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Passaic council adopts set-aside rule for affordable units, clarifies fractional rounding
Summary
The Passaic City Council adopted an ordinance clarifying how fractional required affordable units are calculated — fractions above 0.5 round up — and approved a slate of consent items and resolutions by unanimous roll call.
Passaic City Council adopted an ordinance clarifying that fractional results when calculating mandatory affordable housing set‑asides will be rounded up when the fraction exceeds 0.5, city staff told the council during the meeting.
Ricky, a city staff member who explained the ordinance, said, “So when you do a calculation for units ... if it was 1.7, it would be 2 affordable units. And if it was 1.5 or below, it would be 1 affordable unit.” That clarification, he said, ensures developers and staff apply a consistent rule when computing required affordable units under the municipal code change presented to the council.
Why it matters: The change implements a practical rule for developers and the city when subdivision or development yields fractional unit requirements, removing ambiguity that can slow permit reviews and complicate affordable-housing compliance. Council members pressed staff on how the local rule interacts with state notice requirements; council members heard that the ordinance had been reviewed by multiple municipal attorneys and the city intends to enforce the local ordinance as written.
The ordinance was described on the agenda as an amendment to the municipal code (chapter cited in the agenda materials) to add a mandatory set‑aside for affordable housing and the rounding clarification. After a brief public-hearing period with no speakers, the council moved and adopted the ordinance on a unanimous roll call.
Votes at a glance: The council also approved multiple routine items on consent and several resolutions during the meeting. Recorded roll-call votes shown in the minutes indicate unanimous adoption on: (1) the second-and-final-reading ordinance amending restricted parking for disabled persons as listed on the agenda; (2) the affordable‑housing set‑aside ordinance with the rounding clarification; (3) communications items 3–12 and consent items 13–21; and (4) resolutions 23–35. The council introduced ordinance 36 (first reading) and set its second reading for February 3. Payment of bills and adjournment were likewise approved by roll call.
What the ordinance does not say: The council and staff discussed whether state law requires the exemption to appear in an original lease rather than a renewal lease; one council member suggested that state statute requires the exemption in an original lease, while city staff said the local ordinance was drafted to be effective and had been reviewed by municipal attorneys. The council did not change the text in session and adopted the local ordinance as presented.
Next steps: The ordinance takes effect according to municipal adoption rules; separate instructions on implementation and permit processing were not provided during the meeting. The council set a later date for the first reading and second reading schedule for other items where required.
