctve stepped
we encourage .the participation of other relevant forward, all significant elements in the commuelements-the u~iversities, the schools, the
nity are represented and the toughest issues are
press, the professions.
being faced.
The coalition principle requires that minority
Once the significant elements in the commugroups be represented in the effort to solve
nity begin to work together, once they begi~ to
community problems. And such representation
think as a community and act as a community,
is itself a step toward solving the toughest proball kinds of things are possible. Then they can
lem of all-effective dialogue between minority
give city government the kind of intelligent
communities and the dominant elements in
support it needs; they can make the needs of
the city.
their city felt at the state and Federal level; they
Such communication is difficult. It requires
can see how all the various Federal, state and
bard work and patience and imagination on the
local programs fit together; they can provide
part of every person involved. But there is no
strong citizen support for Federal programs
alternative, unless we are willing to see our cities that are working and strong citizen criticism
torn apart. The one encouraging thing I can say
of those that are not working.
to you is that communication is possible. We
And most important of all, perhaps, they can
have proven th at over and over again.
look ahead.
When a crisis strikes it is too late to begin the
Ion~, arduous process of building effective
(
ch annels of communication. If there is to be
fruitful collaboration between black and white
communities it must begin and be tested in a
National Relations Office
non-crisis atmosphere. Then when trouble
strikes, if it does, men who have learned to work An Office of National Relations has been estabtogether and trust one another can go into
lished within the Communications Division of
action together.
the Urban Coalition to "broaden support for the
I have not dealt with many substantive probCoalition and its objectives," John W. Gardner,
lems of the cities-fiscal and governmental
chairman of the national Coalition, announced.
problems, housing, jobs, education , health servThe new office is under the direction of
ices, economic development and so on. The
Christopher Mould, former executive assistant
Urban Coalition is interested in all those probto Mr. Gardner. Before joining the Coalition last
lems, but we are not free to choose the
year, Mr. Mould was chief of the Federal
particular problems to which we shall give our
Programs Division of the Justice Department's
attention . The priorities are thrust upon us.
Community Relations Service.
2
The associate director of the new unit will be
Fred Jordan, who is leaving the post of Deputy
Assistant Director for Operations and Technical
Assistance of the Model Cities Administration.
Mr. Jordan is a former deputy director of the
California Office of Economic Opportunity,
a division of the governor's office.
Brian Duff, vice president of the Communications Division, said the mission of the National
Relations staff will be to establish liaison with
other national organizations and with Federal
agencies and to seek ways for the national
Coalition to cooperate with others in so ving
urban problems.
Action in Newark
The Newark, N.J. , Urban Coalition has a shorter
history than many of the 3 8 other Coalitions
launched since August, 1967. But its formal
incorporation in April of this year has been
followed by planning on a large scale and some
substantial steps toward improvement of the
city's economy.
Newark has the second highest proportion of
Negroes in its population of all American cities;
it is more than half Negro, and another 10 per
cent is Spanish-speaking. A report by the city's
Office of Economic Development showed that
generally this 60-plus per cent lives at a much
lower economic level than the rest of the
population: It is largely unskilled and untrained,
and it has few resources except labor to offer to
Newark's economy. Projections indicate the
downward trend will continue as the gap widens
between the character of the population and the
types of jobs available. Growth is expected to
1 come in the non-production industries that
require the greatest skills, not in trade
employment which could absorb the unskilled
workers.
The Greater Newark Urban Coalition, in a
broad "Plan of Action," has proposed the
establishment of a Community Development
Corp. that could be the key to the city's economic
development. As the Coalition sees it, the
objective is to "forge for Newark a communitywide organizational capability that will be able to
deal effectively with the wide range of problems
th at are rooted in the economic dependency and
weakness of the indigenous popul ation of the
ghetto." The Community Development Corp.
would be owned, operated and managed hy
ghetto residents. It would run all antipoverty _
services, but more importantly would also own
and manage businesses, own and manage
housing and represent the community in renewal
planning and other phases of public policy.
One of its goals will be to become involved
in businesses which are job producing with a
market for its products or services both inside
and outside of the ghetto. The Coalition is now
organizing this corporation so that it will qualify
for 502 loans from the Small Business
Administration as well as grants and loans from
the Economic Development Administration
and other
sources.
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Solid impetus was given the Coalition's
" Plan for Action" by tbe establishment in early
October of a $1 million fund by four commercial
banks to provide loans to ghetto buisnessmen
who cannot qualify for financial help elsewhere.
1
Two staff members of the New Jersey
Department of Community Affairs have been
assigned to administe1' the loan program through
the Coalition office. The Coalition and the
private, nonprofit Interracial Council for
Business Opportunity will help loan applicants
di agnose the problems of their businesses and
try to improve their operations.
Coalition president Gustav Heningburg
followed the loan fund announcement with word
that the organization would move into sponsorship oflow-income housing within the next two
months. To enter this field , it will establish a
housing development corporation with a separate board of directors composed of Negroes
and Puerto Ricans. The corporation will provide
fin ancial and technical assistance to community
groups which wish to sponsor low- and middleincome housing construction under various
fed eral and state assistance programs.
The "Plan for Action" outlined by the
Coalition to the community includes effortsnow underway-to organize and charter a blackcontrolled bank in the city. "The benefits of a
full-service commercial bank with a special
concern for the fin ancial needs of the minority
com munity are obvious," it said. It is working
also to deepen the commitment of the private
sector to a personal loan program for lowincome residents. The state has promised to
3
�commit $150_,000 to create a guarantee fund if
a matching amount is commi~ted by private
interests.
Gerald L. Phillippe
Gerald L. Phillippe, chairman of the board of
the General Electric Co. and a merpber of the
Urban Coalition's steering committee, died
Oct. 17 at the age of 59.
