Bridgewater Township Planning Board for Wednesday, June 25th, 2025 special meeting. Adequate notice of this meeting has been given in accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act, NJSA 104-6 on January 6th, 2025. Proper notice was
sent to the courier news and the star ledger filed with the clerk at the township of Bridgewwater and posted on the municipal on the Bolton board in the municipal building. Please be aware of the planning board policy for public hearings. No applications will be heard after 9:30 p.m. and no new testimony will be taken after 10 p.m. Hearing
assistance is available upon request. Accommodations will be made for individuals with a disability pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA provided the individual with the disability provides 48 hours advanced notice to the planning department secretary before the public hearing.
However, if the individual should require special equipment or services such as a CART transcriber, 7 days advanced notice excluding weekends and holidays may be necessary. Would everyone please rise to salute the flag? I aliance to the flag of the United
States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Miss Desimone, could I have a roll call, please? Yes. Chairman Bessio here. Um,
for the record, Mayor Mch is absent and Mr. Papis is absent. Councilman Kersh here. Mr. Mora here. Um, Miss Sakura is
not here. Mr. Bang is absent for the record. Mr. Ch Miss Chartitz is absent for the record. Mr. Chowry and Mr. Atkins is also absent for the record. And we have uh board attorney
Mr. Peek here. and um Miss Daniel Green, Township Affordable Housing Planner. Oh, Dolene, I'm so sorry. That's it. I believe there's one more. Oh, Mr.
Wang, sorry about that. Glad you could make it. Okay, we do have a quorum this evening. Okay, first uh order of business for this evening. I'd like to ask for a motion to appoint an acting board secretary for June 25th, 2025. Who'd
like to make that motion or nominate? Who would you like to nominate? Who would you like to nominate? Mr. McGor. Mr. McGor. Who would like to second that motion? I'll second. That's Councilman Kur. Could I have a roll call, please?
Jim Investio. Yes. Councilman Kersh, Mr. Maggora, yes. Mr. Wang, yes. And Mr. Chowry. Okay. Next order of business. If there
are any members of the public here this evening that would like to address the board on any matters not listed on the agenda this evening, please feel free to come forward at this time. Okay, seeing none, hearing none. There are no board minutes, resolutions, or applications this evening, we are
going to entertain, sorry, item number nine on our agenda this evening is the adoption of the fourth round housing element and fair share plan of the township's master plan. And who will be giving that presentation this evening?
Good evening, Mr. Mr. Chairman, members of the board, Darlene Green with a firm of Kier's Engineering and Design. I am the township's affordable housing planner. Good evening. We'd like to swear you in this evening, Miss Green. Do you swear affirm that the testimony you're going to give in the course of this hearing will be the truth
and nothing but the truth? Yes, I do. Thank you very much. May proceed. Thank you. Tonight, I am here to present the 2025 housing element and fair share plan. But before I talk about that, I think it's important to give a little bit of a preface. Why is the planning
board meeting on a special night at the end of June? It seems a bit odd. And that's because this is something that we are forced to do. And I'll get to that in just one moment. But let me start at the beginning. And affordable housing in the state of New Jersey starts all the
way back in 1975 when the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that every town in the state of New Jersey has a constitutional obligation to provide a realistic development potential for affordable housing. Simply put, it does not mean that towns have to build the affordable housing. We have to put in
place the zoning andor the mechanisms to enable the construction of affordable housing. That ruling set off a litany of litigation because unfortunately it didn't tell towns how to comply with this newlymandated constitutional
obligation. So it wasn't until 10 years later and a lot of court filings that the legislature realized they needed to bring calm to the chaos and they adopted the Fair Housing Act. The Fair Housing Act created the Council on Affordable
Housing. I'm sure some of you read their name in the paper. COA was their acronym. COA was tasked with promulgating the affordable housing obligations for communities, issuing regulations on how towns were to go about that process and the framework of
the regulations. And so COA was often running and started the first round of affordable housing which ran from 1987 until 1993. They were six-year rounds. The second round then towns were issued numbers. They had a chance to adopt
housing plans and the builders could build the units. The second round ran from 1993 to 1999. And at the beginning of the third round, KOA said, "You know what? Six years is not quite enough time to issue those affordable housing obligations, have
towns write their affordable housing plans, and then have builders actually build all this housing. let's make it 10 years to give everyone a little bit more breathing room to accomplish all these tasks. So, they changed the rounds to 10 year rounds. And KA also thought it
might be a good idea to amend their rules and the way they determine the obligations. And that was not a good idea because every rule set that KA published was challenged during the third round. And ultimately in 2015
um litigation was filed and it went to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court said Koa you have failed to do your job in administering affordable housing. So we are stripping you of your power of reviewing affordable housing compliance and we are returning the review of
affordable housing compliance to the courts unwinding what had been done by the legislature back in 1985. For this reason, the third round was not a 10-year period. It stretched out to a
26-year period, and towns were forced to file declaratory judgment actions and work their way through the court process instead in the third round to achieve compliance. The third round ends on June 30th, 2025. And knowing that the third round was
coming to a conclusion, last year the legislature adopted a 75page bill known as A4 making widespread amendments to the Fair Housing Act. That bill changed the process. It officially stripped COA of their power and created a different
um administrative entity to review compliance. But the most important thing that it did was it set forth stringent deadlines for towns to comply with. One of those deadlines is by June 30th, every town in the state of New Jersey
has to file a new housing element and fair share plan addressing its fourth round obligation. If a town fails to do so, they will automatically lose immunity on July 1st. Towns did not
automatically lose immunity over the past 26 years during the third round. there would have to be a filing in front of a court, um, hearings, papers exchanged, and a ruling. No one automatically lost immunity. So, this is
dramatically different. And so, the the other wrinkle is everyone is being forced to do this by the same deadline, which is making it very difficult because there are only so many professionals in the state of New Jersey who do affordable housing work. So hence
the reason we are meeting on a special night to adopt this plan before the deadline. I should also mention that a housing plan is unique in the compendium of master plan documents because it is the
only master plan document that requires both approval and adoption by this body, but it also requires endorsement by the governing body because it contemplates expenditures from your affordable housing trust fund. So after the board's
action tonight, assuming you vote in the affirmative, the governing body will take action on this item in at their July meeting. So it's a two-step process for the June deadline. All we need is the planning board to adopt the
document. So with excuse me before I go there, the the immunity part. So why is it important to maintain immunity and file a housing plan by this deadline? The uh amendments to the Fair Housing
Act carried forward the carrot and stick approach that had been employed by COA in the first and the second round and by the courts in the third round. And the carrot has been that if towns voluntarily come in and comply with their affordable housing obligation,
they will be given immunity. If towns do not follow the statute and voluntarily comply, they will be subject to a builder remedy lawsuit because they do not have immunity. Well, what is a builder remedy lawsuit? Under a builder
remedy lawsuit, a developer typically or a property owner or a contract purchaser of a property can file a builder remedy lawsuit with the county level housing judge for your region. and they would go to that judge and say, "Judge,
town X is not complying with their constitutional obligation, but I, nice developer, am going to build 500 units on this 1acre piece of property to help them with their affordable housing obligation." And the judge would hear the merits of the case. And if the judge
agreed that the town was not acting in good faith, did not have immunity, he would issue a remedy. The remedy does not take into account your master plan. It ignores your zoning ordinance. It removes this board of its powers of
reviewing that site plan application. It is blind to whether or not your schools have sufficient capacity for children or whether you have sufficient police officers to police that new development. In summary, a builder's remedy lawsuit, if won by that builder, the town loses
all control. And that is why it is so important to maintain our immunity and meet this June 30th deadline. So with that background, I would turn our attention now to the housing element and fair share plan. If you have a copy, um
that's great. If not, I believe it's going to be on the screen. Um the process I'm sorry, Mr. Char. Yes, please. There's most certainly a deadline. If we do not adopt the plan tonight, we
would either have to carry the meeting to another date between now and June 30th, or if we do not submit a plan by June 30th, we will automatically lose immunity on July 1st. What I would suggest in that eventuality is you know obviously
but it's not unprecedented for amended plans July or December whatever you could always revisit Uh sadly though, um and I don't want to interrupt you from your comments, uh we do have a sword hanging over our neck
here, as does every one of the other 560 municipalities of New Jersey. Um you know, we've put together Well, I I'll let you comment on this, but you know, I I I believe we've put together the best plan in a very bad situation. Um
obviously, we'll all have to come to to that or a different conclusion tonight. Um, you know, we're a, you know, we were given very little time and now we're out of time. Um, we were given almost no time, candidly. But, you know, I'll
reserve my comments for later. But, um, you know, we got we got a sword hanging over our neck here. And, uh, you know, is somebody going to run to the courthouse on July 2nd or 3rd or 4th or 5th and start to try to build things here? I don't know. Maybe. I don't know how much of a risk that is. And if we
can then take action later than that. Do you put the genie back in the bottle? You know, I I don't know. Um, you know, but but un unfortunately, you know, well, I mean, obviously, everyone's going to have to come to their own decision, but, you know, it's very likely this is what it is. Uh, and it's
a very bad it's an exceptionally bad process, and if it sounds like it doesn't make sense and it's unfair, it's because it is. Thank you, Councilman. Just a piece of administration. Mr. Mr. Simone, I'd like the record to reflect uh the presence of Mr. Mike Papus.
