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 were the odd lucky ones who managed to avoid that fate.
Let’s see what happens with 213 Bates St NW:
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin and Taube sold one-half of 213 Bates Street NW to Alice and Calvin Edwards.
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) VVVV borrowed $2,525 from Colonial Investment Co. favorite trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- December 1950 (recorded Jan 18, 1951) Evans, Levin, and Taube sold the other half of 213 Bates St NW to Jeannette V. Marshall.
- Dec 1950 Miss Marshall borrowed $2,525 from trustees Abraham H. Levin and Robert G. Weightman.
- February 1952 the Edwards sold their half to Edward M. Washington.
- June 1954 Ms. Marshall lost her half to foreclosure and it returned to the possession of Evans, Levin, and Taube via an auction.
- June 1959 new Colonial Investment Co. partner Harry A. Badt, Evans and Taube, the survivors of Nathan Levin and their spouses sold the foreclosed half of 213 Bates to Sophia and George Basiliko.
- August 1959 Edward M. and wife LaVerne Washington sold their half to Colonial Investment Co partners Badt, Evans, and Taube.
- February 1961 Badt, Evans, Taube, the Levin survivors and their spouses sold the remaining half to George Basiliko.
- July 1970 (doc# 1970011877) Basiliko, as part of a large package, sold 213 Bates and many other properties to the DC Redevelopment Land Agency (RLA).
- August 1979 ( recorded in document # 7900028039) the DC RLA sold/transferred the property (as part of a larger deal) to Bates Street Associates Limited Partnership (BSA)
- April 1982 the BSA resold/transferred the property back the to District of Columbia government in document #8200033391.
Another property that fits the pattern. A house divided, there is at least one foreclosure. I am surprised the Washingtons via the Edwards were not foreclosed upon but instead had the ‘option’ to sell the property to the Colonial partners. Then once back in the possession of the partners, was sold to the Basilikos who then sold it to DC RLA who then passed it on to BSA who then sold it back to the DC government.