South Brunswick Fights Back Against Affordable Housing Mandate

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ - South Brunswick is fighting back against a state Supreme Court order forcing the Township to build more low-income units. South Brunswick's lawyer announced Wednesday that he filed a motion in Superior Court seeking to vacate a decision handed down last fall, saying the judge's order would "allow private developers to force development on the Township."

As Patch reported, it was last October when Supreme Court Judge Doug Wolfson ordered South Brunswick to build 1,374 additional affordable housing units. Those units should have been built between 1999-2015, Judge Wolfson decreed, and South Brunswick intentionally created a 16-year "gap period" of not building enough affordable housing in the Township, he said. Wolfson has since retired.

However, the Township's attorney Don Sears says that Judge Doug Wolfson should leave it up to South Brunswick to decide when to build affordable units. Most new development proposals — such as an affordable housing complex planned on New Road — have been met with concern from residents. Residents worry about more traffic on already-busy roads, disappearing green and open space and more crowded public schools.

"Given its 30-year track record of actually producing quality, affordable housing, it was wrong for Judge Wolfson to take away the Township’s ability to implement its own plan and allow private developers to force development on the Township," said a statement issued by South Brunswick spokesman Ron Schmalz. "The Township’s intention has always been to fully comply with its obligation to provide for affordable housing, but in a way that makes sense, does not overwhelm existing roads, schools and infrastructure, in areas that are appropriate for housing."

Just within the last four years, South Brunswick has received no less than three separate awards for creating new affordable housing, he pointed out.

In fact, the Township has fully satisfied its entire 842-unit obligation for the period 1987-1999 by building 882 units, in 22 different projects, resulting in a 40 unit/credit surplus, he said. And the Township has entered into formal, binding contracts to develop more than 570 additional units of affordable housing.

There are other agreements, still in negotiation, which would produce even more, Schmalz said, but did not give specifics.

"It is the Township’s longstanding policy that any development must be designed to protect the quality of life for Township residents and ensure that any new housing is constructed in appropriate locations, in reasonable, manageable ways," Schmalz said. "Unfortunately, the decisions rendered in 2016 by Judge Wolfson have seriously jeopardized the Township’s ability to protect residents from uncontrolled growth."

The motion, initially scheduled for April 13, was postponed and transferred to Mercer County where it will be heard by Hon. Douglas H. Hurd. No date has yet been scheduled.

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