Okay. So, I do think it is important to note that this housing element and fair share plan before you, we did not start working on this last month. We didn't even start working on this last year. We actually started meeting and discussing the fourth round before they amended the
Fair Housing Act. We started back in December of 2023 um looking at what we would be needing to do. and we actually put out a target number that we were working towards before we even had our number from DCA.
So, this process has been ongoing. This was not done uh while we the deadlines have been short and abbreviated. This has been something that I've been working with the administration and all the township professionals on for over a
year to come to this document. And what I think folks will realize from a review of this housing element and fair share plan is that Bridgewater's proactive efforts have allowed the township to meet its affordable housing obligation in a
manner that fits within the existing scale and development pattern of the community. So with that, let's turn to the housing element and fair share plan. The first page that I would call your attention to I went too far is page
four. And I'll zoom in because this is a little bit like an eye exam sometimes. So the key question everyone wants to know when you bring up a housing plan is well what's our obligation? And so every town in the state of New Jersey except for urban aid communities
has a fourpart obligation. The first component of our obligation is rehabilitation. These are units that are occupied by low and moderate income households that are in need of repair. They are not deed restricted affordable
units. Our obligation for rehabilitation is 130. Next, we have the prior round obligation. This comprises COA's first and second rounds of affordable housing. Our number for the second or excuse me, the prior round is 713.
Then we have the third round which is the 26-year period round. That obligation is 1414. That number was also established during the third round. The new number is the fourth round number for the 10-year
period commencing on July 1st, 2025. That will run then until 2035. You see in the table that that number is 421, but that is not where we started. Last fall, DCA issued the township an obligation of 474.
Eventually, after that issuance, we received the backup documentation to show how they arrived at that number. And what we quickly learned is that their land capacity analysis was flawed. They included in the land capacity analysis as vacant and developable the
median of Route 22. a portion of properties that are developed. So the front and side and rear yards that had woods on existing houses of worship were considered as vacant and developable. Some of your um property on your rosy, your
recreation and open space inventory was included as vacant and developable. So ultimately we presented that data to the court and the court agreed with the information that we presented and our number was adjusted downward from 474 to
421. So that is an 11.2% decrease of our number by doing our due diligence. So those are the four numbers that we have to satisfy in this document. As you page through the report,
specifically chapter two on page seven, you will see a list of items underneath the municipal land use law. There is a a list of all the components that a housing element and a fair share plan have to include. This list is is copy,
cut, and paste from that document. And the housing plan in front of you contains all of those required elements. Following that, chapters three, four, and five include demographic data. All of this information is mandated by the municipal land use law. You may find it
interesting um but I will tell you that that data does not affect our obligations nor does it impact our mechanisms. If you page ahead to page 24, chapter 6 is a projection of housing stock. We're
required under the statute to project for the next 10 years how many housing units we believe that Bridgewater will build. Now, that's a bit difficult because we don't know over the next 10 years, will there be a housing recession or will there be a housing boom, but we
worked with your construction office to understand what properties already have building permits and are in progress. Also, what applications have been approved by the board that are likely to be built and then anything in the future pipeline. And you'll see all of those
sites outlined on page 25. On page 26, we're required to say, of those projected units, how many do we estimate will be affordable housing units? And you'll see on page 26, we are projecting that over the next 10 years, Bridgewater will construct 205 affordable housing
units. Chapter 7 is a capacity for our fair share. This chapter asks us to analyze what is our land capacity to fit this new obligation. our utility capacity and what sites are appropriate to locate
these housing units. And I think what is extremely interesting is if you look at the maps that are included on the following pages, over 49% of the township is encumbered by excuse me, 49% of the township's land
area is encumbered by one or more environmental constraints. So almost half of the township has some natural feature that would limit or preclude its development that restricts or limits our options for
where can we locate this new housing requirement. We have a description of our utility capacities on page 28 and also a list of the appropriate locations for affordable housing on page 28. But I I'll do a
deeper dive into those properties when we get to the second half of the report. Can I I'm sorry. I I need to ask a question here because it's germaine. Um when you say utility capacity, can you define that? Yes. So water and sewer.
Okay. All right. So presence of water and sewer. Correct. So, it's not only presence, but it's also do we uh is there capacity either with where you're sending your sewer to or where you're receiving your
water from? Okay. Because the thing, you know, and I'll speak about this later on that uh I believe is is a substantial threat to Bridgewater and to the surrounding community is that um um you
know, we we support a public utility that includes various piping uh as well as pumping stations. Um I I and then down the line it goes to SRVSA to the sewer to the sewage treatment
plant. Um I have severe cons I have severe concern that um when you take Warren whose uh stuff goes through our system as well as Bridgewaters as well as you know the
various other towns that flow through. Um I I don't believe they've properly accounted for for capacity at all. Um, I think our pumping stations are going to be overwhelmed potentially. I think that the SRVSA treatment plant is going to be
overwhelmed. Um, and in order to alleviate that, we're talking about millions and millions of dollars of infrastructure investment that's going to need to be made. You raise a valid concern, and I can
tell you that the in-house engineering staff reached out to the sewage authority and they indicated that the treatment plant currently has capacity for the proposed affordable housing developments that are outlined in this plan. But right you're conveying
do they also have capacity for any other private development that occurs or if the private development occurs and takes the capacity first you know what what's the straw that breaks the camel's back so to speak is
it going to be these units because these may not be the only units that get built over the next 10 years you know subdivisions may occur individuals may add on to their homes, add additional uh toilets and other facilities that are
going to feed into the system. So I I have some very severe concern that there will be negative downstream consequence um and that um you know there is a limit to the capacity and while maybe the
answer is sure we can take on these 200 units or these 400 units okay but does that get us to a point where maybe not in 2035 we have a disaster but we're pretty darn close to it and then those who live in this community are going to be looking at rate increases for their
sewers that are going to be astronomical because adding on to a sewage treatment plant is not like adding, you know, a sun room on the back of your house. I mean, when you start adding on or or secondary or tertiary uh uh sewer treatment plants, you know, you're you're talking millions, tens of
millions of dollars. And and so, you know, I I I know the due diligence was done and the answer is yes. I just question if the answer in time is truly going to be yes. I think all of your points are valid, Councilman. And what I would recommend
is that after this housing plan is adopted that the township sit down with the sewage authority because by you know in five days all of the towns that send to the sewage authority will have to have their adopted plans and then we'd have a comprehensive
picture at how many total units are proposed in the various towns that send their sewer to the authority and then they'll have a full picture of what that looks like and can and they accommodate it. Okay. But so so what you're saying is
utility capacity at least at the surface has been asked and answered. Yes. Okay. Whether that turns out to be accurate and true, time will tell. All I can tell you is what was reported to me, but it's it's this is not a
concern that is limited to Bridgewater. I have several towns that depending on how many of their units get built may have either a water or a sewer issue. Um so I do think it warrants a meeting to have that larger global discussion so
that everyone has their eyes wide open and I mean you know just to to brief I don't want to talk on this sidebar I could go on longer um you know I I've been down into the into the pumping stations you know I've taken it as a serious responsibility to understand how
this multi-million dollar system works um you know we're not an island here you There are homes in a wide range of communities around us who are tied into our piping and then ultimately into our pump stations and then ultimately
further downstream into the into this uh the um sewer utility, the sewer authority. Um and you know you know you know you know Michael confirmed this. Warren is coming through us. Part of Greenbrook is coming through us. Part of Branchburg is coming through us.
