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Consultants outline Bernardsville's fourth-round fair-share plan, report 113-unit new-construction obligation
Summary
A Coldwell Associates consultant presented the borough's housing element and fair-share plan, explaining the two-part document and saying the borough's fourth-round obligation includes zero rehabilitation units and 113 new-construction units, with proposed inclusionary and redevelopment zones to meet the requirement.
A consultant from Coldwell Associates presented Bernardsville's draft housing element and fair-share plan at the council meeting, providing an overview of the document's two main parts: the housing element (background, demographics and inventory) and the fair-share plan (mechanisms proposed to meet the borough's affordable-housing obligations).
The consultant (introduced as Allison) said the borough's fourth-round rehabilitation obligation is zero units while the prospective new-construction obligation is 113 units and described several site-specific tools the borough proposes to use, including an existing inclusionary zone (housing R-8) and proposed redevelopment or inclusionary overlays at locations such as 65 Marmont Road and a 'Clars' redevelopable area. The consultant also described durational adjustments for zones limited by water and sewer availability and sketch-level feasibility work to be included in the plan appendices.
Council members asked technical questions about how the state will calculate future rounds, the enforcement consequences if zoning does not lead to construction, and the role of builder's-remedy lawsuits. The presenter and staff explained that, as currently written, the state's methodology allocates obligations on 10-year rounds, that zoning obligations remain in place if development does not proceed, and that courts can determine remedies where municipalities fail to zone for their obligations.
The council confirmed the planning board will hear the same presentation and that the draft plan has been posted online for the required notice period; staff noted a vote was scheduled to meet an end-of-month filing deadline.
What to watch: the planning-board hearing and the council's scheduled vote to submit the plan; if the council adopts the plan and the borough proceeds with rezoning or redevelopment overlays, the changes could enable between a few dozen and more than a hundred new affordable units depending on site feasibility and water/sewer availability.
