The full text on this page is automatically extracted from the file linked above and may contain errors and inconsistencies.
DOCUMENTS OCT 1 6 1936 Northwestern University Library ROOM T HE WORKS 4 -1339 PROGRAM ****** --Works Progress Administration-- For Release After 3 p.m. Monday, October 12, 1936. Address by Perry A. Fellows before National Society of Frofes s ional Engineers. The following paper was pr es ented by Perry A. Fellows, Assistant Chief Engineer of the Works Frogress .Ad.mi n istration, on "Evalu ating Work Relief" at the Second .Annual Convention of the lfationa,l S ociety of Professional Engineers, October 12, 1936, at the Mayflower Hotel, Washington, D.C.: Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4--1339 - 1 ... In discussing, in an orderly and unbiase d f Pcsh i on, any kind of work p rog r am , it i s advi sab le to consider not alone the :ohysica l accomp li shment s , but also t he purpose for which the program was conc e ive d. , the planning , the a.irection, and many other things including ~ the speed and sp irit of the execution. The reasons for maki ng an evaluation of wo rk n:lief p r ojects may, on examination, be f ound to v a ry g r eatly , and. so sometimes the result s of t hat evaluation are viti a ted by the limitati ons p lac ed on the scope and direction of the in quiry. J:Je ;:i,rly all engine e rs h1:we had some experience in connection with valuation. Some of thos e present have undoubt e dly worked on a ss i gnme nts tha t included some of the more intricate features of valuation. I am sure that experi e nced a n d careful engineers are not likely to be easily misled by false limits or prejudice. The engin- eer's professional ethics would not permit him to offer as a complete analysis the fi~dings base d on what he kne w to be insufficient data or incorrect conelusions. Purpos e . In the case of a work p rogram designed to provide r e li e f employment, the reason for doing the work is the first thing to be considere d, as well as the most important, eve n though the end product may g ive full return for the money spent. If the work had been initiated me rely to accomp lish the economical c onstruction of certain s e lect e d projects and the purpos e of the ev~:1.lu ation was to determine whe thGr or not these completed structures we re built with the mininmm Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4--1339 - 2 - expend iture of dollars, the n the method of p roc e dure would b e f a irly cle ar. A succe s s of that kin d mi rsh t be a f a ilun 1 as a p r ·::igram of r e lief emp l oyme nt. Th e purno s e wh ic:!:1 l e d. to the i nitiation of a p rog ram of rel~~ f work was not p ri marily the e conomical c onstruction of public works, but a quite different one; one, however, n ot nece ss arily incompe.tible with tru e economy. Any attemp t to make an ev a lua tion of t he p rog ram sh ould impartially rec ognize the orig inal intent, th e size of the j ob, the physical r esults of t h e work, and the othe r things that ma k e the Works Progress Ad.ministra tion p rog r am a g r e at hu manitarian en;t e rprise. Pl a.VJ.ning. Tile p roe ram wa2 conce ive d to fi 11 a nee d . If the p lanning had n ot b e en in h a rmony with that nee d, th o work wou ld have lost value. The r e al p inch of d is emp l oyrnent, want a n d hur.ge r, vras f e lt loc- a l ly, p rett y clos e to the indivi du a l. come clos e to tha t s ame sp ot. The e ffects of correction h ad to Sinc e tha t c orre c t ion wa s in th e form of a work p rog r am, the p roj e ct s s e l e ct ed had to fit tha t nlan. be wi de of r an ge and v aried i n chr-ract e r. They had to Th ey vre r o not the re sult of the e xp r ess ion of s ome i n d.ivi du a l 1 s vrh ims , but, within the limit s of the law, we re an attemp t to p rovi de work for p eop le who were in n eed . The skills of t h ese p eop le we re of ev '?- ry c onc e ivabl e v a riety, and the location of their homes s e l dom c onveniently ne ar the s it e of an easily devel oped project. They we re pe ople who were k..riown t o the authorities in the ir communities. These same authoriti e s we re confront e d with the task of p lanning the p rojects to · fit tho abiliti e s of thes e parti cular people . And s o the det :, rminat ion of the charact e r of the p roj e cts and the s e lection of the p eop le for wh om these p rojects would p rovide work Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY - 3 - 4-1339 opportunities was a matter of local planning . That is one of the reasons that most of the shallow criticism is of t h e long range, arm-chair varietyo The people close to the job know some of the parts to t h e problem that the easy-answer people forget. Design_. Engineers are often personally, and as a rule profession- ally, interested in the design stage of planning. There was a formula for the manner in which the application must be made for Federal funds for Works Progress Administration projects. This provided for proposals from