Others that's about it. Those are the highlights. You know, so so again, we should also be concerned, well, what's Warren's planning board doing? What's Branchburg's planning board doing? What's Greenbrook's planning board doing? Is Greenbrook building on a
part of of their town that's flowing our way or flowing the other way? Is Branchburg building on the part of their town that flows our way or flowing the other way? You know, I mean, you know, this is not a small issue and it's and it's not a trivial matter. Um, you know, because one of the commitments that we
have here in Bridgewater is, you know, that that, you know, we are going to properly fund our utility because, you know, when you flush your toilet, it needs to go away from your house. That is a responsibility that we have and to provide the infrastructure to make sure
that happens and not hopefully it'll go down, but maybe it won't. Um, you know, and again, I don't want to get more graphic than that, but you know, that that's what's at stake here is because at a certain point, if there is insufficient insufficient uh um uh capacity and insufficient
utility, can't guarantee that what you think is going to happen is going to always happen. Can I add in something that concerns me too? We had a pipe issue, the water main break, what last year? Is that last
year? Um, and then an even bigger one a little bit ago. And I run a business in the area, but I also live in the area. And my house lost water, but the business did. And when I talked to New Jersey American Water, they've got piping that's really, really, really
old. So the from from what how I understood it. So now we're going to have more usage, more water running through the pipes. Like yes, can the capacity fit it? Maybe at this point in time, maybe not for the future, but what's that going to do for the old infrastructure? Because they said it's
only a matter of I mean, I spoke with someone who said it's only a matter of time before it comes more comes with needing to replace many of our water main pipes. And that'll that that'll influence your your rates because again, New Jersey American
Water, if they're investing in their infrastructure, they're going to pass it on. So, it's interesting. you know, you know, you're worried about the inflow. I'm talking about the outflow. It doesn't really matter. You know, I mean, it it's a system that works not all the time. Um, and you know, these are these
are strains and stressors um that, you know, eventually, you know, could could cause substantial financial liability. Um, but okay, I I don't want I know you have a whole presentation. I don't want to belver the point. I'd like the record to reflect
that Miss Sakor is in attendance. for comments made. All good. So, continuing on, let me So, where I would like to focus our attention is
chapter um 10 page if I could see the page number page 40. So oftent times when I am presenting in front of planning board or a council
there is a common misconception that affordable households have no income or they are homeless and that is not 100% accurate. Are there facilities um specifically section 8 where they do not have to have an
income? Yes. But the overwhelming majority of affordable housing that is built in this state is regulated by both an income ceiling and an income floor. So the table I'm showing on the screen are the 2024 regional income limits, which of course were updated after we
had to have this on file. But it paints you a really good picture of what kind of incomes are permitted to occupy these housing units. So for your region, there's six regions in the state. A single person could make over $81,000
and be considered an affordable housing unit. The income increases as the number of members of your household increases. Conversely, there is also a floor to income. And I'll give you the example from a rental perspective. Under the
regulations, an affordable household cannot be rented an apartment if the rent exceeds 33% of their income. And there's a lot of logic in that because if they're paying 50% of their income in rents, you are setting that household up for failure. How are they going to put
food on the table, pay the electric bill, drive a car in a state that you need a car to get around in? And so there's both a income ceiling and an income floor for affordable households. So then
we'll turn to the following page, the start of chapter 11. So, as I said at the beginning of the presentation, we have a four-part affordable housing obligation. Beyond the overall obligation, the prior round, the third round, and the fourth round all have
micro requirements that we have to meet. And those micro requirements are different depending on which round you are looking at. And so you will see on page 41 the uh there's a table for the fourth round micro requirements which
are com calculated completely different than they were calculated in the third round. So there is a minimum percent of our units that have to be available for families which really is a mis it term but that's the way the rules call it.
When they used the word families, what it should have been called was nonrestricted. Any affordable household can move in. It's not restricted to any population. In addition, a certain percent of our units have to be rental units. Then a certain percent of our units have
to be family rental units. Conversely, the number of age restricted credits or for seniors that we can apply are capped and the number of bonuses that we can receive are capped as well. So, not only do we have to satisfy each one of these obligations, we have to make sure that
we check the box for all these micro requirements when we're putting together this housing plan, which this report does meet all of those micro requirements. So then we turn to page 43 chapter 12. And this in my opinion is
the heart of every housing element in fair share plan because once you know your number then the question is how do we meet the number? And so this chapter is divided into two sections. The first section focuses on all of the existing mechanisms that are creditw worthy as we
sit here tonight. The second half of this chapter then analyzes the proposed mechanisms either that are under construction or in progress or zoned for. So let's start with what I consider the good news our prior round
obligation. So tonight, as we sit here, we have a total of 87 credits, 143 bonuses, which total 950 credits from 13 mechanisms
that completely satisfy our prior round obligation. And if you were paying attention at the beginning, you would go, Darlene, our prior round obligation was only 713. Yes. So that means those prior round mechanisms, all the proactive planning that went into um was
put in place has paid dividends because not only have we satisfied that prior round obligation in its entirety, we were able to carry forward those surplus credits above the 713 unit obligation and apply it towards our third round obligation.
So then we turn to page 44, 45, and 46 because there are that many existing credits for the third round. So we carry forward 237 surplus credits
from the prior round to apply against that 1,414 unit third round obligation. In addition to that, we have over 50 mechanisms that exist on the ground today that range from 100% affordable housing developments, group homes, assisted
living facilities, and inclusionary housing developments. And if you turn to page 46, what you'll see is we have a grand total. I zoom in. Um, oh, I should also mention the extension of controls. So, this is something that Bridgewwater
has been a a pro at. Um, other towns should emulate your efforts because certain units when they were built, the for sale units had the ability for towns to unilaterally extend the controls on those units when their initial deed
restriction expired. And Bridgewater has been proactive and before those deed restrictions toll, they have extended the controls with a stroke of a pen because you can do that via resolution. And so instead of building hundreds of new units to otherwise generate the same
number of credits, we have utilized the existing affordable housing stock in Bridgewater, extended those controls. Therefore, those households get to remain in those units and uh reap the benefit of reduced taxes and etc um etc.
And we gain the benefit of a second credit for all those units. So as we sit here tonight, we have a total of 1,070 credits. 278 bonuses, which totals 1,348 existing credits to apply against that
1,414 unit third round obligation. That is excellent. Um, not many towns have that percentage of their third round house, uh, third round obligation already completed by this point. So,
furthermore, we have credits that we can apply to the fourth round. the fourth round that hasn't even started as we sit here tonight. So, when the um attorneys went back and looked at all the credits that we've previously extended and were part of our third round settlement
agreement, what they realized is that there were 158 additional units above and beyond what we claimed credit for in our third round housing element, our housing element and our fair share housing center settlement agreement that were extended and are creditworthy. now
towards our fourth round obligation and you will see each and every one of those addresses because we wanted to have the proof attached to this document to verify those credits. So you'll see all those addresses on pages 47, 48, 49, 50,
51, and 52. So we have 158 credits before the round even begins based on just extending those existing controls. In addition, in doing all of our analysis, all this preparation that's been going on for over a year, we
learned that there was an existing group home in town with a deed restriction that was not counted as part of our third round settlement agreement. So, while there is a plethora of existing group homes that we did receive credit for, this one at 416 Route 28, we did not. So, because it is a supportive and
special needs housing unit, we get a credit per bedroom as opposed to a credit per unit and we get a full bonus per bedroom. So, what is from the outside a single family home, we receive a total of six credits on the ground
today. In addition, the planning board approved many years ago, I think it was back in 2017, yes, the Delaney, which is an assisted living facility. It's multi-level care facility. There is a component to it that is licensed as an
assisted living facility. And in order to receive a license to operate an assisted living facility in the state of New Jersey, the operator is required to set aside 10% of those assisted living beds as Medicaid beds. Medicaid beds
count as lowincome units. And so 10% of the assisted living component are nine credits that we have on the ground today. So looking at page 53 in the center of that page, you will see tonight as we sit here before the fourth
round has even started, Bridgewater has a total of 173 credits to apply against our 421 unit obligation. Once again, all this proactive work leading up uh to the housing plan is paying dividends because
it lessens the number of units we need to build moving forward. So now we turn our attention to what's proposed. So we start with the rehabilitation obligation which is 130. So the first thing we're going to do is continue what we have been doing for the
past eight plus or minus years and that is a township sponsored rehabilitation program. We utilize the affordable housing trust fund which is funded through new construction whether that is a new single family home or new
non-residential development. they have to pay a portion of their equalized assessed value into that affordable housing trust fund and then the trust fund can only be used for uh very specific affordable housing related purposes.
