HERBERT R. O'CONOR, GOVERNOR. 871
CHAPTER 664.

(House Bill 761)

AN ACT to add a new paragraph to Section 6 of Article 4 of
the Code of Public Local Laws of Maryland (1938 Edition),
title "Baltimore City", sub-title "General Powers", to be
headed "(13A) Land Development Commission", and to fol-
low immediately after the paragraph headed "(13) Jones'
Falls", of said Section 6 of said Article 4. Authorizing the
Mayor and City Council of Baltimore to establish a Land
Development Commission, with certain powers and subject
to certain limitations.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted Toy the General Assembly of Mary-
land, That a new paragraph be and the same is hereby added
to Section 6 of Article 4 of the Code of Public Local Laws of
Maryland (1938 Edition), title "Baltimore City", sub-title
"General Powers", to be headed "(13A) Land Development
Commission", and to follow immediately after the paragraph
headed "(13) Jones7 Falls", of said Section 6 of Article 4,
which said new paragraph shall read as follows:

(13A) LAND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION

It is hereby declared that the purpose of this Act is to enable
and empower the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore to ac-
complish a public purpose, namely the elimination of certain
blighted areas and slums in Baltimore City and the erection
of low rent housing and collateral facilities. It is further
declared that, in Baltimore City there exist slums and insani-
tary housing conditions owing to obsolescence, excessive land
coverage, lack of planning, lack of public facilities, light, air
and space; that persons of low income are forced to reside in
such insanitary and unsafe accommodations, which cause an
increase and spread of disease and crime and constitute a
menace to the health, safety, morals and welfare of residents
of Baltimore City; that the slums and blighted areas cannot
be eliminated or the areas be rehabilitated without proper
planning and supervision by some public agency; that the
exodus of population from such areas results in further de-
preciation and added cost to the City to provide all public-
services; that the prevalence of the above-mentioned condi-
tions are conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, infant
mortality, juvenile delinquency, crime and poverty, and that
it is desirable and to the material interest of the public to
create a publically supervised medium through which private
capital, contractors, builders and other similar private inter-
ests may be encouraged to undertake on a substantial scale
the risks of re-development of such blighted and slum areas.