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68
the narrowness of the street in which the houses are situated, that
no amount of renovation or repair can ever convert them into
healthy dwellings.
According to modern standards these houses even when new
would have been considered unhealthy, but at the time they were
erected there was no Building Act, and no power on the part of the
local authorities to forbid the building of houses in streets so
narrow as to render free access of light and air impossible. Their
original faulty construction is aggravated by the state of filth and
dilapidation into which they have been permitted to fall, and though
there ought to be no difficulty in compelling the owners to do their
duty, in the way of cleansing and repair, yet as I said before, no
mere repair can convert such houses into healthy dwellings, and
money so spent would be for the most part wasted.
Now it is highly desirable that a local authority, instead of
forcing owners to spend money upon repairs, which, when completed,
will effect very little mitigation of the insanitary condition of
congested areas, should be in a position to acquire the freehold for
the purpose of clearing the site and widening the streets, thereby
effecting a real sanitary improvement; and the Housing of the
Working Classes Act specially empowers a local authority to deal
with cases of this nature in the manner indicated, though the
method is slow and very costly.
It is within my knowledge that former property owners on the
"Boundary St. unhealthy area" obtained large sums for houses at
the hands of the official arbitrators, yet these very persons had
expressed to me their willingness to part with their interests, for a
nominal sum before the improvement scheme was on foot. Certainly
they had just bsen served with full notices to repair, and as they
did not know where to find the necessary cash, they were inclined
to look upon their property as a burden instead of a source of profit.
It is common experience that when a property owner is approached
by a public body with a view to the acquirement of his interests, the
price goes up by leaps and bounds, and though he may not get all
he asks yet he usually obtains much more than he would have done
from a private purchaser.