Mr. Phillippe had worked for General Electric
since his graduation from col1ege. He became
the company's seventh president in 1961 and
was elected chairmar;i of the board in 1963. He
was present at the Aug. 31, 1967; emergency:
convocation at which the Urban Coalition was
launched, and for many years lie had led efforts
~o join ~he private and public elements of society
rn fightrng poverty and unemployment in the
cities.
Fresno Expands
From an initial focus on improving 1ocal
housing, the Urban Coalition of Fresno, Calif.,
has turned its energies to attacking a broad
spectrum of community problems. Since Mayor
F loyd H. Hyde called meetings of leaders of all
segments of the community to set priorities last
January, task forces have been organized in jobs,
youth opportunities, housing, entrepreneurship
and education.
·
The first task fo rce to get fully underway was
~n housing, and the city responded by trading
its street beautification and tree planting program
~or an effort to set up a municipal mortgage
msurance fund with an initial appropriation of
S10,000. The experiment lets the city insure
home loans which do not qu alify for conventional financing. To administer the mortgage program, a Housing F inance Board was established
by city ordinance, and it ruled that loan applicants must participate in the HOME (Home
Opportunities and Management E ducation)
program. HOME was developed by Fresno State
<?~lle~e, at the city's request, to assist people
llvmg m substandard conditions to rehabilitate
or replace their present housing.
4
The Fresno Ho.using Development Corp. was
cr:eatep by members of the housing task force
as a nonprofit corporation to assist the city's
renewal efforts, and the task force is also assist. ing the civic redevelopment agency with its
General Neighborhood Renewal Area Plan
covering 1,900 acres in West Fresno with over
5,000 .q_wellings. The pilot project, San Joaquin
Par~, cove~s 400 acres. Another part of the
poverty-stnck~n West Fresno area, the Baison
~anor neighborhood, was helped by the Coalition_ task force in activating a FACE (Federally
Assisted Conservation Effort) project to halt
deterioration.
,
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W~ile housing activities were getting started
last_wmter, _the mayor invited a Los Angeles
bu~messman_who had headed that city's rehabilitation committee after the Watts riots to speak
to Fresno business leaders. H . C. McClellan
described the Management Council for Merit
Em~loy_ment, Training and Research, which was
findmg Job and ,training opportunities for
minority grou~s. By M arch 6, t~ree me~tings
had been held m Fresno, and 28 industrialists
initiated a lik~ program for that city. The
Management Council hired an executive director
to serve through the summer months, called 200
!arge c~mpanies to a general meeting-and
1mme~iately g1ot to work distributing job applicant b1ograph1es and unemployment fact sheets
along with its statement of purpose.
A raft of personal interviews followed and a
follow-up survey was made later to find ~ut
how many disadvantaged Mexican-American
and Negro workers had been hired. By midSeptember, 401 full-tim e and 114 part-tin1e
workers had been signed on by 146 companies
who responded. And by that time, a three-year
budget for the Management Council was
prepared, a full-time director recn:rited, a fulltime person assigned to work with the Council
by the Model Cities Program, and a contract
signed with the Concentrated E mployment
Program to help secure jobs and training for 100
persons in the six months ahead.
High p~i_o rity has been assigned also to youth
opportunities and services. In April a chairman
and the nucleus of a task force were selected and
this body was subsequently charged with pr~viding a meaningfu1 summer program for
( Continued on page 9)
Action
The 90th Congress and
the Urban Crisis
A pamphlet briefly summarizing what steps
the 90th Congress took in 1967 and 1968 to
meet the crisis of the cities has been published
by the Action Council. It is available upon request to the Urtian Coalition Action Council,
18.19 H St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006.
Although the 90th Congress never agreed to
"reorder national priorities," as the Urban Coalition Action Council urged, the pamphlet concludes that the Congress "nevertheless showed
increasing interest in solutions to the urban
crisis and tQok many positive actions to promote
the welfarc of the cities."
Legi lative subjects covered in the booklet are
Hou ing, Employment, Antipoverty Programs,
Food Programs, Education, Health, Law Enforcemlfnt and Transportation.
Legislation in 1968
The 90thCoog;ress adjourned October 14 1968
with a record that w nt about halfwa}t in meet~
l ative goal of the Action Council.
Tbij gr test achievements of th ear e,; in
the housing fi Id-a landl,U housing act focused harply on the ne ds of low and mod teinco
families and a fair bonsillg bill, b.n~na racial and religiou discrimination in n.e
al an~ r ntal of homes. Tho N:tion Cou.o ·
orkcd bilrd f 'Con~ sioDal apprO\' of th
measurea.
The fair housing law had to weather a Senate
filibuster before it came to a vote, but its enactment had the support of both parties in Congress.
The Housing and Urban Development Act of
1968 grew out of legislation submitted by the
Democratic Administration, but it also encompassed many Republican proposals. Its enactment was a major bipartisan achievement.
1968 was a year in which Congress was mor
than ever conscious of the rising federal budget,
and the action taken on appropriation bills reflected this concern. Passage of the tax surcharg
and the failure to enact a Public Service Employment bill also were linked to the state of the
budget and fear of growing inflation.
The Action Council supported the tax surcharge as necessary to solving the problem facing the nation, but it urged that no n:ducti.ohs be
made in essential pro~aIDS such as jobs housing,
ducation and oonununity services. CMgre&s,
howev r, exempted only the education l})propriations from the 6 billion spending cut tluf.t
it decided must go hand in hand with the tax
increase.
The exemption. for education activities oam.e
only after 11,ppropriations for c major urb
education program-ti&J. I p( th J!l m tary
and Secondary Education. Act, providing aid to
schools in impoverished areu-.-were QQt sliah
below 1 t year's figures. Apptop.r;i
bou ing, antipoverty activities d o4
,gram for the needy, how ver-1 ros abe
year s totals.