So this program is open to existing property owners in Bridgewater. It cannot be a deedrestricted affordable housing unit. The household has to be of low or moderate income and the home must require one or more major structural
repairs. So, new roof, electrical, insulation, windows, um if they're on a well, new well, those types of things. It cannot be used for cosmetic purposes. And we are setting aside $10,000 per
unit to renovate up to 30 homes. based on our experience in the third round, we believe that funding is sufficient. Um, so that is what we're going to do to address our rehabilitation obligation.
Now, you may say, Darlene, 30 is not 130. Um, if for some reason we have more than 30 folks approach us and we need to expand that program, we will certainly do it. However, because the program has a lot of restrictions, like you have to
um record either a lean or a mortgage on the property, many folks are hesitant to enter into the program. So, based on my experience in all of my other towns, setting aside funding for 30 will be sufficient to check the box for rehabilitation.
The prior round, as I mentioned, has been completely satisfied. So, there's nothing further we have to do on that front. The third round, we have two proposed strategies. So, starting at the bottom of page 54, you will see the first one is Eden Woods. This property
is located along East Main Street, County Route 533. It has been um zoned under a redevelopment plan for inclusionary housing. In fact, that property was approved by the board back
in 2016 for a 220 unit inclusionary development. There is both a um the property owner has been designated as the redeveloper and a redevelopment agreement has been designated. So, all of the components are in place for that
site to develop as an inclusionary development. If the full buildout of 220 units was realized, we would receive a total of 44
credits from that site as well as 44 bonuses. So, Bridgewater has done everything they're required to do under the statute. We have put the zoning in place. We have made the the um development of affordable housing a realistic development potential. We've entered into a redevelopment agreement
and now we are waiting for the developer to move ahead with their construction or submit a revised plan. Then we have Bridge House on page 57. Um Bridge House 2. So this property is
owned by Somerset Home for Temporarily Displaced Children. Um although the applicant that was in front of the board was Visions and Pathways and they have received approval to construct a 10-unit building for um
young adults who have aged out of foster care. That facility is considered under the rules a supportive and special needs housing facility. And so we receive for that property 10 credits because of the 10 units and 10 bonuses. So a total of
20 credits from that site. Those two mechanisms would then satisfy our remaining third round obligation. When you total up all of the credits between what exists and what is proposed, what you will realize is that
we based on the town's proactive efforts over the past eight years will generate 42 surplus credits that can then be applied against our fourth round obligation. In addition, we have a handful of
proposed mechanisms. The first one is located at 901 route 20220 206. This is a vacantowned property that the township owns. In fact, they utilized affordable housing trust funds to purchase the property. So, we have to utilize this
property for affordable housing in some shape or fashion. The township is partnering with Noval, which is a known affordable housing developer, to construct a group home on that property. The property is located in a uh single family residential zone and group homes
are permitted as of right under the municipal land use law in single family zones. Noville has committed to construct a minimum fourbedroom group home on that property and the township has committed um some of its affordable housing trust
fund to help with the construction of that site. Once that property is built and the deed restriction is put in place, we will receive four credits and four bonuses for what is otherwise a single family home.
Next on page 63, we have another township owned property located on Whitney Court. This site is vacant today um and the township is partnering with Triple C Housing, which is a affordable housing operator and developer. Triple C
is proposing to construct a five unit building in what looks like a single family home and that building will be reserved for individuals and their families who are either deaf or heart of hearing.
The building will qualify as a supportive special needs housing facility and because of that we will receive five credits and five bonuses for once again what looks like a single family home from the outside.
Then on page 64 we have a site located along Cornell Boulevard. You may say where is that? It's sandwiched between Cornell Boulevard and Route 2026. But more of a locationational factor is it's next to the diner on a wooded tract of
property. This site is privately owned. It is oversized for the zone. It's over 1.5 acres. And the township is once again partnering with Noville to subdivide that oversized lot into two pieces. The
larger of the two pieces would contain an 11 unit 100% affordable rental building. And the smaller piece would contain a 4unit family rental building reserved for disabled veterans and their
families. This property would yield and actually on your screen you'll see uh a map of the site. It is a regularly shaped um and access would come for through Cornell Boulevard, not through the highway. Um but you could walk to the
diner. you could. Um, I have to admit I have a vision in my head of a a group of cute retired veterans sitting at the diner having a cup of coffee. Um, so this site when developed would generate 15 credits and 15 bonuses. So a
total of 30 credits from that site. Next we move on. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Can I sidebar for just a quick moment if you'll indulge me? So you know Mr. Papis is our administrator. So, you know, we we have a a regular and ongoing dialogue
about township matters and and we we are both in agreement. Um he as administrator, myself as a councilman that when we as a community can can do things that encourage housing for um
veterans, disabled, others who have some other limitation. Um, I'll do that all day long because I think it I think it's good public policy. I think it's morally right um to
to be able to uh where possible uh provide reasonable housing options. And when this was presented to me and and you know disabled and veterans, I'll do that. I I'll support that all day long. Now, clearly we can't make a whole town
of that. Um, but I I think that this this portion of the plan and the fact that we will be able to welcome people into our community who who have done a service and and who have a need
potentially related to that service I I think I think is is um you know it's it's uh it's touching really. Um there's parts of this plan I don't like, don't get me wrong, but that's an element and and you know, Mr. Papis and I have had conversations about
the number of boxes that something like this checks is is a very positive story to our community. Thank you, council. So um now we're on page 68 and we turn now to from the 100%
developments to the inclusionary developments. Um because we have to remember we have to meet all those micro requirements and we do not have an unlimited amount of trust fund money um to build out our entire plan based on
100% affordable housing developments. So, of course, over the past year, we have received numerous phone calls from many developers and property owners who have asked to be included in our housing element and fair share plan. And we have met with everyone who has uh asked for a
meeting and we've evaluated all of their proposals. And what you have before you tonight are a series of proposals that check several boxes and and we think fit within the township and also are a good what I'll call bang for
your credit buck because we want to maximize our bonuses when we prepare this housing plan. And so first we have KR. KRE owns a property located at 520 Route 22 East. The
building right now um is an office building. It contains, I believe, a credit union. It is immediately next to the Bridgewater Court inclusionary development. And so we uh met with KRE and we actually negotiated with them to
construct a 128 inclusionary multif family development which would contain 28 family rental affordable units. If you do the math that equates to a 21.87% set aside. That is higher than the
normal set aside you would receive on an inclusionary development. And this is one of the reasons why they are in our plan. You'll notice a theme with all of the sites that have been selected. We have worked really hard over the past few months to make sure that where we are building these inclusionary
developments. We are getting a higher set aside than one would normally receive to ma to maximize our affordable housing credits and minimize the number of housing units we need to construct overall in the township. So that property would generate 28 credits from
the 28 affordable housing units. And because we are doing redevelopment of a commercial property, we get a half bonus per unit. So we get 14 bonus credits from this site. Then we move on to Bridgewater Plaza.
