Planning for more affordable housing begins

The New Jersey Highlands Council awarded a contract to Colliers Engineering & Design to develop guidance that will help the council and its 88 constituent municipalities prepare for the fourth round of affordable-housing obligations set to begin in 2025.

The contract, not to exceed $100,000, was approved at the council meeting Thursday, May 18.

The project aims to ensure that the Highlands Regional Master Plan (RMP) guides decision-making on affordable housing.

“Highlands municipalities have a constitutional obligation to provide affordable-housing units,” said Ben Spinelli, the council’s executive director. “They also have an equal, if not more imperative, obligation to protect the drinking water resources for 70 percent of the state’s residents. These are not mutually exclusive goals, but they do require careful and thoughtful attention.

“The number, location and manner in which affordable units are built in the Highlands must be informed by the RMP and the overarching need to protect the region’s vital resources.”

As the conclusion of the third round affordable-housing obligations draws near, 67 of the 88 Highlands municipalities have adopted Fair Share Plans or settlement agreements resulting in an obligation of more than 16,000 affordable units.

Highlands Council data indicates this is far more than the region’s resources can handle. The Highlands Region includes parts of Sussex, Warren, Morris, Passaic, Bergen, Hunterdon and Somerset counties.

“The need for affordable housing is just one of many continuing sources of development pressure in the Highlands. This project is designed to help ensure that the appropriate balance between development, including the creation of affordable units, and protection of the region’s important resources is achieved,” Spinelli said.

The Colliers team has extensive experience in the Highlands region, working with municipalities and council staff on the development of Fair Share Plans and Housing Plan Elements for municipal master plans.

The team includes Surenian, Edwards, Buzak & Nolan, a law firm specializing in municipal compliance involving affordable-housing policy and related litigation.

The project, expected to be completed in 2024, will involve technical analysis and the development of policy and program recommendations that will ensure compliance with the Fair Housing Act and effective implementation of the Highlands RMP.

When it is completed, the project will be rolled out to Highlands municipalities and grant funding will be available to help towns prepare fourth-round plans.

“The Highlands region was set aside for special protections because of its value to the entire state of New Jersey. This is a point that cannot be lost,” said the council’s chairman, Carl Richko.

“Most New Jersey residents get their drinking water from the Highlands. The region must be considered as a whole, and the approach to affordable housing here must be led with this statewide significance in mind.”