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Maurice River Committee schedules binding affordable-housing resolution ahead of Jan. 31 deadline
Summary
Maurice River Township Solicitor Justin White told the committee the township would be expected to provide eight new affordable units under the state planning period and that adopting a binding resolution before Jan. 31 could protect the borough; the committee voted to adopt the resolution at its Jan. 16 meeting.
Justin White, the township solicitor, told the Maurice River Township Committee on Jan. 13 that entering the state affordable-housing planning process would ask the township to plan for eight new housing units and that adopting a binding resolution before the Jan. 31, 2025 deadline could provide legal protections for the municipality.
White said he had spoken with Township Planner Tiffany Morrissey and recommended the committee adopt the resolution to begin the planning process. Deputy Mayor Joe Sterling moved to adopt the resolution on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025; Committeeman Ben Stowman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously, with Sterling, Stowman and Mayor Ken Whildin voting in the affirmative.
The solicitor clarified during public comment that the proposal under discussion is affordable housing rather than federal Section 8 housing, and he explained that municipal obligations for units are calculated using the area median income for the region. White also noted that Maurice River’s development options are constrained by wetlands and Pinelands rules, which limit where new units could be sited.
The committee did not adopt substantive site plans at the Jan. 13 meeting; instead it scheduled formal adoption of a resolution on Jan. 16 that would commit the township to the planning process. The vote on Jan. 16 will be the next step; no binding site approvals or funding allocations were made at the Jan. 13 meeting.