�I
Here are some examples:
• The Juvenile Delinquency Prevention and
-Title I education funds. Last year, Sl.191 Control Act, which was changed from an experibillion. This year, Sl.123 billion.
mental demonstration program to a more per-Grants for model cities. Last year, $312 manent program largely under state control.
million. This year, S625 million.
• The Mass Transportation Act, which fur-Office of Economic Opportunity, the basic nishes federal funds for improved local transit
antipoverty agency. Last year, S l. 77 billion. This operations.
year, Sl.95 billion.
• The Federal-Aid Highway Act, which fi-Food stamp program for the needy. Last nances major urban highways. New provisions ,
year, $185 million. This year, $280 million.
were added to the Act requiring that when hearAt the very end of its 1968 session Congress
ings are held on proposed routes within a city
considered the appropriations that were needed the effect of the location of the highway on the
by the Housing and Urban Development Depart- community environment must be considered.
ment to get a quick start on the new programs in
the Housing Act and to administer the fair hous- Desegregation Amendment. A serious threat to
ing law. The results were disappointing to the the drive for effective desegregation of schools
Action Council. Of S 15 0 million in con tracts was barely beaten in Congress this year. The
that HUD planned to sign under the new home- Action Council cooperated with other organizaownership and rent subsidy programs, Congress tions in working to defeat the proposal.
approved only $50 million. And the appropriaThe provision was sponsored by Mississippi
tion under the fair housing law was even slim- Rep. Jamie L. Whitten (D). a high-ranking
mer-$2 million compared to the request for $8 member of the House Appropriations Commitmillion.
tee, and was written into the Committee's approThe Secretary of HUD, Robert C. Weaver, priation bill for the Health, Education and
1 said October 29 that the cuts in requested approWelfare Department. After the House of Reprepriations might set back for as much as a year sentatives approved the Whitten amendment in
the goal in the Housing Act of achieving 6 mil- June, the Action Council urged the Senate to
l lion housing units for low-income families in remove it from the bill. The provision was not
the next ten years. He expressed hope that the deleted by the Senate but it was made relatively
next Administration and Congress would ap- harmless by the addition of qualifying language.
prove supplemental appropriations for the homeThe key part of Whitten's amendment proownership and rental subsidy programs.
hibited HEW from "forcing" children to altend
By the time Congress adjourned it had ex- any particular school against their parents'
I tended a number of laws that helped meet prob- wishes. The Senate language prohibited forced
lems of the cities. Among these were:
attendance at a particular schpol "in order to
• The Manpower Development and Training overcome racial imbalance." This phrase, which
Act. which provides money for training the un- referred to de facto as opposed to discriminatory
employed and upgrading the skills of the under- segregation, was already part of civil rights law.
employed. The Act was extended for four years, It allowed the Government and the courts to put
but the Public Service Employment program an end to "freedom of choice" school plans that
which the Action Council supports was not were perpetuating racial discrimination.
added to it.
When members of the House and Senate Ap• The Higher Education Act, which includes propriations Committees met in conference on
the Teacher Corps, financial aid for needy stu- the HEW bill, Southerners had a majority of the
1 dents and funds for college construction, and the
votes and they struck out the Senate's qua lit\ ing
Vocational Education Act. New programs to language concerning rncial imbalance. In effect,
1 lidp disadvantaged students were added to the
Whitten\; purpose was achieved.
two Acts.
Action Council Chairman John W. Gardner
• The School Lunch Act, which wa<; amended wrote House Speaker John W. McCormack (D
to make fede ral funds available to day-care cen- Mass.) and the Republican leader, Rep. Ciera Id
ters, neighborhood houses and summer recrea- R. Ford (Mich.), October 2, a~king them to help
tion programs.
defeat the Whitten amendment on the House
6
floor. He said the amendment "raises the real
threat of resegregation in many Southern school
districts" and "implicitly sanctions racially dual
school systems."
On a close 167-175 vote October 3, the House
rejected the Appropriations Committees' recommendation and adopted the Senate phrase nullifying Whitten's amendment.
The result is that HEW can continue to withhold funds from school districts that arc not
making real progress toward desegregation.
}
l
Block Grants. Block grants to the states were a
feature of two major bills passed by Congress in
1968. These were the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act, which provides $400 million
in federal funds to help improve state and local
law enforcement activities, and the law extending the Juvenile Delinquency program.
Block grants have become a classic federal
versus states' rigbts issue in the last two years.
The principal debate has been on whether funds
from the federal government for specific programs should go directly to the communities that
apply for them, or whether they should go to the
state governments for distribution under a state
plan.
A major argument against block grants to the
states was raised by Sen. Edmund S. Muskie (D
Maine) during the debate on the anti-crime bill.
The block grant approach, Muskie said. will
, foster "continuing political controversies and
partisan rivalries between state and local governments, between Governors and Mayors, between
urban and rural areas." Muskie pointed out that
law enforcement is far more a local than a state
problem, just as is education-another field in
which block grants have been proposed.
The chief opposing argument was made by
Sen. Everett M. Dirksen (R 111.), whose block
grant amendment prevailed on the crime bill.
Dirksen warned that if Congress "bypassed
1 state governments by providing funds directly to
municipal governments, the system would lead to
"imposition of federal guidelin1.:s, restrictions
and eventual domination" of the states.
Southern Senators joined Dirksen in supporting block grants. Sen. Strom Thurmond (R
S.C.), for example, declared that "the federal
government !>hould not deal with local communities, cities, towns and other subdivisions" but
only with the states. Sen. Sam J. Ervin (D
N.C.) added that cities are only "creatures of
the state."