the local people which were later translated into formal app licatio ns and, if allowable, into authorizations. One of the first provisions incorpor- ated in this formula was that the responsibility for the design rested with the sponsor. In general that is easily understood, because the local official when installed in his office is given the resp onsibility for certain well-defined work. This responsibility is quite independent of relief, work and is one that he cannot relinquish to another unless he relinquishes at the same time his right to office. Without giving up this responsibility he may enter into an understanding with somebody who will aid him in carrying out his work and his responsibility. In general that is the nature of the relationship that exists between the Works Progress Administration and the local sponsor. The affirmation of the sponsor's responsibility for the adequacy of plans, desig ns, and specifications, and for the accuracy of engineering calculations in connection with pro,jects for construction, is a part of that agreement. Supervision. Resting on the careful determination of the relation- ship between the local sponsor and the local Works Progress Administration Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4-1339 - 4 - is the authority and responsibility for the supervision of the projects as they proceed. The integrity of the project in a large measure depends on the character of this supervision. Therefore, it is necessary for any- one attempting to analyze the program to learn about the basis on which this responsibility is established. If the project provides for the paving of a street or similar municipal construction, the officials of the municipality are obviously the ones on whom the responsibility for the care and maintenance of the finished work will lie. This responsibility for the finished project requires that they have a corresponding measure of authority in maintaining project integrity during its execution. When sponsors are in a financial position to furnish the detailed supervision required in project operations, full advantage is taken of their ability to do so. When adequate supervision is thus furnished by the sponsor, its duplicRtion with Works Progress Administration employees is not permitted. When paid from Works Progress .Administration funds, supervisory personnel is obtained, as far as practicable, from persons certified by local public relief agencies. Even when exercised to its maximum degree, the authority of the sponsors in matters of project operation may not be extended in such a manner as to cause conflicts with Federal regulations controlling the expenditure of Federal funds advanced to aid the local sponsor to meet a need he could not meet alone. The generRl opinion goes much farther. The Works Progress Administration is responsible, in the opinion of the public, for the manner in which projects are ccnducted and, to a large extent, for the success of the completed wor~ as well. Since competent supervisory personnel in sufficient numbers is the first essential for Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4 - 1339 - 5 - efficient project operr tion, it follows that the Works Progress Administration should require to the maximum extent practicable that project supervisors and managers be persons who have had ample training and experience in the kind of work of which they will have charge. Inasmuch as the value of relief work is not by any me a ns all in the final product, it is apparent that this as surance as to integrity during operr tion is of utmost importance. Engineers. The engineer's sha re in the planning, supervising, and general carrying out of these projects is of particular interest. We have no established way of accurately estimating the num·ber of engineers which the sponsor has employed in the preparation of the plans for projects which have been submitted and which are underway. Obviously the number is great and includes not only those in regular municipal service but the supplementary aid of consul tan ts and tempoi-ary additions to staff. To supplement the sponsor's work and to provide engineering supervision of the execution of the designs on beha lf of the Federal Government, there a re many eng ineers employed on the Federal payrolls. Many of these are from your own organization and some of them are present. They may be justly proud of the way in which they have been able to carry the work. It is under the direction of such engineers that the employment has been so speedily provided for two and one-half' million men and women from the relief rolls on 90,000 Works Progress Administration jobs. The thousands of comrmmity improvements which they are building will be of lasting benefit to the community which originated the projects requested by their local officials. If we look a t the physical inventory of pro- jects alone, a part of it may be recited as follows~ Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4 - 1339 - 6 - Accomplishment. The present day pattern of frontier life is lived by the millions of f arm families whose homes are not on th0 im-proved roads . 