WOODCLIFF LAKE —The Planning Board has set a public hearing for Monday, Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. on amendments to the borough’s Housing Element and Fair Share Plan as part of a settlement with Fair Share Housing Center on the 188 Broadway site, where 46 market-rate units will be constructed, including 37 market-rate apartments and nine market-rate townhomes.
The meeting was originally for later in the evening, at Tice Senior Center, 411 Chestnut Ridge Road, but was moved up.
Residents can view the nine-page HEFSP amendment document — part of the borough’s Master Plan — online by clicking on the Sept. 11 meeting link under the Planning Board Meeting Schedule.
Residents can watch the meeting on Zoom but must be present to offer public comment. Following its review and action by the Planning Board, the amended Housing Element and Fair Share Plan goes to the Borough Council for consideration.
The amended plan details the borough’s commitment to build eight additional affordable units at the borough-owned North Broadway site, bringing the total affordable units there to 24.
The eight affordable units were required at the 188 Broadway site, but as part of the legal settlement with 188 Broadway LLC, who sued the borough after two previous Zoning Board denials for 60- and 53-unit proposals on the site, the borough assumed the obligation for the eight affordable units.
Under the amendment’s North Broadway site revisions, with portions highlighted in red text, the text notes, “The site has been rezoned to permit low- and moderate-income housing. The three lots together total approximately 2.6 acres. There are steep slopes on the property, however, there is approximately 1.15 acres on which the low- and moderate-income housing can be developed. As such, Woodcliff Lake finds that the site is available, suitable, developable, and approvable as defined in NJAC 5:93-1 and pursuant to N.J.A.C. 5:93-5.3.”
Moreover, the amendment agrees that the borough’s third round of affordable obligations has a “realistic development potential” (RDP) of 43 units.
This RDP will be satisfied by extending affordability controls on eight existing affordable units at Centennial Court; and building 24 affordables (20 family rentals and four supportive housing units) at its North Broadway site. The Centennial Court and North Broadway units total 32 units, plus 11 “bonus credits” granted for the affordable family units and supportive housing. That 43 credits (or units) satisfies the borough’s RDP in the 1999–2025 affordable housing third round.
The amendment notes, “The Borough executed an amended Settlement Agreement with FSHC on Dec. 14, 2022. This Amended Settlement Agreement was necessitated by the change in developer of the North Broadway site as well as the inclusion of the 188 Broadway site in the Borough’s affordable housing plan to resolve various other litigations the Borough has and to ensure the North Broadway site moves forward expeditiously. The purpose of this amendment to the HEFSP is to make the HEFSP consistent with the terms of the amended Settlement Agreement.”
Should the agreement with Bergen County United Way to construct the 24 affordable units on the North Broadway site not move forward, the amendment notes that the developer of 188 Broadway “shall take over and begin construction of the North Broadway site at the sole cost and expense of the Borough,” reads the amendment.
“The developer of 188 Broadway will work in concert with the Borough and the developer of the North Broadway site (i.e., BCUW) to create a realistic opportunity for the development of these eight units on the North Broadway site. The developer will also make a payment of $300,000 to the Borough’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund,” the amendment reads
In addition to the 43 RDP units accounted for, the amendment addresses how an “unmet need” of 343 affordable units and 88 from a prior round will be met.
The mechanisms to address unmet need include extension of affordable controls on Centennial Way affordable units; an affordable overlay zone for the vacant Teva site for a 100-unit age-restricted project; eight affordable rental units on the VFW property, subject to borough and affordable special master approval; an affordable housing overlay zone at the Comfort Auto Rental site; an affordable set-aside ordinance requiring 20% affordable units in multifamily developments of five or more units; and amended B-1 zoning to permit mixed-use development subject to the affordable set-aside ordinance.
Moreover, the amendment notes the Rosengren settlement, on an approximately 7-acre site on Old Pascack Road, permits 15 high-end townhouse units to be built, instead of Rosengren’s initial application for 43 townhomes. As part of the settlement, Rosengren will contribute $600,000 to the borough’s affordable housing trust fund.
“This amendment to the Fair Share Plan provides realistic opportunities for the provision of new affordable housing units and rehabilitation of existing substandard units, in light of the Borough’s limited resources – both in monetary terms and with regard to the limited amount of vacant land in the Borough,” states the revised document.
Other requirements in the amendment include:
- At least half of the units addressing the Third Round RDP and Unmet Need shall be affordable to very low-income and low-income households with the remainder affordable to moderate-income households.
- At least a quarter of the Third Round RDP and Unmet Need shall be met through rental units, including at least half in rental units available to families.
- At least half of the units addressing the Third Round Realistic Development Potential and Unmet Need in total must be available to families.
- The Borough will comply with an age-restricted cap of 25%.
- All affordable units shall be subject to affordability controls of at least 30 years from the date of initial occupancy and affordable deed restrictions…
- In inclusionary developments, the affordable units shall be integrated with the market-rate units, and the affordable units shall not be concentrated in separate building(s) or in separate area(s) or floor(s) from the market-rate units.