Administration officials contended that since
law enforcement and juvenile delinquency are
basically local issues, federal programs should
be "community based," involving local people
in the planning and operations. The U.S. Attorney General, Ramsey Clark, said it would be a
mistake to "thrust the state into the pipeline"
between Washington and the local area. Arrangements under which state officials could review and evaluate-but not veto-local plans
for the use of federal funds were favored by the
Administration.
Action Council Chairman Gardner, commenting on the Juvenile delinquency bill in a
July 8 telegram to Sen. Joseph S. Clark (D Pa.),
noted that "most youth services and juvenile
courts arc now operated at the local level. Precipitate requirements that all federal funds be
channeled through state agencies," Gardner said,
"would seriously impair the effectiveness of the
juvenile delinquency legislation and in my view
would be a grave mistake."
Congress, however, wrote into the bill require1 ments that federal contributions to rehabilitation
and prevention programs, the basic elements of
the legislation, be allocated directly to the states.
But, each state first has to draw up a comprehensive plan for distributing the money to its
communities and get the approval of the Secretary of HEW. The state also has to pay part of its
communities' costs in operating the program.
The anti-crime bill allocated in block grants
all of the money for planning ($25 million the
first year) and 85 % of the money for law enforcement grants ($50 million). Each state was
required to channel at least 75 % of its law enforcement grants to communities in the state.
The planning money was for setting up and operating state agencies to draw up statewide law
enforcement plans.
Local Legislation
Local coalitions have been active this year in
urging legislative action by the state legislatures
and by city government. They have also made
recommendations on bond issues to be voted
on by the public.
In Racine, Wisconsin. the k1cal coalition- t hl'
Racine Environment Committee- met with the
7
1
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Mayor and 12 of the city's 18 aldermen to discuss the coalition's program. The Environment
Committee urged swift action by the city in applying to HUD ~or planning funds under the
model cities program. Another legislative goal
was adoption by the City Council of a housing
conservation code so that the city would be
eligible for federal funds for low-income housing.
This effort was led for the coalition by Paul
Cody, the urban affairs manager of the Johnson
Wax Company.
The Louisiana legislature recently enacted a
law for local option urban renewal, capping a
two-year campaign by the Urban Coalition's
New Orleans affiliate, the Metropolitan Area
CQmmittee. Members of the committee endorsed
a Community Improvement Act sponsored by
the city administration, prepared and distributed
a pamphlet explaining urban renewal, and testified at hearings by legislative committees in the
capitol in Baton Rouge. The legislature did not
act on the proposal last year, but when the New
Orleans group and other supporters of urban
renewal resumed the campaign in 1968, the bill
passed and was signed by the Governor. The city
is now actively working on its urban renewal
plans.
On the local level the Metropolitan Area
Committee has been seeking reform of the tax
structure and has endorsed bond proposals
within the city of New Orleans and in an adjoining parish (county) .
The Saginaw, Michigan, local coalition has
been credited by the Mayor's office with gaining
support within the city for passage of fair housing legislation and an unprecedented tax levy for
education. The Committee of Concern, the Saginaw coalition, al o worked successfully for a
county-wide mutual fire assistance pact.
The New York City Urban Coalition's Housing Task Force has set up a legislative subcommittee of ten attorneys to examine what provisions in the housing law are being used or
misused. The subcommittee will seek new approaches to housing legislation and regulations,
as well as advising on community housing prob-
lems.
T tifying before the St. P.aul, Minn sota, City
Council in October, representatives of the local
litiou supporttd a budget increase sought by
the ciiteot.or of the St. Pa1,1l municipal human and
0ml ri,iit, departmeat.
Fresno Expands f rom page 4
disadvantaged youth, as weU as summer jobs.
But this didn't seem enough to the task force
members; they wanted a year-round role. In
July, representatives from youth organizations
throughout the Fresno area were convened, and
a You th Council was born. It includes a voting
representative from every youth group, and
accepts as members all youth from 15 to 22
years old.
The first official activity was a September
panel discussion where a fiery exchange went on
among 500 .adults and youths on "The Widening
Gap Between Youth and AduHs." This gap
between the generations was not the only one
to be faced ; one of the specifit goals of the Youth
Council is to promote interaction and communication among you,ng people from all parts of
Fresno. The Council recognizes no barriers,
whether city-county, school, church or racial.
It has made plans to study such problems as
recreation, high school curriculum and drug
abuse-studies to be carried out by youth alone.
And the gap between youth and the "establishment" is being tackled by having youths sit in
on city commissions and take a role in the
decision making- learning about community
planning processes at first hand.
Case Study: Minneapolis
Minneapolis, one of the first cities to form an
Urban Coalition, has had its first year 's experience described in a detailed case study. The
report, available from the national Urban
Coalition office, was prepared by Michael J.
McMaous, correspondent for Time Magazine
who had been on loan to the Urban Coalition.
Sparked by Mayor Arthur Naftalin, 14 business leaders who had worked together after a
1966 riot in Minneapolis agreed that a longrange attack on the city's problems was needed.
Each donated Sl ,000 for a citywide study on
the possibility of creating a Coalition for com-
(
9
�munity focus on the problems. To conduct the
study they hired Larry Harris, organizer of the
Hennepin County poverty program, who was
white and had the respect of most white leaders.
Se,9sing distrust by the militant black leadership,
H arris asked for a co-directon T. Williams,
black staff director of a local community center.
Their study found wide agreement on need for
a coalition , but re al apprehension that business
-would dominate it.
