The Washington Sanitary Improvement Company (WSIC) was a late 19th century charitable capitalism experiment that ended in the 1950s. This blog started looking at the homes that were supposed to be sold to African American home buyers, after decades of mainly renting to white tenants.
Looking at WSIC properties they tend to have a pattern where the properties were sold to a three business partners, Nathaniel J. Taube, Nathan Levin and James B. Evans as the Colonial Investment Co. for $3 million dollars. Those partners sold to African American buyers. There was usually a foreclosure. Then the property wound up in the hands of George Basiliko and or the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA). Then there was the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 217 P St NW:
- December 1950 (recorded February 5, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 217 P St NW to Archie S. and Blanche M. Young.
- December 1950 (recorded Feb 5, 1951) the Youngs borrowed $3,000 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- December 1950 (recorded February 14, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 217 P St NW to Richard R. and Susie Saunders.
- December 1950 (recorded February 14, 1951) the Saunders borrowed $3,000 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- April 1958 the Youngs lost their half of the property to foreclosure and via an auction, the property was returned to Evans, Taube and new Colonial Inv. Co partner Harry A. Badt.
- April 1958, as part of a larger property package, the Badts (Harry A. and wife Jennie) transferred/sold their interest in this and several properties to Nathan Levin’s survivors.
- June 1959, as part of a large property package the foreclosed half of 217 P St NW was sold to Sophia and George Basiliko.
- September 1959 the Saunders lost their half to foreclosure and through an auction the property returned to Badt, Evans, and Taube.
- September 1959, as part of a larger property package, Harry and Jennie Badt transferred/sold their interest in 217 P St NW and several properties to Nathan Levin’s survivors.
- February 1961, along with 2 other properties, Badt, Evans, Taube, the Levin survivors and their spouses sold the remaining half to George Basiliko.
- Sometime between 1971/1973 and 1980 Basiliko sold 217 P St NW to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA).
- June 1980, as part of a bigger property package, the DC RLA sold the house to the BSA Limited Partnership.
So this fits the pattern, where 2 halves are sold and they both wind up in foreclosure to end up in the hands of George Basiliko and later the DC RLA.