OCEAN TOWNSHIP — Township officials are asking the state Superior Court to grant a motion that would stave off any additional affordable housing lawsuits while plans are being finalized.
Township attorney Martin Arbus said he has filed a motion to seek temporary immunity from builder’s remedy litigation while both the township and the court decide how many units of affordable housing Ocean Township is obligated to provide.
“Under the Supreme Court case that was decided recently, the municipalities have an opportunity to file an action seeking continued immunity,” Arbus said. “We had immunity based upon a court order and we are just petitioning to have that continued while our plans are finalized.”
A March ruling by the state Supreme Court invalidated the state Council on Affordable Housing (COAH), returning jurisdiction over municipal affordable housing obligations to the courts.
In that decision, municipalities were directed to submit to trial courts plans to provide sufficient affordable housing based on the needs of the regional community.
Arbus said the township had been at odds with COAH in the past about how much affordable housing Ocean must provide.
“We had a number that we had been presented with which was very high,” Arbus said. “We had done a study of the vacant land in the town and came up with what is called the ‘realistic development potential.’
“That was reviewed by a master, he came up with his number and I think it is around 240 units. That hasn’t been reviewed by the courts yet, that’s what we are waiting for.”
Arbus estimated the original obligation at more than 800 affordable housing units, which he felt was too high.
Ocean Township has been the subject of four builders remedy lawsuits, all of which were filed in 2009.
According to Arbus, one of the suits has been settled and two have been dismissed, with the remaining lawsuit ongoing.
“The last one is continuing that’s the [Avalon Bay] site, which is on West Park Avenue,” Arbus said.
Within the last month several municipalities asked the court for immunity from affordable housing litigation until they can submit revised plans, including Eatontown, Oceanport, Holmdel, Tinton Falls and Monmouth Beach.
A recent state Superior Court decision granted Monroe Township in Middlesex County five months to come into compliance with its state-mandated affordable housing obligations. On July 9, Judge Douglas Wolfson issued an order protecting the municipality from a legal challenge by Monroe 33 Developers LLC. Under the order, the town is protected from additional challenges brought by developers.