The businessmen responded by minimizing
their role, deciding that only seven of them
would sit on a 63-man board. One-third would
represent minority and poverty groups, one-third
governm ent and agencies, one-third business,
labor and religion. A statement of goals was
drafted a nd circulated to 100 leaders by midNovember, and a temporary structure was
designed with six-month terms for chair man,
staff director and task1orce heads. Larry H arris
became exec4tive director fo r the first six
months. In early December, a single meeting of
men from 60 corporations raised the $45 ,000
budget, and a six-man staff was planned. " In
retrospect, this underestimation of staff needs
was the largest single error in launching the
Coalition," the report says. "Once the study was
completed, things seemed to drag. It was not
until Feb. 8 that the first Coalition meeting
was held."
Task forces were named on employment,
housing and community information. T he latter
followed up the Kerner Commission Report with .
an "Anti-R acism Week" : Church-goers were
given a "sensitivity survey," seminars were held
on the shortcomings of the wh ite press, housing
industry members were confronted with charges
of discriminatory housing practices. In the week
following the murder of Dr. M artin Luther
King Jr., black members, venting their emotions
with violent words, charged th at the Coalition
was useless and formed a Black United Front to
p resent fo rmal demands. T heir 14-point "Recommendations fro m the Black Community"
impressed the white members with the thoughtfulness of the demands and the unity of the
community. "The Coalition committed itself to
a series of specific actions in direct response
to the 14 points," it is reported, but "as p ainful
as it was for the fledgling Urban Coalition to
bow (some said 'capitulate' ) to the demands of
the black community, producing action on the
10
promises was far more difficult. The white man
had made new promises, but he did not provide
the staff to do the hard work to produce results."
The outcome : frustration on all parts, culminating in an explosive me~ting on the six-m,onth
annivers ary. It was time for a new loo1c at
purposes and methods . L arry H arris' temporary
assignment as executive director eIJ.ded at this
meeting, and he submitted a series of special
recommend ations. One was carried out immediately, as Harry D avis, the man the blacks had
chosen to negotiate their 14 points, became the
new executive director. The appo intment had
" profound symbolic value," McManus says in
his report. "To have a Negro in that post underscored the city's long-term commitment to press
the battle against racism and poverty."
Finding th at the sh arpest cry was fo r blaok
entrepreneurship, 17 fa mily and corporate
found ation s form ed a consortium and pledged
$225 ,000 for an equal opportunity fund. A
predomin antly ql ack subcommittee of the business developm ent task force was fo rmed to
decide which applicants fo r enterpri se are to be
helped ; other committees give technical aid.
By early October, Sl 7,000 made in "soft" loans
had drawn another S64,000 from traditional
lending sources to help Negroes open their own
businesses.
T he housing task fo rce also had produced
results. By October the city had added 14 building inspec tors to fo rce landlords to maintain
property stand ards; leg islati9n to protect tenants
was in the works; the consortium had approved
51 applications and was reviewing 175 more
fo r down-pay ment fu nds for needy fa milies. T he
employment task force help ed fill 600 full-time
jobs and fo und 1,470 summer jobs.
Lessons learned in this year : T he Coalition
cannot be "solely a behind-the-scenes catalytic
agent . .. ," the case study concludes. It must
actively strengthen the black leadership on a
broad base, and there must be persistent communication among all parties. I t must be fu nded
to afford enough fu ll-time staff to do the job;
bor rowing personnel initially is only a stop-gap
solution . Finally, says the report, the principals
"must recognize that they are blazing new trails
through perilous terrain. Like explorers, they
must have goals, enthusiasm, strength and a vast
capacity to be flexible when confronted by the
unexp ected. "
Communications
Brian Du.ff, vice president of the national
Urban Coalition in charge of communications,
has announced the appointment of William A.
M ercer as deputy director of communications.
Mercer has served since April 1964 as executive
director of the Business and Industrial Coordinating Council in Newark, N.J. , an organization
of business, civil rights, industry, labor, education, the major religious faiths and social
agencies that has developed more than 15,000
job and training opportunities for the disadvantaged in that city. Mercer is a graduate of the
New York University School of Commerce,
Accounts and Finance and has done graduate
work at the NYU Graduate School of Arts
and Sciences.
11
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The Urban Coalition
ort~
Nonprofit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Washington, D.C.
Permit No. 43234
1819 H Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20006
J1bird Class
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�REPORT OF THE LOCAL COAL ITION DIVISION
TO THE EXE CUTIVE COM.MI TTEE
December 16, 1968
I.
Accomplishments of Coalitions
The "older gene ration" of coalitions , with increas ing frequency, is
showing tangible and substantial re s ults; the younger coalitions are,
in many insta nces , cons ume d by o rganizationa l problems . Some illustrative accomplishme nts are listed:
The Miami Coalition, in collaboration with the United Black
Federa tion, a bl a ck organization formed with the encourage ment and cooperation of members of the coa l ition, h a s taken
significant steps to ease police- community relations. It is
currently f o rmulating programs in o ther fields identified
as key to Mi a mi's needs.
Ten (or more ) coalitions are aggressively c reating entrepreneurship o pportuni ties f o r minorities. The New York Coa lition's
Venture Capital Corporation has just made its f i rs t loan, in
cooperation with the Harlem Commonwea lth Council. The comp l ementary Coaliti on Development Corporation h as begun with a
case load o f 203 entrepreneurs s eeking t echnica l as sistance .
Plainfi e ld and Racine h a ve h e l ped establis h sma ll companies .
REC Industries , a small manufacturing company estab li shed by
the Ra ci ne Environment Committee now employs and is training
35 "hard core " youths. Both the Philade l phia and New York
coaliti ons h ave active programs designe d t o enhance the
capabilities and opportun iti es o f mino r ity con tractors.
Most coalitions are striving to re lieve unemployment, consist ently i n collaboration with the loca l NAB effo rts. The New
Detroit Committee has found 50,000 j obs; Minneapo lis ha s
promote d coordination o f NAB efforts with other o rgani zations;
Fresno h as estab l ished a Manageme nt Council f or Mer it Employmen t;
Riverside h as formed a Job Opportunities Counci l ; and Tacoma has
establ ished a ghetto area employment o ffice which has plaqed
300 h ard-core une mp loye d.
