Affordable housing Meeting
When:Dear Haworth Resident,
New Jersey's effort to build affordable housing in every municipality began 50 years ago with the Mt. Laurel court case. While the authority to determine each municipality's responsibility has changed hands several times, one constant remains: like every municipality in the state, Haworth is mandated to meet the obligation for housing as set forth by the state.
If a municipality doesn't follow these rules, developers can use something called the "builder's remedy" to sue and ignore local zoning laws, allowing developers (and advocacy groups) to build high-density housing, including affordable units, wherever and however they want. A municipality could also be forced to pay developer fees if it has not met its housing obligations.
So far, Haworth has worked diligently to avoid these kind of lawsuits, protecting the residents and the Borough from further onerous financial and environmental impact.
In March 2024, a new set of rules was announced for the 4th Round of Affordable Housing obligations. Each month, a new deadline had to be met or the Borough risked losing immunity to builder's remedy lawsuits. The final compliance deadline of 2025 was December 31.
The Borough has met each deadline, working through a designated Affordable Housing committee, our Borough Attorney, Borough Planner, and Special Affordable Housing Counsel. This has required many hours of meetings and sessions with judges and adjudicators, and the Fair Share Housing Center.
We understand that this whole process and the changing requirements brings about many questions from the community and we want to help our residents understand the law and its' implications for Haworth.
We will be holding another Town Hall meeting to bring you up to date on our settlement process and our settlement agreement with Fair Share Housing Center on Monday, January 19th, 7:30 pm, Haworth School Multipurpose Room. This date has been selected based on availability of the involved professional parties and town officials to be present. We hope you will attend.
Your Mayor and Council