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, n V. ^ ^ HOUSING PROGRESS IN PUERTO RICO 1938 - 1948
V/hen in th© latter part of 1937, the Congress of the United States
passed a HOUSING ACT, loaders in Puerto Rico saw a ray of hopo that probably somothing could bo done for the ^i^indrods of thousands of pooplo within their Island, living undor tho jnost horrible unsanitary conditions,
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Te thoso loadors, a word of thanks is cortainly not misplacod, bocauso through their efforts and untiring cnthusiasm, tho Insular Logislaturc during thoir noxt sossion in 1958, passod a HOUSING ACT
koyod te tho ono passod in tho Unitod States, onabling Municipalitics to ostablish Local Housing Authoritics,
This cali to arias soon boro fruits, because in that same yoar fivo Local Authoritios wero logally ostablished, Ponce, San Juan,
Hayaguez, iVrecibo ond RÍo Piedras were the localities which establish;
od such authoritios»
Tho first thrco montionod, with jurisdiction
of oporation within tho boundarics of their respective towns, and tho one in Río Piedras, The Puerto Rico Housing Authority with Island
wido jurisdiotion, oxcept Ponce, San Juan and Mayaguez»
Tho ono
established in iirecibo, transforred its responsibilitics to the PRHA, so that actually four Local Housing Authorities are actively in oporation»
In passing the Insular Housing Act, financial assistance was also providod for, to onablo th© Local Authorities to prepare tho nocossary applications, roquircd by the Unitod States Housing Author ity, in Washington, D» C» Sinco little of tho information requlred by tho Washington Office
was readily at hand,. months and months of cffort woro nceded to produce tho nocossary nK^terials» A groat deal of time ms saved, howevor, bocauso the Ünitcd States
'^Housing Authority had established on Insular Field Office in San Juan. So instead of endlcss waiting for repites on questions, to bo clearod
-f ' "by boat mail, most of our inquirios could bo answerod iiunediately by the staff employoos of this Field Office, o
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Up to today, all of us in tho Local Authoritios my boast of tho fine cooperation and coordination vre have oxperionoed fron all those staff employoes of this Federal Organization, Earnarking of funds for ílnoncial assistance by the tISHA ivoro
approved not too long after the Local Authoritios wcro established, but considerably more timo was required in the prcparation of working drawings ond spocifications» In the latter part of 1939, tho Ponce Author
ity v/ae finally suocessful in clearing all tho obstacles ond begin actual ccnstruotion» Soon thereaftor, tho Son Juan Authority and the RRHA follov/ed in thoir stride with the Mayaguez Authority coming i little later»