Plainsboro Township is close to resolving its affordable housing obligation. In April the Planning Board and Township Committee endorsed a draft fair share plan that outlines the township’s plan to satisfy an affordable housing obligation of 638 units.
That figure is the result of a settlement between the township and Fair Share Housing Center (FSHC), the Cherry Hill-based nonprofit litigating against municipalities across the state. According to township attorney Michael Herbert, a court hearing is scheduled in mid-May to review the settlement. If approved the township will then amend its master plan to reflect the agreement.
The state constitution mandates fair share housing obligations, and Middlesex County Superior Court judge Douglas K. Wolfson currently oversees Plainsboro’s affordable housing compliance. Municipalities previously sought guidelines and approval from the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH), an agency under the governor, but a state Supreme Court ruling last year shifted affordable housing jurisdiction to individual county judiciaries.
Plainsboro’s 638-unit affordable housing obligation covers the period from 1999 to 2025, and it represents a significant decrease from the 1,000-unit obligation that FSHC previously argued the township should provide.
“In Middlesex County, judge Wolfson, as some would say, took the bull by the horn and encouraged municipalities to sit down with FSHC,” said Herbert, who added South Brunswick is the only Middlesex municipality that has not reached a settlement with FSHC. “Generally, he gave everyone a 40 percent discount on what the FSHC obligation numbers were.”
The draft fair share plan details how the township plans to meet its 638-unit obligation by 2025. A 30-acre municipal parcel at 50 Dey Road would be subdivided for 100 affordable rental units. Construction would be paid by the township, and Plainsboro is also proposing to sponsor seven group homes that would have 26 bedrooms. The township has also allocated nearly $1.8 million for a “buydown program” that would convert 70 market rate condos to affordable units.
In addition, the township has already approved Lincoln Equities’ project at Princeton Forrestal Village, a 394-unit rental development that includes 50 affordable units. The township fair share plan also lists 10 assisted living Medicaid bedrooms and 41 affordable senior living apartment units located within the hospital redevelopment campus. Credits from existing affordable units, extended rental controls, and bonus credits for rental affordable units round out the township’s 638-unit obligation.
Affordable units subject to rent or sales price controls are available to low and moderate-income households. Family incomes below 50 percent of median household income within Plainsboro’s tri-county housing region (Middlesex, Hunterdon, and Somerset) qualify as low income. A family making more than 50 percent but less than 80 percent of median household income qualifies as a moderate-income household. Median incomes from 2014 are: $73,500 for a one-person household; $84,000 for two-person; $94,500 for three-person; and $105,000 for four-person.
Based on 2010 census data, Plainsboro has 22,805 people in 9,402 households. The median household income is $86,986. Of the township’s roughly 10,000 housing units, more than 4,600 are owner-occupied. Of the 4,799 rental units, the median contract rent was $1,077 per month, according to a 2006-2010 survey cited by the township.
To fulfill past affordable housing obligations, there are 40-low income, for-sale units in Princeton Meadows, and 40 moderate income, for-sale units in the Village at Princeton Crossing. The township-established Plainsboro Non-Profit Housing Corporation owns and administers 126 low and moderate income rental units at the Wyndhurst. The township also has 60 low and moderate income rental units at the Millstone Apartments.
West Windsor’s affordable housing obligation is under the jurisdiction of Mercer County superior court judge Mary Jacobson, and the process is proceeding at a different pace.
“Judge Jacobson is taking a conservative approaching to these things and to make sure to get it right,” said Herbert, who is also West Windsor’s township attorney. One sticking point is the fair share obligation for the “gap period” from 1999 to the present, which is currently being litigated in state appellate court.
Municipalities in Mercer County are scheduled for a September trial to resolve the question of each town’s affordable housing obligation, though a finalized number might have to survive a few more rounds of litigation (The News, December 18). FSHC has argued in court that West Windsor’s obligation is 1,000 units, while the township has joined a consortium of municipalities that are funding their own fair share analysis. At the April 18 Council meeting, the township approved a second $2,000 contribution to the consortium.
Furthermore, more than five developers have joined suit contesting West Windsor’s affordable obligation. For builders, affordable housing requirements are an opening to build higher density residential developments (The News, August 7). The Howard Hughes Corporation is one of the litigants. In contrast, Plainsboro’s affordable housing litigation did not have any objectors beyond FSHC.