The Winston- Sa l e m Coalition h as estab li s h e d a Housing Foundation
{with a million d ol l ar budget ), and h as h e lped finance a hous ing
proj ect f or the elderly. Other coalitions with strong hous ing
activities include Detroit, Fre sno, Lima, Minneapolis, New York,
Philade lphi a , and Tacoma.
The New Detroit Committee i s pressi n g l egal action t o get more
adequate reso u rces for core-city sch oo l s. Bridgeport, Minneapo li s,
and Racine are conce ntrating on scholarships for des e rving
minority college s tudents. Detroit a l so h as stimulated the
formation of partnerships between schools and major companies,
�Page Two
L. C. Div. Report
and Newark has proposed private sector construction and operation of schools. New York has helped find sponsors for 15
Street Academies, whos e contributions will amount to $600,000
annually. New York also has a ttempted to come to g~ips with
the city's decentralization crisis through public education and
offers of mediation. The Philadelphia Coalition is launching
an employment training program by establishing "academies" in
high schools which are sponsored and operated by major compan ies.
Three academies are being o rgan i zed in Of fice Management, Banking
and Finance, Aviation and Aerospace, and in Electronics.
Coalitions in Detroit, Newark, New York, Baltimore, New Orleans,
Philadelphi a , Plainfield, Racine, and Saginaw are promoting legislative activity either at the local, state or Federal level.
II.
Established Coalitions
New Bedford, Massachusetts established a coalition in late November;
this brings the total of established coalitions to 40.
III.
Hou.sing Con fere nce for Coalitions
During 1969 the Urban Coalition, with the help of the National Institute
of Public Affa irs, will provide a s e ries of conferences to help coalitions
develop effective strategies in particul ar substantive areas. The first
of the s eries , To Impr ove a City ' s Housing , will be held on Feb r u ary 6
and 7 in Washington. This conference i s specifica lly d es igne d to h e lp
the staf f and hous ing ta s k forc e me mbers o f coa litions to ident ify the i r
rol e and strategies in improving the loca l hous ing situ at ion.
IV.
Organizing Efforts
Efforts are currently underway to establish coa litions in 33 cities.
Thi s tota l includes Chic ago , Illinoi s and Durh am , North Caro lina. Coa li tions are e x p e cted to be a nnounc e d soon in San Francisco, Kansas City
and Dayton. ·Mr. Walter Re uther h as scheduled a luncheon on January 9 to
advance organi zing efforts in Michigan cities . .
At the Novembe r mee ting , the Steeri ng Committee resolved to aid. in the
formati on of loca l coa litions . All 38 members were contacted by letter
as a cons equence , r equ es ting assistance in relation to spe ci f ic cities.
Te n members h a v e responded to this r equ es t; s even me mbers h a v e p r ovide d
the n ame s of individu a l s who can assist in a total o f t we lve of the
target cities:
Since the last meeting on Nove mber 1 3, the following Steering Committee
members h ave made or wil l make speech e s:
Mayor Nafta lin
Cl e v e l and , November 21
Mr. Close
Corpus Christi, January 28.
.,
��November 20 , 1967
Mr . John Feild
National Coordinator
The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street, N . W .
Suite 220
Washington, D. C . 20006
Dear John:
Mayor Allen will not be able to attend the December 18
Detroit St ering Committee m.e ting.
Unfortun tely , l will not be ble to be theJ"e either so please
fe 1 f re to carry on without u •
Sincerely yours .,
Dan Sweat
DS:fy
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F.ATL
CITY HALL
ATLANTA, GA. 30303
Tel. 522-4463 Area Code 404
November 2, 1967
IVAN ALLEN, JR., MAY~R
R. EARL LANDERS, Administrative Assistant
MRS. ANN M. MOSES, Executive Secretary .
DAN E. SWEAT, JR., Director of Governmental Liaison
MEMORANDUM
To:
Mayor I van Allen, Jr.
From: Dan Sweat
-{]!53
Attached is a memorandum which you forwarded to me conc erning
the D ecember 18 meeting of the Urban C o alition Steering C ommittee
in Detroit.
The Washington office has inquired as to whether or not you plan
to attend this meeting. What shall I t ell them?
DS:fy
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�FROM:
Ivan Allen, Jr.
D
For your information
D
Please refer to the attached correspondence and make the
necessary reply.
0
F ORM 25 - 4
Advise me the status of the attached.
�October 27, 1967
MEMORANDUM
TO:
Members of the Steering Committee
FROM:
Steering Committee Co-Chairmen
The next meeting of the Steering Committee will be held
on December 18 at 4:00 p.m. in the Van Antwerp Room on
the 8th Floor of the Veterans Memorial Building, 151
West Jefferson Street, Detroit, Michigan. Mayor Jerome
P. Cavanagh will host a dinner for the members of the
Steering Committee or their representatives to be served
in the penthouse at 6:30 p.m.
Please advise the National Coordinating Office as to
whether you and/or your designee will be present.
The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street, N . W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
(202) 293-1530
�October 27, 1967
NATIONAL COORDINATORS WEEKLY REPORT
LOCAL COALITIONS
Six cities have now announced the formation of urban coalitions and
intend to affiliate with The Urban Coalition--Detroit, New York City,
Minneapolis, Gary, Indianapolis, and Atlanta. Sparked by the Chi~ago
"Mobilizing Urban Coalitions" planning session dozens of other cities
now have organizing committees.
The California League of Cities, meeting in San Francisco, formally
e ndorsed th e formation of coalitions in all its constituent cities
on a motion by Mayor Floyd Hyde of Fresno supported by officials of
San Diego. Both cities announced they are organizing coalitions.
