Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Affordable Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Township consultant warns Jan. 31 deadline crucial as Montgomery readies 4th-round affordable housing plan
Summary
Township planning consultants told the Montgomery Township Committee the new Afford Fair Housing Act imposes tight deadlines and documentation requirements for the 2025—2035 "4th round" obligation; staff urged adoption of a Jan. 31 resolution and filing of a declaratory judgment to preserve municipal control over local zoning.
Michael Sullivan, the township's planning consultant, outlined to the Montgomery Township Committee how the new Afford Fair Housing Act and the state's Affordable Housing Dispute Resolution Program change the process for the municipality's 4th-round affordable housing obligations for 2025—2035. He said the town must adopt a binding resolution setting its obligation by Jan. 31 and post it on the municipal website within 48 hours, then file a declaratory judgment action and adopt a housing plan element and fair-share plan by June 30.
"There is no time to waste. We must meet the January 31 deadline," Sullivan said, stressing the importance of participation in the administrative program to retain legal protections. He told the committee the DCA's advisory numbers place Montgomery's present (rehabilitation) need at 73 units and its prospective need for new units at 260; if Montgomery can maximize bonus credits (65), the net new-unit requirement could be approximately 195 units.
The presentation explained DCA's three allocation factors (developable land, income capacity and nonresidential valuation) and noted Montgomery's calculation produced a factor that, when applied to Region 3's prospective need (about 11,604 units), yields the municipal prospective need of roughly 259.93, rounded to 260. Sullivan said "bonus credits" (for conversion, redevelopment, special-needs projects and deed-restriction extensions) can reduce the number of actual units the town must build or count.
Sullivan and township counsel warned of consequences for failing to meet the statutory deadlines. "Not meeting any of the deadlines means you lose immunity," he said, adding that losing that protection can leave a municipality vulnerable to exclusionary-zoning litigation (formerly called the builder's remedy) and to court-imposed outcomes that can remove local control over zoning and site design.
A resident asked who may challenge a municipality's stipulated obligation. Sullivan replied that anybody may file a challenge, but a valid objection must show a legal basis and supporting data; an unsupported protest is unlikely to be accepted. He also described the new program's potential "look-back" provisions and the increased expectation that towns document every affordable housing credit they claim.
Public commenters sought clarity about bonus credits, the role of developers, and how municipalities can keep expiring deed-restricted units from permanently reverting to market rate. Counsel and staff said municipally sponsored projects can be deed-restricted in perpetuity or re-restricted when financing and monitoring allow, and that the township monitors deed expirations to seek re-restriction or other remedies.
The committee agreed to notice a special noon meeting on Jan. 27 to adopt a binding resolution setting Montgomery's 4th-round affordable housing obligation (either accepting the DCA number or stipulating an alternate calculation) and to prepare the required filing documents.
What happens next: the committee will consider and (if approved) adopt the Jan. 31 resolution at a special meeting and file the declaratory judgment action; the housing plan element and ordinances must follow by the June 30 statutory deadline, subject to administrative and legal developments in the new dispute-resolution program.