130,000 miles of these roads are being improved besides tho work on hundreds of miles of city pavement, streets a_n d alleys, sidewalk and curbs, and on thousands of bridges, viaducts and culverts. In the service of better education more than 6,000 schools ha ve been built or repa ired. provided places for work. More than 5,000 other public buildings have Nearly 6,000 parks, playgrounds and athletic fields have been built new or improved greatly. groater than one might at first believe. The benefit is far Some can be found on compari- son of old police records with new. Works Progress Administr a tion workers are carrying out nearly 4,000 flood control and other conservation projects. Get one who has suffered from one of these disasters to help place a value on the work. Sewer construction and the laying of water lines are inglorious tasks, but over 5,000 sewer systems have been extended by Works Progress Administration workers and nearly half as many water systems improved. There is not much to see but the value is there. For the benefit of air travelers, Works Progress Administration workers are air-marking thousands of cities and towns and are building or improving 551 airports and landing fields. In nearly every community, l a rge or small, Works Progress Administration workers are carrying on the program of construction to improve sanitation and health, to expedite and increase the safety of travel, to house public services and to provide additional facilities for recreation and enjoyment of leisure. Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY 4 -- 1339 - 7 - The stalwart laborers and skilled craftsmen who could di g and build in this vast construction program were not the only ones for whom projects must be fashioned. Three quarters of a million people who were clerks, teachers, professional and technical unemployed were unsuited to the physical labor no matter how willing they might have been to undertake it. This was still a task to test the ingenuity of local officials. It is estimated that the work of repairing library books, rare documents, revising public rec ords, and making tax surveys and studies has recovered or saved millions of dollars. Scientists in our great universities and teachers throughout the land are engaged on projects. In the field of recreation and community organization of leisure, a great advance has been made. .A.rchi tects and engineers are doing their share. The reeo,rded measurements of all historic buildings will insure the possibility of authentic restoration if the original structure is destroyed. The field work and office computations of the nation's basic mapping program have been advanced and many local surveys of high value are being carried forward. Disemployed artists, writers, musicians, actors, and theatre technicians are maintaining themselves and giving the people of Ameriea dollar for dollar in value that cannot be measured in terms of cubic yards· o:f concrete in place or in the cubic contents of a finished building. Nearly half a million women have been given assignments at worthwhile work. They are sewing, nursing , and teaching. To evaluate the whole relief program, it would be necessary to learn of the garments made for the destitute, of the sick who were cared for, of the untrained who Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY No. 4 -- 1339 - 8 had been taught to do useful work. Eva.luation. Th ese p rojects combine with th ose for engineering structures to make the Works Progress Administrati on program. That program cannot be evaluated by old standards. The United States Conference of Mayors in a r eport to the President recognized these social as well as pecuniary value s when they said: 11 The integrity and permanent usefulness of the city projects which have been approve~ by the Federal Government need no apology from anyone. These are the cities' own projects. Hon e st and impartial analysis •••••• will reveal that practically every pr~ject repre sents a useful and, in most cases, a permanent public improvement. 11 I think that qualification of honesty and impartiality is the only limiting provision you sho11ld adopt or permit in your inquiry as to the value of the work relief program. I b eli eve it is the duty of each of you as an interes t ed citizen to inspect and evaluate the projects in your home locality. You will, as a matter of professional etnics, consider the avowed purpo::;e of the work, the circumstances which control the selection of personnel, the many other economic and social factors which cannot be separated from the v ery real and obvious accomplishments. When you do that, I venture to predict that you will find each of these lowly tasks an appreciable increment of the greatest humanitarian enterprise of all time. Digitized by Original from NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
@FedFRASER