Regional meetings like the one in Chicago have been scheduled for
San Francisco on November 30 and New York in early December.
PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT
On October 25, some 40 major Pittsburgh employers and labor leaders
attended a meeting hosted by Mayor Joseph M. Barr on private industry
pla ns for hiring hard-core unemployed.
On October 27, at the invitation of Mayor Herman Katz of Gary and
Mr. George Jedenoff, Superintendent of the U.S. Steel Gary Work s,
The Urban Coalition Task Force on Private Employment joined with
sev eral hundred leading Gary employe r s a nd unions in developing a
progra m o f expanded e mployment opportunities. Mr. David Stahl, o f
Mayor Daley' s o ffi c e r e p resenting t h e Task Fo r c e , s poke b rief ly a t
the luncheon .
Other local mee t i ngs on priva te employme nt have been scheduled f or
Ba ltimore (Nove mber 14 ) and De troit (Nove mber 2 1) . Task Force c o chairman Gerald L. Phi llipp e wi ll s p eak a t both meet i ngs.
In Balt imor e, Mayo r Theodore McKeldin and Counc i l President Thoma s
D 'Al esandr o and fift een major i ndus tria l lea ders are convening a
meeting of top manag e ment representatives o f Ba ltimore firms to
launch a program of e x panding Negro entrepreneurship in the ghetto
s timulated by sub- contract arrangements. with leading industries .
•
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This is being viewed as a "breakthrough" type of program and is
being carried out through the Baltimore Council on Equal Business
Opportunity (CEBO). CEBO is a pr·o ject of The Potomac Institute.
In Detroit, the New Detroit Committee's employment and education
committee is convening a meeting of industrial and labor leaders
to discuss expansion of private employment in the ghetto. The
Ford Motor Company has announced that it will recruit 6500 new
workers from the central city and the Michigan Bell Telephone Company
has announced plans to concentrate its training efforts in an allNegro high school in the center of Detroit.
LEGISLATION
Coalition co-chairme n Andrew Heiskell and A. Philip Randolph
urged members of the House/Senate Conference Committee on Independent
Offices Appropriations to adopt the Senate's recommendations for
funding model cities and rent supplements--$637 for model citi es
arid $40 million for rent supplements. Rent supplements received
$10 mi llion (th e House had earlie r appr oved no f unds) and model
cities received $312 (the House had approved $237 million).
The f a ct sheet and position paper on the Social Se curity amendments
will be mailed to the Steering Committee the first part of nex t week.
EDUCATI ONAL DISPARITIES
The Task Force will meet on November 7 to map its program and round
out its membe r sh i p .
HOUSING , RECONSTRUCTI ON AND I NVESTMENT
The Task Fo rce had t o r eschedu l e i ts October 19th meet ing f o r earl y
November.
EQUAL HOUS ING OPPORTUNITI ES
Task Force working committee meets November 3 in Washington to
consider a pilot three city pro ject invo lving development of new
lower-income housing o n a n open o ccupancy b asis in suburban areas.
Also scheduled for the meeting are plans to draw together some 30 0
Fair Housing Committees now operating in suburban communities for
a national action session on open housing to be held in Chicago
e arly in January.
�November 7, 1967
Mr . John Feild
Co - Coordinater
The Urban Coalition
1819 H Street, N. W .
Suite 220
Washington, D . C , 20006
Dear J ohn:
I will be unable to attend the November 27 Working Committee
me ting of the U:Tban Coalition .
If any particular point com s up on which you n ed some specific
word from Mayor Allen, plea e 1 t me know.
Sine -r ly yours,
Dan Sw
DS:fy
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�SYMBOLS
CLASS OF SERVICE
This is a fast message
unless its defe rr ed cha r#
actcr is indicated by the
p roper symbol.
W . P. MARSH A LL
CH A I RMAN O F T HE B OAR D
TELEGRAM
®
L T- l ntcr-natio n a l
- Letter T clegram
1102A EST NOV 6 67 AC072 PC078 WMR023
WDO~O
(WMR)
PD 6 EXTRA DUPLICATE & CORRECTED COPY WASHil'GTON DC
6 NF"T
DAM SWEAT
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR CITY HALL ATLA
Tt£ WORKING COMMITTEE WILL ~EET AT 2:00
PM ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER
.
27 IN Tt-E .NEW YORK SUITE OF THE MAYFLOWER -HOTEL, WASHINGTON, ·
D. Ce TO CONSIDER THE AGENDA FOR THE DECEMBER 18 STEERING COMMITTEE
MEETif\G
JOHN FEILD RON M LINTON NATIONAL COORDINATORS THE URBAN COALITION
2:00 27 18.
SF1201 (RZ-65)
�CLASS OF SERVICE
This is a fas t message
unless its d efe rred char•
actcr is ind icated by t he
proper symbol.
WESTERN UNION
W. P . MARSHALL
CHA I RMAN O F
THE BO A RD
TELEGRAM
®
SYMBOLS
DL = Day Letter
NL =N igh t Letter
R . W . M c FALL
PRESIDENT
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- Letter Telegram
The fi lin g time shown in the da te line o n domes tic telegrams is LOCAL T IME at point of origin . T ime of receipt is LOCAL T IME at poinc of destination
742P EST NOV 3 67 AH388 CTC 516
w ncvo;o rxz1
TXZ1 PD TX WASHINGTON DC 3 NFT
DAN SWEAT
OFF ICE 0:- THE MAOR CITY HALL A11.ANTA GA
THE WORKING COMMITTEE WILL MEET AT 2100 PM ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER
27 IN THE NEW YORK SUITE OF TH.E MAYFLOER HOTEL, WASMiflGTON
DC TO CONS IDER THE AGEN:>A FOR THE DECEMBER 1 g STEER ING COMMITTEE
MEE·ING
JOHM FEILD RON M LINTON NATIONAL COORDINATORS THE URBAN
COALITION •
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SF1201(R2-65)
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MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE STEERING COMMITTEE
New York, New York
October 9, 1967
Co-Chairman Andrew Heiskell opened the meeting by welcoming Mr. John Johnson,
President of Johnson Publications and Mr. J. H. Allen, President of McGraw-Hill
P~blications to the meeting. They are Co-Chairmen of the Communications Task
Force. By unanimous approval they were added to the Steering Committee. In
addition to this, Mr. Heiskell said that the present limited religious representation warranted additions from that segment.
