Washington Council adopts three affordable-housing ordinances, introduces AH2 district amid neighbor and developer concerns

The Township of Washington Council on March 16 adopted three ordinances updating the municipality’s affordable-housing code and introduced a fourth establishing a new AH2 district, moving the township’s fourth-round housing element forward under a statutory deadline.

The council approved Ordinance 26-01 (amendments to chapter 540 articles 21–22 on affordable housing), Ordinance 26-02 (creating AH1 and AH2 districts and revising permitted densities and set‑asides), and Ordinance 26-03 (changes to chapter 513 development fees) by unanimous roll‑call votes after the clerk opened the second readings and recorded the votes. The council then introduced Ordinance 26-04 (first reading by title) to further refine AH2 rules for block 2110 lot 1 and lots 6–11 and scheduled a public hearing and planning-board review under resolutions 26-202 through 26-206.

Why it matters: The ordinances implement elements of the township’s housing element and fair-share plan and respond to program deadlines tied to state affordable-housing rounds. Council members said the timing required moving several items tonight while preserving staff and planner review to consider technical edits.

Public comment and developer concerns: Residents raised objections during public comment to aspects of the proposed townhouse/multifamily development that the AH2 zoning would allow. One speaker identified in the transcript as “Mr. Anel” (spelled variously in the record) warned that adding visitor parking on a nearby lot would turn that parcel into an overflow lot for an adjacent commercial property (Seasons), create noise and reduce property values. Councilors responded that the ordinance limits visitor parking on Lot 1 and includes a provision requiring a traffic analysis one year after the multifamily development’s completion to determine whether Lot 1 must be developed for visitor parking; implementation would depend on that subsequent study.

Christopher Minks, general counsel for Russo Development and the contract purchaser of the Valley National site at 370 Pascal Road, told the council his firm has worked with the township for over a year and urged technical clarifications. He said the firm’s plan for stacked townhomes produces a 73‑unit yield on the 4.9‑acre site (not 72) and that a 20% set‑aside would therefore yield the 15 affordable units the developer has been promising. Minks also asked the council to clarify height/story language: he said the ordinance’s “two-and-a-half‑story” wording could bar the modular stacked townhome product even though the project would comply with the 35‑foot height cap. He requested flexibility on the 20‑foot parking setback on the DPW side and asked to continue working with the township attorney and planner to refine the ordinance while the council meets the statutory deadline.

Council response and next steps: Council members and the mayor said they recognize the technical issues Minks raised and committed to follow-up discussions with Township Attorney Siobhan Bailey and planner Joseph Burgess, but they emphasized the need to meet the program deadline that drove tonight’s votes. Ordinance 26-04 was introduced by title with specific textual clarifications noted on the record (maximum building height: 2 1/2 stories/35 ft; 32 units to be located on blocks specified; traffic analysis provision for visitor parking). The council referred the AH2 amendment to the planning board for review and authorized publication and scheduling of public hearings.

The council’s formal actions on the ordinances were recorded by roll call (all listed members voting yes). The town will publish the notices and continue the public hearings and planner/staff review of developer-submitted plans and proposed technical edits.