Settlement could lead to Lebanon Township building affordable housing | Hunterdon Review News

LEBANON TWP. – A settlement deciding that the township should build 65 new units of affordable housing and two additional non-affordable units was announced at the Township Committee’s Wednesday, Aug. 16, meeting.

The settlement now awaits court approval following a fairness hearing before Superior Court Judge Thomas Miller at the Somerset County Courthouse.

The Fair Share Housing Center (FSHC), a Supreme Court-designated interested party in determining third-round Mount Laurel obligations by municipalities to provide affordable housing, agreed the township should build 65 new units plus one accessory apartment and one market-to-affordable unit. The third round obligation covers the years 1999 to 2015.

Township Attorney Richard Cushing gave a brief summary of the litigation at the Township Committee meeting. He said following the township’s filing for a Declaratory Judgement in 2015, there had been several conferences with the FSHC and the court’s special master, Peter Buchsbaum, finally reached an agreement.

Lebanon Township’s affordable housing obligation is significantly lower than many other towns due to its location within the Highlands Region and the lack of public water and sewer. No rezoning will be required within the township. Almost all of the township, 99.97 percent, lies within the Highlands Preservation Area where construction is severely inhibited. Only three lots comprising six acres is in the planning area, and they are already commercially developed.

Cushing said both parties have recognized, at this time, the township cannot really build 65 units due to restrictions. As a result no building will take place before 2025, at which time the obligation will be revisited.

Lebanon Township has now become the fourth Hunterdon County municipality to reach a settlement with the FSHC, having been preceded by Bethlehem Township, Flemington, and Frenchtown.

“We’re making substantial progress,” said Anthony Campisi, spokesman from the FSHC, on Aug. 18. “Lebanon has joined more than 130 other towns across the state in signing settlement agreements that will lead to the construction of these homes – and shovels are already in the ground in towns across the state.”

“Given Lebanon’s location inside the Highlands area, the township won’t have to plan for a large amount of new homes as part of this plan,” said Campisi. “The settlement is designed to be consistent with state environmental policy and, from the town’s perspective, protects it from further litigation around this issue.”

Actually, the settlement agreement states the township’s total obligation is 132 units, but 50 percent of them, 66 units, could be transferred to a regional planning entity in order to “coordinate regional affordable housing opportunities in cooperation with municipalities in areas with convenient access to infrastructure, employment opportunities, and public transportation.”

The township has no financial obligation for the 66 units being transferred.

The agreement recognizes that due to the township’s location, it is unlikely that sewer service will become available within the next 10 years – if ever.

An in-depth summary of all the terms and conditions in the settlement agreement is contained in a letter dated Aug. 15 from the FSHC to the township attorney is on file with the township clerk.

A fairness hearing has been scheduled beginning at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 12, before Judge Miller at the Somerset County Courthouse, 20 North Bridge St. in Somerville.

During the hearing, the court will determine whether the settlement agreement is fair to low and moderate income households and addresses the township’s affordable housing obligation.

The next Township Committee meeting is scheduled to be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 20, at the Municipal Building at 530 West Hill Road.