Court tells wealthy NJ town: We’ll decide where you’ll put affordable housing

Judge Strips New Jersey’s Wealthy Community of Control Over Affordable Housing Units

A judge is stripping one of New Jersey’s wealthiest communities of its ability to control where and how dozens of affordable housing units will be built, saying local leaders have shirked their responsibility to build a planned development for too long.

Appointment of Special Master

Essex County Superior Court Judge Cynthia Santomauro on Tuesday appointed what’s known as a special master to decide by June 1 where Millburn must build 75 affordable housing units. Current municipal leaders have resisted building them around the corner from their downtown’s shops, restaurants, and fashionable boutiques, despite a previous mayor and the then-members of the township committee agreeing to do so in 2021.

The special master could pick the current site and developer if they conclude it’s the best option.

Revocation of Immunity

Santomauro also revoked Millburn’s immunity against a “builder’s remedy” lawsuit, which could let a developer move ahead with any project that includes up to 75 units of affordable housing, even if it violates the usual local zoning. New Jersey municipalities are protected from such suits if they comply with requirements to build affordable units. Millburn’s own website notes such lawsuits are nearly impossible for townships to win without immunity.

Local Leaders’ Opposition

Local leaders in Millburn, where the average home sale price is well over $1 million, said they’re not against building affordable housing but that the downtown site the community’s leaders agreed to in 2021 is a bad match. They cite concerns that the Main Street site could need environmental remediation and argue that so many affordable units shouldn’t be clumped together in one place. Some members of the current township committee were elected after campaigning against the project.

Accusations of Stalling

But the nonprofit Fair Share Housing Center — which has been responsible for negotiating affordable housing settlements with communities since the mid-2010s — accuses Millburn of stalling. The group said the affluent township stands out as a community that’s gone to great lengths to avoid building affordable housing, noting it only has 38 affordable homes on the books, out of a target of 1,300.

Judge’s Decision

“I think we’re happy,” Fair Share Housing Center attorney Josh Bauers said after Tuesday’s hearing. “Ultimately, we were looking for sanctions that would compel Millburn to move forward with affordable housing. I think the judge issued a decision today that made it very clear that the town cannot violate the agreement with impunity.”

Alternative Proposals

The center and developer RPM have been arguing together in court that Millburn must move ahead with the Main Street complex. The 2021 agreement also includes three other projects that local officials are not opposing.

Millburn leaders had asked the court to give them 90 days to come up with alternative sites for the development, but on Monday they withdrew that request, saying they had located several properties around town that could cover the 75 units, plus a few more. Millburn’s attorney Jarrid Kantor said in court on Tuesday that the township had “worked very hard” to comply with the agreement’s details by proposing alternative sites.

Judge’s Response

Santomauro appeared unmoved by the alternative proposals, describing the effort as “some sort of illusory promise” that Millburn was “recommitting” to the 2021 agreement. She said Millburn had treated the Main Street project as viable until only recently, citing documents about the project on the municipal website and a long history of public meetings where officials discussed it.

Potential Fines

Craig Gianetti, an attorney for RPM, noted the agreement said that if municipal leaders deemed the Main Street site inappropriate for development, they would have until February 2022 to suggest an alternative. But they didn’t do so at the time, Gianetti pointed out.

“The only thing they’ve built is their promise to fight this project,” he said.

Fair Share had asked the judge to fine the municipality or members of the township committee personally, but she declined that request.

“Normally, I would come to your honor and say ‘order them to do it,’” Bauers said in court. “Just ordering them to do it is not working.”

Santomauro also ordered Millburn to pay RPM’s and Fair Share Housing’s attorney’s fees for recent motions filed in the dispute over the project, though she did not assign a dollar amount.

She rejected a motion from the township that she recuse herself from the case because she allegedly displayed bias when she’d threatened immediate sanctions. She said there was nothing in case law that said her expressing her “displeasure” with the township demanded that she recuse herself.

Bauers, in court, called the recusal request “frivolous” and “bordering on abusive.”

Future of Affordable Housing Obligations

New Jersey lawmakers recently overhauled the state’s mechanism for assigning towns affordable housing obligations, with a new system that includes incentives for building near amenities including supermarkets and transit centers. A new 10-year “round” of affordable housing obligations will begin next year.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

   • Target 11.1: By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums
   • Target 11.3: By 2030, enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries

   The article discusses the issue of affordable housing in Millburn, New Jersey, which is connected to SDG 11. The judge’s decision to appoint a special master to determine the location for affordable housing units addresses the target of ensuring access to adequate, safe, and affordable housing for all. The article also mentions the concerns raised by local leaders about clumping too many affordable units together in one place, which relates to the target of enhancing inclusive and sustainable urbanization.

2. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Target 17.16: Enhance the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources

   The involvement of the nonprofit Fair Share Housing Center in negotiating affordable housing settlements with communities demonstrates a partnership for the goals. The center’s efforts to hold Millburn accountable for building affordable housing align with the target of enhancing the global partnership for sustainable development.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

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Source: gothamist.com

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