This property is located at 250 Route 28, but it actually has frontage on Route 22 as well. So this is closer to the intersection of Route 22 and Miltown Road. Uh the property today is developed with two office buildings and um BNE
Associates and Sterling Properties approached us with a joint venture and we negotiated with them and what we ultimately settled on is a 140 unit multifamily development with 31 affordable housing units. That is a set
aside of 22%. When that site is built, we would receive 31 credits for the affordable housing units and 15.5 bonus credits because once again, we're redeveloping a commercial site and we get a half bonus
per affordable unit from that property. The next site is at the bottom. Excuse me, Miss Green. Could you just uh clarify uh what we discussed after we discussed the draft of this about the uh the vehicular access? Oh yes, thank you
Mr. Papis. Uh so the one thing that we will be doing as part of the ordinance for this property that would allow the development is that the site access would be from route 22 and route 28
would be limited to emergency vehicle access only. Thank you for pointing that out. And if you could clarify where would that emergency access be? So the e uh on route 28. So, there are there are driveways today at the office building
on both route 28 and Route 22. What we're proposing as part of the ordinance is that the property access for all the um renters would be on Route 22, but there would
only be emergency vehicle access to Route 28. So that would not be for the occupants to come in and out of Route 28, only for emergency vehicles. And that would be something that this board would review when they come in for their site plan application to confirm that
they are meeting those requirements. Uh so that is the Bridgewater Plaza site. Then we move on to Frontier Road, 1400 Frontier Road. So, this site is currently vacant, although I know it was previously forested and that it was
clearcut by the proceeding property owners. The township was approached by the current property owners, which is frontier developers, and they are seeking to construct an age restricted
inclusionary rental development. Initially, they came in with a number much higher than what is in this plan, but through our negotiations, we have whittleled that project down to a total of 340 units with a 22% affordable housing set aside based on credits, not
units. And so, there's a a nuance with this property. So, 70 affordable senior apartments would be within that complex. And then to get to the 22% set aside, the developer has committed to have one of the units be a fivebedroom
um alternative living arrangement. So with an al alternative living arrangement, we get the credit by the bedroom. Combining those two numbers gets the developer to a 22% set aside. So that property would generate 70
credits for the senior affordable units. We would be able to receive seven bonuses for the age restricted component and then we would receive five credits for the alternative living facility and then five bonuses
for the alternative living facility bedrooms. So if you turn to page 75 oh I'm sorry let me just mention one thing on that site. I think it's important to note
that this property was previously approved and currently has preliminary and final site plan approval for the construction of two fourstory hotels, a 757 seat banquet hall, a 357
seat restaurant, and a 10,000 plus square foot adult social center. So the proposed use of 340 senior units will be much less intense than the approval that is currently allowed as we sit here
tonight. So I think that's an important distinction. While it is a vacant site, unlike the two preceding um sites that I discussed that are active office buildings, while this site is vacant, the approved development would generate
a whole host of traffic at all sorts of hours because of those as of well, I should say board approved uses. I'm sorry. I needed to interject only briefly to say a previous planning board
with not none of the members who are sitting on this deis right now under a very different philosophy about development in Bridgewater approved that site. Excellent point.
One other point if I could. Um there Miss Green mentioned it was clearcut. Uh there have been drainage issues associated with that. Uh and when the um uh clearcut took place and there was a significant problem with runoff on the
road, our township engineer then looked at the uh drainage plan that had been approved as part of this development that was mentioned that had been previously approved and he believed it would be whole wolffully inadequate if that was developed. So we would have
seen a serious drainage issue there um for a long time. So those are all of the proposed mechanisms. So when you turn to page 75, you will see a summary of the proposed sites and their credits. So that
rehabilitation program, we have no idea how many individuals are going to come take advantage of it, but we're going to put it in place and that's all we're obligated to do. If no one knocks on our door to take advantage of the the trust fund money, we are not penalized. Then we have the two remaining third round
sites, Eden Woods and Bridge House 2, that when built will contribute another 108 total credits to our tally. Because of all the township's hard work over the past um decade, we'll have surplus credits from the third round, which is
totals 42. and then our six proposed sites will then generate the remaining credits which will total 265.5 credits. So then turning to
the table on the following page and actually I'll skip over prior round because we've already talked about that prior round is satisfied. We don't have to worry about that. Third round as I mentioned is almost satisfied except for Eden Woods and Bridge House. They have an asterk beside them because they that means that they're proposed mechanisms
not yet finalized. As you can see at the bottom of page 77, once those two remaining mechanisms are completed, we will have,456 credits to apply against a 1414 unit third round obligation. Which means at
the top of page 78, you will see that we have 42 surplus credits from our third round. We have those 158 extensions because of the township's proactive efforts in extending existing units. We have the existing group home, the
existing assisted living facility. And then we have the proposed alternative living arrangement group home at 901 route 2026. The supportive housing facility on Whitney Court for the deaf and the heart of hearing. The Cornell Boulevard property that will have both
the um 100% affordable component and the disabled veterans component. And then we have only three inclusionary sites. So that totals 438.5 credits which exceeds our 421 unit
obligation. And so I think it's important to note that if we were to instead not have done all the proactive efforts over the last decade and just sit back like some other towns have done and do nothing in order to build or to
generate the 421 affordable housing credits that are required as part of the fourth round. If we did that purely through inclusionary zoning at a 20% set aside, this housing plan will be proposing the construction of 2,15
new homes. The plan in front of you tonight with the proposed mechanisms for the fourth round, the fourth round mechanisms will only construct 629 new housing units. That is less than
onethird of the number I just quoted you. So all of this hard work, this proactive planning, thinking ahead has really paid dividends to the township because otherwise we would be talking about reszoning many more sites with
many more housing units with many more impacts on our infrastructure, not only our utilities, but our school system and our um township uh staff and our police department. And so in summary, what you
have before you tonight is a plan that leverages our township owned properties that strategically has located sites and has minimized the amount of construction to meet what is an unfunded mandate from
the state of New Jersey. I want to thank the administration and all the township professionals and staff that have helped in coming to this plan. It has been a long journey with a lot of hours and a lot of late nights in front of the council in close session to
figure this document out. But I am really proud to sit here and present this plan tonight because I believe it is a really excellent plan that meets our constitutional obligation and minimizes the impact to the township.
