Construction Acriviry Sets New Record in 1953

Expenditures for new construction put in place totalled $34.8 billion in 1953, according to preliminary estimates of the U. S. Department of Labor and the U. S. Department of Commerce. This represents the highest volume recorded in the 39 years for which these data are available. The year was marked by a continued increase in most types of construction that had been retarded earlier because of war and defense needs.

Private construction was up 8 per cent from 1952 to $23.6 billion in 1953, and public outlays rose 4 per cent to g11.2 billion. New records were established in 1953 for private spending on commercial, religious, educational, and public-utility construction, and for public outlays on schools and highways.

The year 1953 was at peak in terms of physical volume also (expenditures adjusted for price changes), with an inclicated gain of almost 5 per cent frcm 1952.

Federal funds expended for new construction in 1953 amounted to almost a seventh of total outlays (private and public) for new work done during the year-about the sarne proportion as in 1952.

Private spending for residential building rose 7 per cent from 1952 to almost 912 billion in 1953, and for the eighth consecutive year exceeded total expenditures for all public construction activity. Commercial building, freed from the materials and credit lirnitations of prior years, soared to $1,8 billion in 1953-up 58 per cent from 1952. Religious building and private school construction, each of which had slumped to annual expenditures ranging from only $6 million to $31 million in the war years, rose about a fifth from 1952 to peak levels of $474 million and 9425 million, respectively, in 1953. Spending on social and recreational building gained by 30 per cent last year thus reversing the sharp downtrend that occurred in this work during 7950-52.

The only types of private work to show a 1952-53 decline were industrial plant (down slightly to 92.2 billion), farm construction, and hospital building. The latter two categories have been declining from the peak levels of 1951.

The 1952-53 rise in public construction expenditures mostly reflected gains in highrvajrs, schools, Federal industrial plant, and sewer and water construction. Over a fourth ($3.2 billion) of total public construction expenditures in 1953 went for new highways. Public-school construction rose alrrost B per cent from 1952 to $1.7 billion in 1953, compared with a wartime low of $41 million in 1944. In contrast, public outlays of 91.7 bilIion for industrial plant, up slightly from 1952, amounted to just about half such outlays as peak expansion during World War II. Military and naval construction held at about the same level as in 1952, but public spending for housing was 15 per cent lower in 1953, and for new hospitals 27 per cent lo',ver.

The usual decline in construction activity in the closing months of the year was no more than seasonal in 1953, as most types of construction remained strong. December expenditures, totaling almost $2.7 billion, were down 11 per cent from November, but were 4 per cent above the December, 1952 total.

Nqmed Chief of Division of Personnel For Forest Service

Bernard A. Anderson, Assistant Regional Forester in charge of personnel for the Pacific Northr.vest Region of the Forest Service since 1951 has been named Chief of the Division of Personnel Management'in Washington, Richa:d E. McArdle, Chief of the Forest Service in the U. S. Department of Agricultu're. announced.

He succeeds H. f)ean Cochran, rvho has been named Regional Forester for the North Central Region. I!Ir. Anderson's promotion will be effective January 17.

Before taking over personnel work in Oregon and Washington, Mr. Anderson \\'as administrative officer in Portland, Ore., representing the Forest Service, and serving as alternate to the Department of Agriculture's representative, on the interagency committee for agriculture and conservation in the Northrvest.