MONTVALE — This year’s Borough Council race was uncontested, with incumbent Republicans Timothy E. Lane and Christopher A. Roche returning to office. Lane received 2,315 votes and Roche 2,311, according to unofficial results.
Montvale’s governing body remains entirely Republican, led by Mayor Mike Ghassali and including councilmembers Annmarie Russo-Vogelsang, Dieter Koelling, Douglas Arendacs, and Theresa Cudequest.
Fighting state housing mandates
The borough’s leadership is the tip of the spear on Local Leaders for Responsible Planning (LLRP), a coalition of nearly 40 municipalities challenging the state’s Fourth Round affordable-housing mandates for 2025–2035. The group, coordinated by Ghassali, argues that the state’s new rules overreach and impose unsustainable obligations on local governments.
Earlier this year, the council raised the spending cap for its special affordable-housing legal counsel, King, Moench & Collins LLP, to $350,000, reflecting Montvale’s central role in the coalition’s multi-jurisdictional lawsuits now moving through state and federal courts. Each participating municipality has been asked to contribute $20,000 toward the legal effort.
Ghassali has said the coalition seeks “fair, responsible, and constitutionally sound planning policies that respect local autonomy.”
Affordable-housing advocates, including the Cherry Hill-based Fair Share Housing Center, have criticized the lawsuits as wasteful and obstructionist, arguing that towns already have wide latitude to meet their obligations through redevelopment and mixed-income planning.
In an 81-page opinion issued Sept. 30, Mercer County Assignment Judge Robert Lougy dismissed two lawsuits filed by Ghassali’s coalition, ruling that the 2024 statute falls within the Legislature’s constitutional authority to implement the state Supreme Court’s Mount Laurel housing mandate.
Lougy’s decision dismissed the cases with prejudice, meaning they cannot be refiled. His ruling follows earlier denials by the Appellate Division and Supreme Court of the coalition’s attempts to stay the law.
A separate federal lawsuit—arguing the law improperly exempts the state’s largest “urban aid” cities from new housing obligations—remains pending.
See “Ghassali vows appeal as judge boots suits.“
A borough’s happy harvest
In the runup to the election, officials celebrated a major win for open space and community engagement. On Oct. 28, the council unanimously approved a 20-year lease allowing D’Agostino Landscaping & Irrigation of West Nyack, N.Y. to operate the borough’s 8.4-acre former DePiero Farm on Craig Road, keeping the land in active agricultural use. The plan includes a new community garden offering 4-by-8-foot plots for residents and space for town-sponsored events.
Ghassali called the decision “a meaningful step forward in our commitment to community engagement and sustainable land use.” The move follows the borough’s inaugural Town Day at the Farm on Oct. 18, which drew about 1,500 residents to celebrate the site’s future.
Next steps
Election results remain unofficial until all timely, qualified, and eligible votes are counted and the election is certified on Nov. 19. County boards of election have until Nov. 10 to receive postmarked mail-in ballots, and voters have until Nov. 15 to return a cure form to correct a signature or envelope issue. The Board of State Canvassers is scheduled to certify the official 2025 General Election results on Dec. 4.