Miss Green, thank you for that extremely detailed presentation. And I think all the board members here uh thank you for that presentation. Probably do have a few questions. That's fine. If not comments. Actually, I just need to make a comment before some questions and I know there'll be questions. Just to put
into context, Bridgewater right now has roughly 15,000 housing units plus or minus. So that 200. So this will change the face of Bridgewater. There's no question. What's at stake is how much change are
you talking about? So to go from 15,000 to 15,600 wh while that's you know you know what about 4% to go from 15,000 to 17,000 would be much more than that. Um and
those are the kinds of numbers that certain other towns have seen in order to meet meet their third round obligation and now their fourth round. And I don't want to disparage any other of our surrounding towns except to say
you drive up and down 22 and you see it. You drive up towards 78 and you see it. Um, you know, particularly when you sorry when you drive west on 22, the township
between Bridgewater and the Hunter County border, you see it. um some of those communities are are run the risk of being almost unrecognizable compared to what they were. Um you know th this plan
it is a change um and and it may not be wholly wanted change. I mean, you know, we'll all deliberate and share our points of view, but you know, with that sword hanging over our neck, with all these obligations, with a lot of uncertainty for certain
things, which I'll also go into, not now, but you know, when it's when we're deliberating, um the fact, you know, there was so much preparation, but then ultimately this has been like a forced sprint for us. We didn't even get our number until
January. We had to take action as a council by January 31st or whatever. We scheduled meetings not knowing if there was going to be snow. What happened if there was snow that night, you know, um you know, we were going to have to get literally we were probably going to have to get picked up by police vehicles and brought here because we were going to
have to meet that night. There was no other option. um uh you know and then it's been this like maniacal sprint and as you pointed out and and thank you for providing us such
uh uh outstanding professional support. There are a limited number of people who can even do this work from planners and attorneys and everything else. You know it it's just it's craziness. It's crazy that that these that these
deadline, you know, thankfully we did all this preparation to be able to even complete this, but you know, the deadlines and it's, you know, it's not the way to run a railroad is all I'm going to say. Um, but within the constraints, you know, well, I mean,
we'll all deliberate. Maybe we'll ask questions first, but um, you know, I do want to thank you for for educating us, um, offering us many alternatives. The ones you see here are the ones with the the most support uh among the council
members and the administration. Uh and that made the best planning sense. Mr. Chowry, please. I echo Councilman Car. It's in fact for the first time I could read it and to be
honest it was good and I understood it that has been worse part of it. Uh thank you very much. I actually agree with Mr. Car that it really is fantastic plan. I still have a question though for a number wise. Initially in the first few pages you mentioned that you going to
build 205 units somewhere. Uh oh. In the projections, the projections will be a total of 205 affordable housing units. Okay. And that's is a part of the 600 that you mentioned. Overall it is. So that is
part of our fourth round obligation and our third round obligation. So total third round and the fourth round that 205 units is basically part of the 600 unit that you are part of our overall obligation. So what is confusing is well
we we will always have more credits than units because of the supportive housing properties because that's where we get a credit per. Oh so for example with the um the group home at 901 2022 206 that is one housing
unit from a construction point of view but the township will receive four credits and four bonuses. So once one unit from the world of construction and cos but eight credits in the world of affordable housing it makes it a little
confusing. No, no, no. You actually on a 911 route 2022. That is the case anyway, right? That's 4 + 4. Yes. Actually, you are getting the credit and the bonus. Correct. Okay. Um, okay. Second questions. So in bridge out of the
15,000 household uh I'm sure there are several of them who actually falls probably below or at uh the income level that you uh in a table you mentioned probably you know median was about 101,000 lowest one or 30,000 or something like that depends on their
number of household members right so that means can anybody as a residents of the bridge order can come to us and say can include me on the affordable housing my house. Uh is that the mechanism is
there or uh it's not? So could we theoretically do that? Yes. But in this current housing market, their house is probably worth much more than it would be if they went into the affordable housing program because then they're
restricted on their re resale price. Okay, understood. So while I was thinking that you know like Mr. K always think about you know how all the you know swear as an elders planning how to reduce the number of even from 600 or not is there any possibility that's what
I was looking for I am sure that if a homeowner approached the governing body or the administration over the next 10 years and wanted to do that we could we could utilize our trust fund to enable that. Unfortunately, with the housing
market stretched so thin and the property, you know, the the prices people are getting for some of these homes are astronomical. Um, they'd be restricting the sales price of their home for 30 years. So, it's a very
long time to artificially deflate the value of your home. Okay. I was thinking some you know sometimes people unfortunately people get uh divorce and something and then always go
for all this uh buy a house for cash those companies those company really cheat very well and so I'm sure township at least will be matching those kind of you know values for example how if house is $600,000 I'm just picking a number
here uh by force if you want to sell it probably that may not get that money but you know if you have to go to the cash value money that probably they will not give more than $4,000 or something like that. It's a desperate situation wise. So anyhow you answered my question. Thank
you very much. Now I understand what is okay. Thank thank you chairman. Thank you. Does the board have any questions regarding the testimony you just heard? I have just a couple questions. I don't want to monopolize too much time, but it
is important that we all understand that what this is and what its impacts are. So, um, this planning board recently, uh, uh, permitted, um, what is it? 1200 Route 22. Uh,
a property that whose primary uh, likely uh, uh, use is a data center, which would uh, generate no housing units. there is an alternative use that was granted which would be 200 senior
housing units with a 20% set aside. So theoretically um the data center may may fail. Um we certainly hope not because that was our intention for it to be a data center but it it might not be it might be 400
senior I'm sorry 200 senior units with a 40% set aside. So, we're going to pass this plan tonight. Um, circumstances beyond our control might create 40 affordable senior
affordable units. Yet, we're still tied to this number. So, we don't get to lop 40 off the bottom. If something like that happens, we would essentially due to circumstances beyond our control and situations unknown, we could end up with
40 more units than what's proposed here. And we have no ability to scale back. Is that correct? So, it all depends on when that happens. So if that happens after the program
certifies our housing element and fair share plan, we would not be able to scale back. If that occurred before our plan were certified, we depending on how far we are in the process, we may be able to amend the plan. So unfortunately,
it's all it will all boil down to the timing. And I don't know if if that application has a time window to it. Is there a trigger? You know, I I don't I don't know that detail. Um, all right. The second question is, or
first a comment, then a question. Um, there is legislation bouncing around Trenton, and usually the worse the idea is, the more likely it is to be passed at some point. There is, uh, legislation bouncing around that would permit those
uh, who own um, office buildings. if those office buildings are deemed insufficiently uh rented or populated to essentially automatically permit those properties to be turned into um uh
residential use. Um and I guess then all kinds of triggers would occur with affordable requirements and all. It's not this is not known. It's just an idea. But you know in all of our experience the worse the idea the more likely it's probably
going to happen. So Bridgewater, you know, obviously has a sizable number of office buildings. You know, it's it's part of our diversity of our uh of our land base uh you know, of our of our uh land land use uh and and ratable base.
Um one of the first thoughts that I had when I heard about that dreadful idea was um is it possible that these office buildings that we have could ultimately become an albatross to us? And do we want to proactively take some of them,
especially those that might not be as financially viable right now, do we want to voluntarily take those offline? And that's one of the reasons why you see two office buildings on this list is because what would happen if, you know, we adopt the plan, we didn't include
those two office buildings. X number of years from now, you know, this brilliant idea surfaces from Trenton as a law, not as an idea. And now all of a sudden, we have a whole bunch of these office buildings raising the white flag and saying, "I can't make it as an office building anymore. Now I'm going to make
it as housing and I'm going to do a 20% set aside and all this other, you know, all this kind of stuff." You know, now we're looking at the type of explosive growth um that we're that we're trying to prevent. So I guess you know I don't know how much of a question this is but you know you know are you you know and I
know your answer that yes there is a proposal its fate is unknown maybe it'll see the light of day maybe it won't so you know I guess I'll let me put in the form of a question at some point if something like that were to occur is having surplus office space a liability
for a town that bill terrifies because it undermines home rule. It violates your master plan and it ignores your zoning ordinance.
If that bill becomes reality, those office parks or I shouldn't say office parks, those office developments are now you and every other town that also has a sizable office component is your number one threat. And so I would encourage the governing
body to stay a breast of that bill. I know that they were revising it. It also at one point in time did include uh retail over a certain size. So struggling retail centers would also have the same opportunity to redevelop
under one of the versions of the bill. So I would encourage the governing body to stay on top of that. Certainly write to your local legislators because there there honestly is no point in adopting a housing plan if that bill is
adopted because you lose all control with that bill. Well, we lose some control under this. We'd lose all control under that. Correct. What bill is that called again? It's they they had called it the stranded assets bill. I don't remember what its number is.
The Bridgewater Council did adopt a resolution uh taking a position on that uh month or two ago. [Music] But the moral of the story is one of the reasons why two among other reasons why
two office buildings are on here is they are arguably distressed. uh and essentially to as a defensive maneuver taking them off the um the role
so to speak prevents something worse from occurring. Correct. This was a strategic move. Any other questions? council. I I I don't. Very good. Pepper from this side of the day is here.
Well, I read the the report and went around Bridgewater and looked at some of the properties and I said, "Yeah, this is a a good place where they could redevelop it." And then some places I was thinking, "We're scratching with this property. I mean, if we have to use
this property, we're really scratching at the bottom of the barrel." Um, I can't help but think on some properties and some of the contractors who have come. Excuse me. Excuse me, Mr. McGor. Are these
questions or are these comments? Mr. Chairman, comments. Okay. Oh, if we're going to take questions because we have to have the public hearing. So, I think shouldn't the board members reserve their comments until later? Yes, Mr. Papis, thanks for clarifying that. We're strictly focusing on questions regarded to the presentation just this time.
