A BIllion-Dollar
Post-War Prograi
We might need these post war
plans sooner Ilian we think, and
Mr. Roberts says it is time for
all North Carolina eities to wake
up and realize whal*s ahead of
us.
B;/ COLEMAN ROBERTS
Chairman Charlotte Planning Committee
NO ON
К
knows when the war
will end. but all should realize
when it does end, we must be
prepared with plans that will enable
men demobilized from the armed
services, and men and women re¬
leased from war industries, to re¬
turn to civilian activities without
delay, without disorder, without con¬
fusion, and without unnecessary
waste and extravagance on the part
of the Government.
Our plans for the post-war period
must be just as thorough and just
as flexible as our plans for war
itself.
While we hope that civilian de¬
mands and private work may altsorb
most of the needs for employment,
we must be ready with a flexible pro¬
gram to meet conditions that are
certain to exist during that period
between demobilization and return
to normal civilian life.
We must not guess — we must con¬
sider some practical basis for local
and a State-wide program — a pro¬
gram that will include not only ac¬
tivities of our State and Govern¬
mental units, but of private employ¬
ment as well.
Considering the needs and the de¬
mands of North Carolina, I venture
to offer the following as a basis for
a live-year |»ost-war program:
My suggestion is that North Caro¬
lina adopt an over-all five-year post¬
war program of $1,000,000,000—
divided as follows:
1. State Regional Airports
When the war is over, trans¬
portation of passengers and
freight by air is going to be so
great that it will be necessary for
all areas to be served by aircraft
of tremendous size. Many areas
of North Carolina will not be able
themselves to finance airports of
such magnitude, and so it seems
to me that it is practical and
sensible to consider the develop¬
ment of at least five regional
state-owned, state-operated air-
jw>rts, costing over a five-year
period at approximately $5,000,-
000 a year, a total of
$25,000,000.00
2. State Highways, Farm-to-Mar-
ket Roads and Elimination of
Grade Crossings
There will be a great need for
expanding and rebuilding of our
State highway system, building
farm-to-market roads, and elimi¬
nating grade crossings. We
should contemplate a program of
expenditures of not less than
$20,000,000 per year for five
years, or a total of
$100,000,000.00
3. Traffic Engineering for High¬
ways and Cities
A street and highway safety
program. Motor vehicle inspec¬
tion, thorough driver’s training
and examination, with the return
of heavy automobile, bus and
truck traffic ; and considering the
age and condition of most of
these vehicles, we are going to be
faced with a problem of con¬
siderable magnitude. Can any
project be of greater importance f
This would cost about $1,000,-
000 a year for five years, or a
total of . $5,000,000.00
4. Port Facilities and Seaplane
Bases
The need for greater port
facilities and seaplane bases will
be no less than that of great laud
airports, and so we should not
neglect to plan now for the de¬
velopment of these facilities at a
cost of some $4,000,000 per year
for five years, or a total
of . $20,000,000.00
5. State Universities, Colleges and
Schools
At the close of the war, we are
going to find it necessary to
undertake programs of great ex¬
pansion and modernization of
our State institutions of learn¬
ing, and so we should contem¬
plate a program of not less than
$5,000,000 per year for five years,
or a total of . $25,000,000.00
6. State Institutions and State
Buildings
North Carolina requires ad¬
ditional State office building
facilities and its State institu¬
tions throughout deserve to be
considered for a building pro¬
gram of considerable magnitude,
and so it is suggested we plan a
program of $4,000,000 per year
for five years, or a total expendi¬
ture of . $20,000,000.00
7. State Health Department
We should plan a program of
research and expansion for our
State health program such as we
have never known before, this
program contemplating a pro¬
gram of $2,000,000 per year for
five years, to cost $10,000,000.00
8. Agriculture and Animal Hus¬
bandry
We should have a program of
research and promotion, looking
toward the development of agri¬
culture and animal husbandry,
dairying, and poultry farming
in North Carolina, at a cost of
$1,000,000 per year for five years,
totaling . . $5,000,000.00
9. Industrial and Mineral Resources
There should be a promotional
and research program looking
toward the development of our
mineral resources and our in¬
dustrial possibilities, at a cost of
$1,000,000 a year for five years,
or a total of . $5,000,000.00
10. Vocational Training Program
To be conducted through exist¬
ing educational and industrial
facilities at a cost of $2,000,000