REPORT ON BUDGET AND ADMINISTRATION
Coalition costs are running slightly in excess of the approved budget. It was
suggested that a finance committee made up of members from the Steering Committee
be set up. Mr. Heiskell appointed Mr. Asa T. Spaulding, Mayor Jerome Cavanagh,
and Mr. Theodore Schlesinger to that committee. They will oversee the budget and
fund raising activities.
To date, contributions have been received from the mayors and the business members.
The labor contribution is expected shortly, and the contribution from religion is
in the process of being worked out.
PROPOSALS ON ORGANIZATION AND PROCEDURES
The Report of the Special Working Sub-Committee on Organization was brought up
for discussion. There was some disagreement as to whether the National Coalition·
itself should take a public position on legislation pending before the Congress
or whether this should be done on the local level. It was decided, however, that
any statements released by the National Coalition would be seen by all members
of the Steering Committee before being made public. Specific changes were made
in Paragraphs 7 and 8 (see attached) and the public policy position was approved.
PRESENTATION OF TASK PROGRAMS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Over fifty cities have indicated that they are interested in setting up their own
local coalitions. To assist these communities, as well as others, a one-day
planning session will be held on Tuesday, October 17, in Chicago. This session,
hosted by Mayor Daley, will be attended by representatives from several hundred
cities.
The Co- Chairmen of the Task Force on Communications will be recruiting ten
leaders in the various areas of communication . Contact has been made with both
the Magazine Association and the Advertising Council. Both have expressed an
�•
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interest in working with the Coalition. It was suggested that Urban America might
serve as liaison between the Advertising Council and the Coalition.
The Co-Chairmen of the Task Force on Reconstruction Investment and Urban Development have met and have agreed on the expansion of the Task Force. They have
assigned their working committee to develop r ecommended goals and a task force
program. The full task force membership will meet on October 19.
The Task Force on Educational Dispari t ies and the Task Force on Equal Housing
Opportunity are in the process of holding working committee meetings to develop
task force programs.
The Task Force on Priva te Employment is scheduling meetings in three cities with
local private employment task forces in preparation fo r a national private emp loyment conferenc e.
REPORT ON LEGISLATION
Mayor Lindsay reported on the Task Force's activities on behalf of the Cl ark-Javits
Amendment . He noted that the Prouty compromise failed by five v otes . He a lso
noted that a new effort would be made in the Senate and an additional effort in
the House to pass an emergency public employment meas u re. He said that the l egislative committee fe lt that two other pending measures related directly to the
employment problem. One was adoption of the poverty legislation; the other was
defeat of the Welfare Amendments to the Social Security legi slati on.
There was intense discus s ion relative to the position of the Steering Committee
on this legislation. A consensus was reached that there shou ld be prepared a
positi on paper on the Welfare Amendments to be distributed to the Steering Committee
members to determine their reaction.
URBAN ECONOMI~ COUNCIL
A committee wil l be made up of members from the Steering Committee to work with
Urban America on setting up the Urban Economic Council.
Next meeting of the Steering Committee will be at 7:30 p.m. on December 18 , 1967,
in Detroit, Michigan.
�CHANGES AS APPROVED BY THE STEERING COMMITTEE
on the
REPORT OF SPECIAL WORKING SUB-COMMITTEE ON ORGANIZATION
7.
The Coalition shall take public policy positions except where
a substantial or intense disagreement emerges.
8.
Statements should be communicated in writing or by telegram
with a specified response date indicated to all members of
the Steering Committee.
�TY OF A.TLANT
CITY HALL
October 2, 1967
ATLANTA, GA. 30303
Tel. 522-4463 Area Code 404
IVAN ALLEN, JR., MAYOR
R. EARL LANDERS, Administrative Assistant
MRS. ANN M. MOSES, Executive Secretary
DAN E. SWEAT, JR., Director of Governmental Lia ison
MEMORANDUM
To:
Mayor Ivan Allen, Jr.
From:
Dan S weat
~
When John F e ild was in town Thursday,
discussed with him the
role which I could best play in assisting the
ban Coalition. As
I discussed it with you before, it was my feeling
t there was
no reason why I should attend all the working sub-co
ittee meetings
of the Co a lition in Washington and that John Gunther and John Feild
could represent you and the other Mayors involved without specific
repr esentation from each Mayor.
We are in agreement on this point and I will not attend any routine ·
working sessions but only those where my attendance is absolutely
necessary. He will keep in touch with me on any points where
your individual recommendations are needed.
He has asked that I act as liaison with e ight or ten Southern cities
list ed as key participants i n the Urban Coalition. Th ese are:
Atlanta, Little Rock, Savannah, Charlotte, Chattanoo ga, Nashville,
Galveston and Miami. My role would be to maintain contact with
the Mayor and/or his key representative in e ach one of these cities
with the immediate task of enco ura g ing their participation in the
O ctober 17 planning meeting for local coalitions in Chicago.
This would involve some telephone calls during the ne x t two weeks.
I belie ve this type participation at this point would be better than
trying to attend meetings every week in W a shington.
I would appr e ciate your thinking on this matter.
DS : fy
