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Council advances technical change to affordable‑housing calculation; attorney confirms planning‑board referral not required for first reading
Summary
An ordinance to amend the affordable‑housing mandatory set‑aside would change rounding so fractional units of 0.5 or higher round up; the attorney and staff told the council the edit is a one‑line technical change and, with referral language removed, first reading may proceed without a planning‑board consistency review.
The Passaic City Council introduced an amendment to chapter 3‑17‑30(b)(8) concerning the city's affordable‑housing mandatory set‑aside. The change clarifies rounding for fractional affordable‑housing units: "any fraction 0.5 or higher would round up," according to staff presenting the measure. Council discussion focused on whether the change is substantive and whether it needs a planning‑board consistency review under New Jersey municipal land‑use law.
City counsel and staff advised the council that because the change is a single, technical line the essence of the plan is not altered; therefore, if the council removes referral language that would send the ordinance to the planning board, the council may take action on first reading and schedule the ordinance for its next January meeting rather than referring it for a separate planning‑board hearing. The transcript records the presentation, questions from council members and an affirmative roll call on the first reading scheduling.
The council did not adopt the ordinance on final reading during the Dec. 16 meeting; the matter will return for a subsequent hearing as the council follows its standard notice procedures.