We'll hold on. We'll revisit that. Thank you. Any questions? Actually, I have a question. This is just curiosity and I don't know if you'll know the answer to this. So, you know, we've been very diligent. Working
with you um has been very enjoyable even though the topic itself is not. Um, are there towns that are just like they're not going to make this deadline? They're, you know, like they're they're
not having this meeting a handful of days before June 30th. I mean, are there like horror stories going on right now? Not not among your clients, I'm sure, but, you know, like like is there like panic in the streets, so to speak, in in some communities because they're they're
just not nearly as advanced as we are. I will give you three scenarios. I am aware of one town that is located within the Highlands region that will not be preparing a housing plan by June 30th. Now, there's a whole different set of circumstances when you're in the
Highlands region because your development potential is precluded because of the Highlands regional master plan. I'm also aware of another town where the planning board adopted the housing plan, but when it was sent to the governing body, they declined to endorse it.
And there is one other town that I'm aware of where they have now went through three hours of public comments, exhausted the clock, and carried their special planning board hearing to tomorrow night, hoping to get through the packed meeting room full of crowd
commenters. Um, so it really depends on where you're at in the state. We're in a pretty good place. you are. It's a great question.
Can you clarify if these haven't if some of these haven't come through the board or they haven't come through through the board yet to approve them, what happens if a town, you know, you talked about what is it the um yeah, one of Yes. Um,
what happens if we don't approve of their plan? Oh, their site plan application. Yes. So, you'd have to have an awfully good reason for denial. So, if they came in with double the density, that's of
course a a fine reason for denial. In fact, they wouldn't be here. They'd be visiting the zoning board in that instance. So if they were seeking some sort of devariance um then that is certainly grounds for denial because this has been discussed uh with these developers that have made
it into the plan extensively. So they are well aware of the number of units and the set aside that is being placed into this plan. If they came in for example for a front yard setback and the deviation was one foot I would strongly discourage the board from denying them
over a one- foot variance. So it would really depend on what the deviation is or deviations are and the the degree of the deviation. Um and so it's really a casebycase issue.
And what if they came the one of the developers came with their site plan and said they wanted to do something completely different? Are they held to this plan? We will be putting the ordinances in place and if they come into the zoning board wanting double the density then
the zoning board is within full rights to deny them because it exceeds what we have discussed and agreed upon. You'll notice um in the voluminous appendix that we have commitment letters and there was a very specific reason to
obtain those commitment letters in which each one of those developers has listed the total number of units and the set aside which comports w with what is in the housing plan. So no one can well I guess they could claim amnesia but we're going to have a letter refreshing their
memory in case they forget. they couldn't in theory sell and then be held to like that property and then that next person they didn't write the letter, right? They're not held to it for a new site plan. You know what I mean? Oh, so
you're saying if uh one of the current property owners sold, the new property owner would be subject to the zoning regulations that we put in place. Okay. but also subject to the plan that we put in place for affordable housing.
Correct. So, if they wanted to do an alternative use, they'd be once again visiting your zoning board and they'd have a difficult road to hoe unless there was some, you know, dramatic economical shift that was, you know, beyond the control of Bridgewater. Got
it. Thank you, Mr. Sakura and Miss Green. just to clarify and and help the board understand um what we're hearing this evening is essentially the plan for the zoning as I said as you mentioned previously to enable that future construction. So what we're hearing this evening really is to approve the
theoretical zoning of what would take place under this plan. Is that correct? And and essentially every other case was stand its own merit when it came before this board. So you're approving the vision document. The drafts of the zoning ordinances are attached to it
under the statute. We do not have to adopt the zoning ordinances until March of 2026. So, they'll go through the customary approval process. Council will introduce, they'll refer them here for master plan consistency, and then council will uh perform second reading.
So, um that process will still take place. It's just going to be at a later date because of the way the statute was written. Does that answer the full It perfectly clarifies that question for me. Yes. Thank you. Are there any other questions from the
days? Are there any questions from our members of the public? Good evening. Please state your name and full address for the record. Mary Gallagher, live 102 Highland Avenue. Thank you for a very interesting
You help me clarify affordable housing because I'm very unknown to that. But um I do have some concerns because um I grew up here. I'm a native Bridgewater when it was all farmland and woods and
beautiful. Now we're asphalt and mortar. But the concern I'm having is what I'm hearing a lot of of building in your areas and stuff. And the thing that I am concerned with is as you some of you might know I'm really concerned about my groundwater because I have wells and there's been a lot of development and
there's been some pollution and contamination of that. So, I would like to know when this it sounds like it's going to get passed, but it sounds like I'm concerned as if there's development in these areas. Do they still have to
follow the codes like the D if there's a wetland or a flood plane or if it's a drainage basin? I want to make sure that the areas aren't built in areas that or could even be risky for the people in
that area uh where they you know if it floods then they've got to be rescued or something along those lines or and a hazard. So I just want to make sure that whatever is developed is a safe place to be developed. I mean, I'm on Highland
Avenue and I've we've never had floods before because we had open drainage ditches when I was growing up. So, it never flooded, but I there were two big floods by the end of my road between 202 and Highland the intersection and just flooded out and we had a torrential
rainstorm. So, that has never happened before. So, I'm seeing more flooding. We've had more development. Trees have been knocked down and bigger houses are built. There's less absorption into the waters and it So, I want to be sure that with all this
development with the affordable housing, I think it's all a great idea, by the way. Sounds nice, but I want to be sure it's been safe. That's a big concern. And I want our water supply to be protected, both the groundwater and the city. Most of Greenol is on ground
water. So, it's important that we need absorption to do it. Just want to make sure that building So I guess I want to know is will the D be involved with some of this? Will there be geological things? Will it be
sinko? Will there be flooding? Will it be this? Will it be that? What's going to be the right clarify? Is that true? Will we still have some control over they're not exempt? environmental regulation.
Okay. And correct me if I'm wrong, Darlene, but really the only thing you can't put what are called like unnecessary cost generating features on. So you can't require that like a
subdivision affordable development have, you know, as a means to keep it from being built. But they're certainly not exempt from environmental regulations and and storm water regulations, you know, same yet they don't have to
always follow the zoning or the zoning can be changed and that sometimes I just but again they'd still be subject to water. Okay. So, I I apologize that I stepped out. I
didn't hear everything you said, but I think I picked up the gist of it. Um, wasn't close enough. Well, I'm sorry. I'm not. No, no, well, no, because I I stepped out for a moment. Um, but um I was just asking, you're you're spot on in the question you as in the questions
you're asking. Um and while there are the there D protections will be in place and you know all of the all attempts by this planning board once we see site plans to make sure that whatever is
built is built with as little uh um impact on neighbors and the rest of the community. That's what we've always done. That's what we will continue to do. But you know you talked about zoning change. Essentially, this is zoning change right here on these various properties. But what has been one of my
deepest frustrations is just last summer, we had to adopt a sizable number of what I believe to be unfunded state mandates related to storm water. So, we have the
D pointing their right finger at us and saying, "You town have to do this, this, this, and the other thing." And now we've got Koa or whatever this thing is with their left hand pointing at us, you got to do this, this, this, this, and this. And those two, I'm not saying that
they are po they're they're they're polar opposites, but there is no coordination. There is no coordination. So, you know, if you think, well, what are the impacts of overdevelopment? There's less place for water to go. There's more traffic.
