BY MICHAEL OLOHAN
OF NORTHERN VALLEY PRESS
HAWORTH, N.J.—Borough officials approved an agreement with a developer April 9 to allow construction of a 41-unit multifamily complex—with nine affordable housing units—on the Schaefer’s Gardens site and presented additional proposals the next day before Superior Court Judge Christine Farrington in hopes of resolving the town’s affordable housing obligations through 2025.
Farrington had set an April 30 deadline to resolve the borough’s nearly four-year-old affordable housing obligation at a mid-March case conference when all intervenors—parties with a stake in the affordable housing settlement—met to discuss settlement progress.
Since it settled with Lakeshore Developers LLC on its plan to develop the Schaefer’s Gardens site, the borough, Fair Share Housing Center and Judge Farrington must agree whether the borough’s plan meets its affordable housing obligations.
Previously, the mayor and council said those obligations varied widely, from a high of 307 units set by Fair Share to a low of 85 in their original plan proposed in 2015.
At a public forum in mid-March, Borough Attorney Robert Regan said he anticipated the final housing obligation to be below 85 affordable units.
The final number of affordable units to be built—known as “realistic development potential”—is up for negotiation and will be spelled out in a final settlement.
Schaefer’s Gardens: 41 units
On April 9, council members went into closed session following a regular meeting to discuss details of a settlement with Lakeshore Developers LLC, a company that proposes to construct a 41-unit multifamily complex on the 5.65-acre Schaefer’s Gardens property.
The agreement details for the Schaefer’s Gardens complex were ironed out in closed session and approved in public, said Councilman Glenn Poosikian April 10.
At the April 10 case conference meeting before Judge Farrington, borough attorney Regan was to present the approved settlement to build 41 units, including nine affordable units, at Schaefer’s Gardens, and present options for possible 100 percent affordable projects at one of two borough-owned sites on Terrace Street or Massachusetts Avenue.
It appears the Terrace Street project would require borough financing where a Massachusetts Avenue project might be possible without borough financing or bonding, Poosikian said.
He said the proposed Massachusetts Avenue project was an “inclusionary” development, meaning that 15-20 percent of five or more units is set aside as affordable, with the remainder as market-rate rental or for-sale units.
Regan said April 9 that the borough “was looking for the best possible settlement under the circumstances.”
‘A well-intended goal’
“I think we’ve been straight shooters with them,” said Poosikian of negotiations.
“I’m an optimist we’re going to be able to solve it, but unfortunately whatever decision we’re going to make, it is not easy for the town. [Affordable housing] is a well-intended goal, but sometimes it’s just unrealistic,” he added.
On March 12, at a public forum on the affordable housing settlement, the town’s planner, Caroline Reiter, said nothing was final yet with the affordable housing settlement and mentioned its “anticipated components.”
She said these included the Schaefer’s Gardens development, possible use of one borough-owned property on either Massachusetts Avenue or Terrace Street for a 100 percent affordable project, plus an “affordable accessory apartment” ordinance and an overlay for a downtown second-floor affordable apartment program.
Also, the plan included six new bedrooms for developmentally disabled adults at Spectrum for Living, which currently has six bedrooms.
She said “anticipated components” of a settlement plan include 41 units at Schaefer’s Gardens, including nine affordable units.
Other affordable housing options included a potential municipal project at a borough property on Massachusetts Avenue from the gas station to St. Luke’s Church or a borough-owned property on Terrace Street.
No decision has been made on what possible borough property would be included then, she said.
Final agreement undecided
Poosikian said that was not yet clear on April 10 what option would be agreeable to all parties.
Reiter said an affordable accessory-apartment ordinance was proposed for implementation along county roads, such as Schraalenburgh Road and Hardenburgh Avenue. An “accessory apartment program” would create a self-contained residential dwelling within an existing home, she said.
Another possible component included an overlay zone that would allow creation of 18 affordable second-story apartments in the Business Zone, also known as Zone D.
She said that would permit “mixed-use” downtown with retail on the first floor.
The Haworth Fair Share Plan states funds may be used from its affordable housing trust fund to subsidize and install accessory apartments or downtown second-story apartments, none of which currently exist.
As of late February, $355,601 was in the borough’s trust fund.
Following Wednesday’s case conference with Farrington and Fair Share Housing Center, Regan was likely to update the council before a possible settlement plan vote at the April 23 council meeting—in time to meet Farrington’s April 30 deadline.
When resident Thomas Kaechele asked about the Schaefer’s Gardens proposed development at the April 9 council meeting, he was told that the developer had requested a height of 40 feet, six inches, which is above a 35-foot maximum in borough code.
He was also told he could attend future Planning Board meetings on the development to ask questions about the proposed development.
‘Less intrusion’ in Haworth
“We have come through this [affordable housing] with less intrusion in our community than almost any community around here,” said Mayor Thomas Ference.
“You sometimes don’t have all the cards…in an ideal world things would be different. Have we fought to do the best we can? I believe we have,” added Ference.
Ference said the developer of Schaefer’s Gardens, Lakeshore Developers LLC, will need to present a preliminary site plan before the Planning Board and meet local code requirements when building on Schaefer’s Gardens.
Efforts to reach Regan and a Superior Court staff member for updates on the April 10 case conference were not returned by press time.