HOUSING PLAN SERVICE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 95, 17 February 1947, Page 6

HOUSING PLAN SERVICE

REHABILITATION PROVISION Aimed at suiting the needs of the average ex-serviceman building with rehabilitation finance, a specially prepared housing plan service has now been distributed to every office of the Rehabilitation Department. The service at present comprises 60 plans. It will be added to as suitable plans come forward and are approved for inclusion.

The highlight of the service, apart from its cheapness to the ex-service-man, is a section of 24 plans based on the principle of building by stages. These are intended for exservicemen who may wish to build only a minimum requirements house and add it as their families increase or their economic position improves. Three stages of building are provided for in this series. The first stage aims at giving the essentials of a modern home for two people without sacrificing appearance. The second stage sees the addition of another bedroom, perhaps the conversion of a present bedroom into the dining room which was its intended ultimate use, or maybe in addition the alteration of the entrance. The third stage provides a reasonably large home for a man, his wife and two or perhaps three children.

The plans are based on a module system of mensuration which makes for easy addition of later stages, while the addclitions themselves are so planned that there is an absolute minimum of structural alteration involved. Another feature is that from one basic plan there are several alternative types of perspectives.

The building by stages plans are the work of two returned service architects who have since gone to England for a post-graduate course with rehabilitation assistance.

The remainder of the plans in the service are of homes which it is thought will meet the needs of most ex-servicemen. They can, of course, be modified according to personal taste.

The whole plan service is contained in binders at rehabilitation offices and these are open for inspection daily. Stock plans as contained in the binders may be obtained by ex-servicemen to take home, there being a small recoverable return charge. Ex-servicemen choosing a plan may obtain specifications and other data at a very low fee.