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HUDNEWS U.S. DEPART M ENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVE'LOPMENT WASHINGTON D . C . 20410 HUD-No. 68-1815 Phone (202) 382-4433 FOR RELEASE Wednesday , May 8 , 1968 HUD PICKS THREE CONTRACTOR GROUPS TO LAUNCH IIIN-CITI" HOUSI NG EXPERIMENT Secretary Robert C . Weaver of the U . S . Depa rtment of Housing and Urban Development today annourced t he selection of three c ontractor groups to launch the national "In-City" e x perimenta l low-cost housing project. Those named to conduct the first pha se of the project are: ABT • Associates, Inc., Cambridge, Mass . , a n d Dan iel, M ann, Johnson and Mendenhall , Los Angeles, Calif.; Building Sys t e ms Development, Inc. , San Francisco, Calif .; and Westinghouse Electric Corporat ion , Pittsburgh, Pa. "Thi s national housing experiment, Se c ret a ry Weave r said, "is the most a mbitious one ever underta k e n in t h e count ry. The magnitud e and u rgency o f the housing needs of o ur il l-ho use d d e mand bold action . Further, it is dire ctl y re lated to Pre side nt Johns on' s reque st t o C ongress for support t o produc e 6 , 000,0 00 new or rehabilitated federally assisted ho using units fo r our low er inco me fa mil ie s over t he next te n ye a rs." 11 According to T . F. Rogers , Director of HUD ' s Offic e of Urban Te chno l ogy a nd Re searc h, there a re a number of design-construction conc e pts , n ew material s , a nd management technique s now available that can be used in the nation's cities t o prgduce a large vol ume of ho using rapidly, and at costs below current l evels to meet the needs of l ower income families. The "In- City II project will involve a variety of low - cost ho us i ng sub -experime nts. The overall e x periment is e x pected to identify the -more- �'l, HUD-No . 68-1815 -2- constraints o n the use of new products, as w ell as innovations in des i gn, financing, and construction or rehabilitation of low -cost hou~ing. Emphasis will be on the character of the housing and its constr:uction, as measured by the needs and desires of their o ccupants and the people in the neighborhood. The three contractor groups, each w ith· a sizeable and experienced professional staff, were carefully selected in a competitive process that saw 19 proposals submitted to HUD in response to its requests for proposals last March 14. Mr. Rogers pointed out that because the three contractors showed an impressive understanding of the ex periment, though submitting substantially different approaches, HUD decided to proceed competitively through the initial phase of the project. "The unique quality of this new e x periment, " he said, "and the vital role it w ill play in the Department's overall housing plans suggested the diversified approach. " • The exper iments w ill be carried o ut only in those cities that indicate a w ill i ngness to build a large volume of hous ing fo r lower income fa milies , us i ng t he fl e x ible a n d innovative methods suggested by the contr actors . M r. Rogers e x plained that the contr actors have until June 15 t o c omplete t he fi rs t phase of the "In- City" project, which compr ises four main ite ms. The contr actors w ill : 1. Stud y t he various Model Cities , a nd others if a ppropriate , to establish spec ific c rite ri a fo r fi n al s e lectio n o f t he cities fo r the hous ing sub-experi me nt s . 2. I de ntify, s t udy and r a nk-orde r new design, c o n structio n and management te c hnique s and s yst e ms, i ncluding ind ustria lized systems, materials, c o mpone nts , et c. , t o b e u sed . 3. Vvo rk with ap propriat e c ity o ffi cia ls , re s i d ent s, and labor, industrial and professional groups to pin-point t he more i mportant needs and constraint s; arrive a t conclus i ons regardi ng the opportunities and estimated cost and time of carrying out useful housing sub-e x periments. - more - ,. �HUD-No. 6 8-1815 -3- 4. Suggest to HUD the cities that should be considered for the overall national experiment. Upon conclusion of phase one, each of the contractors will give HUD a detailed proposal for the conduct of phase two. HUD will then CS)ntract to complete the project, determine how the actual work will begin, and select the specific cities in which the sub-experiments will take place. Mr. Rogers pointed out that the actual construction or rehabilitation to take place in phase two will be locally initiated and sponsored, and financed largely through HUD programs. The Department's Regional Administrators and the officials and residents of the selected cities are all expected to take active roles in the project.

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