By JACQUELINE DURETT
Correspondent
EDISON — The township has moved closer to finalizing the landscape of its affordable housing for the next 10 years, and has managed to retain its requirement for 1,310 units.
The board had reviewed a preliminary version of consultants Shirley Bishop and Leslie London’s plan in April. The plan is based on a negotiated settlement with the advocacy group Fair Share Housing Center (FSHC) and various interveners. Each municipality is working out its own settlement to determine its affordable housing responsibility. Originally, FSHC’s analysis had determined that Edison’s responsibility was 3,481 units.
Bishop and London attended the Aug. 15 Edison Planning Board meeting seeking approval on a further iteration of the plan, including supplemental ordinances and zoning documents, Bishop said. London said as part of the process the township had to revise its affordable housing ordinance to include a sliding scale set-aside for affordable housing units for future projects. That ordinance does not include any projects currently underway.
The last round of affordable housing obligation was a total of 964 units, Bishop said, which Edison satisfied with units at the Inman Grove, Greenwood, Colonial Square and Village Court developments, as well as the Ozanam Family Shelter, three Cerebral Palsy group homes, a senior residence and some rental bonus credits.
The present need obligation covers the years 1999-2025 and encompasses 1,310 units.
Some of those developments are already built, with units identified for affordable housing, including Rivendell II (22 units), Heritage at Clara Barton (46 units), the Village at Historic Clara Barton (21 units), CentrePlace at Edison (45 units), a portion of Camp Kilmer (120 units) and various group homes. It also includes 115 units under the state’s Market to Affordable program.
Projects that have not been completed yet include 153 new group home bedrooms across 46 homes carved out of existing buildings, as well as units at Catholic Charities’ senior development at 635 Amboy Ave., Roosevelt Hospital, Camp Kilmer, the K-Land apartment complex at 44 Gibian St. and the Rivendell Heights apartments. Bishop explained that of the 767 new units on deck for Edison, 368 of them will be designated as affordable housing. Of that 368, 127 will be for seniors.
A final court approval of the settlement would protect the township from having to build additional affordable housing units for 10 years. However, in 10 years, the township would go through the process again, London said. At that point, she said, it may be up to the courts or another entity altogether. “It’s hard to say what’s going to happen in the future,” she said.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, resident Esther Nemitz said she had reviewed the plans and was impressed with Bishop and London’s work on the project. She said she was glad there were so many group homes identified in the process, adding that those accommodations are needed everywhere.
She also said that the state’s definitions of “affordable” don’t reflect the needs of those who need that housing. According to state figures from 2014, the lowest income category for a family of four is $52,500.
Resident Bernie Toscano asked who pays the difference between the reduced rent of an affordable unit and the market rate. London said it comes out of an affordable housing trust fund that developers pay into.
The updated plan received unanimous approval (with Leonard Sendelsky abstaining to vote at the Township Council) from the Planning Board.
London said a final compliance hearing will be held in Middlesex County Superior Court on Oct. 7.