Editing Winfield Township, New Jersey (section)

===Clark Township protests===
The residents of [[Clark, New Jersey|Clark]]—in 1940, a rural community of 350 homes and 1,250 registered voters—were first informed of their municipality's selection as the final site of the 700-unit mutual housing project at a town meeting on April 1, 1941. During the meeting, a letter from [http://newdeal.feri.org/bios/bio8.htm John Carmody], Federal Works Administrator, was read to the residents, in which he said:

<blockquote>
"I am glad to say that a decision has been reached to construct this project in your township, and I want to take this occasion to thank you and your associates on the Township Committee for your intelligent and patriotic attitude."
</blockquote>

But the residents of Clark were not moved by Mr. Carmody's supportive words. One local paper reported that

<blockquote>
"Joseph Aaron, who came up from his winter home in Florida to attend the session, demanded the ousting of the Township Committee. Several spirited sallies of this type marked the meeting, the largest gathering of its kind ever held in the township."
</blockquote>

The residents of the Township demanded that they be provided with answers to the following questions:

<blockquote>
1. Why was the siting of the project in the Township handled so secretly?<br>
2. What guarantees could be given that this project would be permanent in nature?<br>
3. Would Clark have to pick up the cost of maintaining the project after the emergency ends?<br>
4. Who would pay for new schools, equipment, streets, sewers, fire and police protection?<br>
5. Would the Federal Works Agency guarantee in writing that the project will never become a burden to Clark?
</blockquote>

[[Federal Works Agency]] Special Counsel Colvin, rather than trying to calm the residents' fears, reminded one and all that the FWA had been empowered by Lanham Act to place a defense housing project anywhere it deemed necessary appropriate, without discussions with residents. During his remarks, he made only brief mention of new public works being provided by the Federal Works Agency, or Title II of the Lanham Act (then being discussed in the [[US Congress]] to provide $150 million for the construction and provision of public services and facilities in host communities of defense housing projects). A worker from the [[Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company|Kearny Shipyards]] also spoke and assured the residents that their new neighbors would be "good people" and that employment at the yards would be stable for at least the "next 10 to 15 years". Not satisfied by any of this information and feeling betrayed by their own leaders, the residents demanded that an immediate vote be taken against the project. This request was denied. In response, the residents announced the formation of an opposition group, headed by Mr. Arthur de Laski, with the stated goals of seeking the impeachment of all municipal officials and stopping the mutual housing project.<ref>Elizabeth Daily Journal, July 29, 1941, April 2, 1941</ref>

The residents of Clark opposed to Winfield, believed that its sitting within their community would double local taxes. Opposition leaders created elaborate models to show how the additional needs for general services, election, fire and police protection, streets, lighting, water, sanitation, and school costs would quickly double the municipal budget from a yearly total of $33,929 to $66,563. The residents also expressed concern that the project would add approximately 1500 new registered voters to the community: original residents would now be substantially outnumbered in local elections. Additionally, local real estate interests were fearful that the project would flood the local housing market, severely deflating prices after the emergency because of postwar abandonment. Most planned units would not be single-family homes, which many believed would lead to a less stable community and a deterioration of the real estate market. The [[Union County, New Jersey|Union County]] Parks Department expressed concern about the construction of Winfield— [[Rahway River]] Park surrounded the project on three sides—since their own planning program had called for the development of this particularly desirable tract of land with expensive [[single family homes]]. The residents continued to be concerned that their new neighbors would be of a [[American lower class|lower class]] of people (although they had been promised that they would be primarily middle-class and would all be white thanks to housing officials not permitting [[racial integration]] in most public housing projects of the time),<ref>Kaledin, Eugenia. ''Daily Life in the US 1940–1959: Shifting Worlds.''  Greenwood Press, Westport, CT. 2000. p. 129</ref> and were annoyed these potential new neighbors would be getting subsidies at their expense.<ref>Rutgers University Bureau of Economic Research. ''An Economic Profile of Winfield Park, New Jersey: Including Alternatives For the Use of Community Resources''. New Brunswick, N.J.: Bureau of Economic Research, 1965. p. 10</ref>

Lawrence Westbrook believed that Charles Palmer, the Defense Housing Coordinator, had encouraged and supported the formation of the Clark Township opposition group to accomplish his own hidden agenda of centralizing control over the Defense Housing initiative in his hands. Westbrook testified before Congress that Palmer's brother-in-law, who lived in northern New Jersey, had secretly led a delegation from Clark to visit Palmer and discuss their concerns about the construction of Winfield Park. Westbrook believed that Palmer, during this meeting, had provided this group with information and advice on how to successfully fight the project.<ref>1/4 of the Winfield Park project was within the jurisdiction of the [[Linden, New Jersey|Town of Linden]] and a smaller amount in the [[Cranford, New Jersey|Town of Cranford]]. Initially, Linden verbally supported the Clark opposition but then offered to cede all of the land involved to Clark; this was not favorably received by the Clark neighbors. Linden and Cranford were willing to allow Clark to carry the battle to stop Winfield Park, or at least someone else would become responsible for the costs. ''Elizabeth Daily Journal'', July 29, 1941, April 26, 1941, Nov. 29, 1941; Senate Hearings on Senate Resolution 71, pt.8, p. 6066; House of Representatives Hearings on Message of President of the United States, p.15; Rutgers Bureau of Economic Research, "An Economic Profile of Winfield Park, N.J.: Including Alternatives For the Use of Community Resources", p. 10; House of Representatives Hearings on House Resolution 5211, p. 225–226</ref>

By late May 1941, the Clark opposition group had successfully organized in advance of municipal elections and replaced all township leaders responsible for bringing the Winfield Park project to Clark. Attention now turned to stop the mutual housing project, or at least transferring most of its costs and impact to someone else. Opposition leaders carefully studied the publicity surrounding the earlier construction of the [[Audubon Park, New Jersey|Audubon Park]] Mutual Ownership Defense Housing Project just outside [[Camden, New Jersey]]. The community, in that case, had followed an unsuccessful attempt to stop the project with building codes and local ordinances. All of these attempted blocks to construction were overturned by courts sympathetic to the powers given to the [FWA] by the Lanham Act. The Clark opposition developed a new and innovative opposition strategy. They would attempt to have the entire Winfield Park Mutual Housing project declared as a separate municipality by the [[New Jersey State Legislature]]. As a separate municipality, all costs for public services and facilities would be the responsibility of the residents of Winfield Park and not the residents of Clark. With Winfield Park Township established as a separate municipality, opponents believed the project would be killed because the federal government and potential residents would shy away from the overwhelming expenses and confusing legalities of this new governmental structure. Immediately Westbrook and other project supporters reacted to this strategy by declaring that the opposition was attempting the sabotage the entire national defense program. In defiance, Westbrook declared that he was sure the project would not only survive this attack but would outlive its surrounding communities.<ref>''Elizabeth Daily Journal'', July 29, 1941; House of Representatives Hearings on House Resolution 5211, p. 168, 170–171, 225. "US Handed Boom Town." ''Elizabeth Daily Journal.'' July 29, 1941.</ref>