Page 24 RAIN October 1979 By the time you read this the celebration will be over. I am talking about Pedestrian Day, September 13, organized by Urban Ecology, Inc., a Berkeley-Oakland based group. An Urban Ecology spokesperson said that on that day in 1899, H.H. Bliss became the first casualty of the Car Wars. He was struck by an electric taxi in New York City. HOUSING Self-Help Housing, Design and Construction Manual for Acadia House, Charles Haynes, 1979, 296 pp., $8. 70 from: Centre for Continuing Education University of British Columbia Vancouver, BC, CANADA V6T lWS This book tells two stories simultaneously. One, about construction technology, details the design and building of a 1000 square foot energy conserving house in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Acadia House, with 2x6 framing, a trombe wall and a thermosyphon solar hot water system, cost $15 a square foot for mat<.:rials. The manual walks you through the design and construction process. Construction is laid out into 76 steps. Each step lists the tools, materials and how-to instructions, including personal tips to complete that phase. The second story is about novice builders, dreams and values, weekend building and taking control over producing our basic shelter needs. The manual contains extensive drawings, photogr:iphs and figures throughout. rnmrnwmrn Since then the Car Wars have resulted .·· in the death of more than 2,000,000 people. The purpose of Pedestrian Day is to focus attention on the alternative1/' to the automobile, such as walking, bicycling, buses, trains and ferries. The/ group's goal for the year 2010 is an 80 percent reduction in the number of cars in the U.S. Urban Ecology believes the best transportation is the least transportation. Mixed use zoning, which allows for a diversity of urban activities close together, bicycle through streets and less parking are advocated as ways to encourage car-free transportation. To ~ ,. ~ . , contact the group write: Richard Register ·•.,o, -PC Urban Ecology P.O. Box 23 34 Berkeley, CA 94702 Community Realty Company Do you want to fight housing speculation in your neighborhood? Start a community realty company. The East Side Housing Action Committee, with the assistance of state funding, did it in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The program counsels renters on the mechanics of house buying and homeowners are encouraged to sell to owner occupants. The realty business which can eventually become self-reliance from commisAIR FLOW SCHEMATIC '·\( \Ill·\ lilJLIS[ sions is hoping to receive some permanent fund'ing to cover counseling costs. Details in May/June Self-Reliance ($8/ yr., 1717 18th St., N.W., Washington, DC 20009). -PC Housing in the Public Domain: The Only Solution, Peter Hawley, 1978, 130 pp., $3.00 from: Metropolitan Council on Housing 24 West 30th St. New York, NY 10001 The obvious profits in housing real estate are monies derived from rents and appreciation of the building. The hidden profits are tax benefits from depreciation allowing speculators' other income of salaries, interest and dividends to be tax-free. The book, focusing on New York City, uses hypothetical examples and case studies to point out how tax shelters, instead of acting as incentives to improve housing, more often contribute to its deterioration and fuel rising rent costs. The author's solution is a Housing Board and committees consisting of tenants to set policies and manage and coordinate housing with direct allocation of funds to pay for n·~w construction. -PC -PC':-.--------------------------~~~~~~~~~:, . RAIN Magazine 2270 NW Irving, Port/and, OR 97210 (503) 227-5110 Forwarding and Return Postage Guaranteed Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 1890 Portland, OR
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