There's le, you know, there's lower quality of life and all those things. So while on a property bypropy basis we will do the best that we can and the D presumably will enforce its regulation, these are competing mandates that we're
getting here. Um so so if it s so it sounds like Trenton's talking out of both sides of their mouth on this one, it's because they are. Um, and so within the governor's administration, you've got your head of D who's marching in one direction, which may or may not be right, and you've got whoever's
associated with this marching in a different direction that may or may not be right. And we're the ones who are squeezed and caught in the middle because we're the ones who bought into this community or communities like this because we expected a certain quality of life. Uh, and obviously change occurs
and unless you want to buy up prop all the properties around you, something else could come. But you know, you you you've you've you've asked exactly the questions that mayor and council administration, we're
thinking the same thing. And and you know, ultimately, will there be protections? Yes. Will there be as much protections as if none of this stuff ever got built? Unfortunately, probably not. Well, it's really the water water protections I'm really really concerned
about a lot because I know I think as we have more droughts and hotter summers, we may see less water and if we don't contain it and groundwater is like a savings account, you know, you it's there when the aquifers
need them and and the reservoirs go dry. So, I really just want to make sure that when all this is being developed that we remember we still need water. You can have all the housing you want, but food, clothing, and shelter is always needed. So, Miss Gallagher, I share your concern
with the groundwater. I don't live too far from you in that area, and I rely on my well at home, myself, my wife, and my kids, and uh we want to make sure they're safety and the protection of that ground water and the aquifers. The other thing is that we've had more floods, but it just now it just drains
out and it it isn't absorbed anymore and according to I get the drought monitor every month now. So um and they're saying that the groundwater the reservoirs are doing great but the groundwater is still up. So we need to
have more absorbed and we need we've been building on wetlands. Bridgewater's been I mean the mall was built on wetlands and I think we need to start realizing we need to keep our wetland so that water. Thank you Miss Keller. That's right. And thank you for your
interest in this topic because this is this is arguably the most important issue to face this community. The idea of the development, but I I'm concerned about the number. The other thing would be the traffic. How are these people going to get to and from where they're go where they're
going to have? You know, there's just a lot of attachments to it. Thank you. Thank you. Another question. Okay. I'm I'm not seeing any other members of the public out there and uh that'll close the
public questioning uh for this plan. There any comments from the DES? I um I want to thank Darlene Green, Mashi and Katherryn Sarmmed, Bill Savo, Alex Fischer have been
absolutely invaluable in bringing us to this point. Uh would like to also give credit to Scarlett Doyle because the December 23rd um December 2023 time frame that Miss Green mentioned was when
Scarlet was still our planner and Darlene was coming in as the affordable housing planner and uh we had established a series of meetings for Scarlet to meet with Darlene, Scarlet to meet with Katherine and then this legislation was signed into law and the
the trajectory of these meetings uh took a different course. Um but Darlene has really done an outstanding job. the the time and the detail that she kind of glossed over tonight is um she
minimized what she did to locate these u credits that we didn't know existed that were all a significant contributing factor to the to the report that you have before you. Um the um
I I I want to emphasize the point that she made about what 629 units versus what 2000 was the number again 2,15. Yeah, that is um a very very significant
accomplishment that um this report summarized. Um, and I I appreciate Miss Gallagher's commentary about zoning and how this is um, as Councilman Kur you pointed out,
two what I think are competing positions that the state legislature ultimately has either through their action or inaction uh, has forced it upon the communities in New Jersey. And um, I Mr. Green, I
also want to thank you uh in the first portion of your report how you summarized pretty concisely very lengthy history of affordable housing program in New Jersey and and Bridgewater Township's part in that. It
was if someone needed a history lesson on on those two topics, this report really captures all of it. And uh for those members of the public who may be concerned as Miss Gallagher was uh reading that and understanding
what happened back in the 1970s and how uh because of legislative inaction and the courts taking action. Um that is why we are here. Municipalities are not here through their own choice. This is
something that has been mandated. I can't emphasize that enough. But at the same time, Bridgewater has been uh responsible and recognizing that uh unless the legislature in the future changes course, this is the reality. And
if we did not follow the steps that we've been following, it would be to our own peril as we are seeing in so many other communities around the state. Um so I again want to thank you very much for your diligence and your thoroughess.
Um I I am extremely confident that if anyone would try to question this or challenge this in any way I believe because of your efforts and our legal team uh we are in a very very strong position and I certainly would support
this Mr. Chowry. Any other comments? Mr. McGor, your report was excellent and uh well thought out, well put together,
readable, and when I toured some of the areas, I could look at your report and look at the areas and say, "Hey, this helps me understand what's going on." Um, I would hate to be a member of the planning board in 2035 when the fifth
pass comes through because we're running out of property in Bridgewater and I wonder what other older towns uh although Bridgewater is 300 years old or something uh how they are handling it. But um I'm very pleased with the
report. Although um as Mr. Kers says, you know, we uh have a I don't want to say a gun to our head, but but certainly a club and um it is what it is. Sakura, I just want to say thank you. I
know I came in late, so I I apologize. I you made some of this sound very simple which is great because it is I mean I read the report when I when it came out and it I appreciate because it put a lot of things into perspective that I didn't
that was very confusing before. So I appreciate appreciate that. I also appreciate some of the ideas of doing some there's some larger, some lower, some part of the community so that it doesn't it's not so right
where you can drive down 22 and see see it all. And I I appreciate that. Mr. Wang, thank you. Yeah, I I'm very happy to um to learn this report and thank you so much for
the um very thoughtful um you know um all the all the work behind it's it's not easy and um yeah the you know uh the state give us I think you know
give every town some uh actual um actual burden to me. I think you I heard a lot of um residents worried about this and tonight I think that you know all the uh
plan here all the sides here and it's the best utilization and the best um to uh our master plan. So that's why I I will support this for sure. Thank you.
Thank you, Councilman Kersh. Well, since that hour was late, I'll give the short version of this. Um, you know, first, with sufficient respect to to Miss Green and to Miss Sarmad and to Mr. Fiser and others, our staff, um, the fact that
we're here and having this conversation is an abomination. Um, New Jersey is supposed to be a home rule state. We are not. um mandates that come from the state are
supposed to be paid by the state. They are not. Um people often ask, well, why are my taxes so high in fill in the blank for whatever town you're in? But we'll answer that for Bridgewater. Why are my taxes so high? Well, gee, I don't
know. We've been spending years on this matter, on our dime, an unfunded mandate that is diminishing our right to home rule. So, while I will support the plan
because I think overall it is an excellent plan, I I I just don't I I fundamentally do not believe that this should be necessary. It should not be necessary because Bridgewater already is a socioeconomically diverse community. You can buy homes
in this community for a few hundred,000. You can rent apartments at that exist today at a relatively affordable rate. You can also buy multi-million dollar homes and everything in between. We already have uh by by design and by just
the natural evolution, we already have diverse housing options. We are not an exclusive community. You can if if you want to live here, you can buy a buy or rent a
place right now. We do not need more regulation and less self-control. We have already taken the steps necessary to build a community that we can all be
proud to live in. Now, with that said, I will support the plan. I'll even bite the bullet and I'll be the one that moves the plan. All right? But it's not a perfect plan by any stretch of the imagination. I don't think it can be. Um, there are some properties on here
that I'd rather or not. There were some properties under consideration that I would prefer be on instead. Um, but in the interest of collaboration and cooperation, I believe this is the the the best plan um that will will serve
this community until the rules change again. And that's something that also is of great concern to me. When are the goalposts going to move again? When potentially is something that we thought was going to be A is going to become B is going to now have housing. When is
this dreadful idea about the office buildings going to become law? More and more regulation, less and less control of the community we live in, more government control, more speaking out of both sides of their mouth from
Trenton. the environmental regulation is absolutely at odds with this housing requirement. Um, I've expressed great great concern about the sewer utility. I don't have to go through that again. One of my colleagues on the town on the township
council has expressed concern about at what point does development like this push us over the edge to needing at least a partially paid fire department. And if you think your taxes are high now with volunteers, you wait
until you see a partially paid fire department. Um, another of my colleagues has expressed concerns about the schools, the impact on the schools, and I know we've just done a school expansion, but we did a
school expansion and reconfiguration reconfiguration without being concerned about this. And I guess what it comes down to for me is is is this. If you're concerned, if the state of New Jersey is concerned about providing people with places to live where there is school
capacity, where there is sewer capacity, access to water, uh access to services, walkability to supermarkets. We have those. They're called cities.
There is an attempt to essentially urbanize every corner of the state of New Jersey and that I believe is ultimately setting people up for disappointment and potentially failure because we do not
have mass transit. Generally speaking, very few homes are accessible to a supermarket easily. One of these hap does happen to be foot foot traffic away from a supermarket, but that's just by happen stance. One of
them is foot traffic to the uh to the the diner, but I don't think you could take all your meals at the diner. But generally speaking, you are you this is a car dependent community. Those who come into these units, whether they're affordable rate or or um you know,
affordable units or market rate, you're going to need a car. You're gonna need a reliable car, maybe two cars depending upon what your family looks like. So, you know, you know, I believe a plan like this has has great risk. It might sound like a great idea, but then
ultimately it may not suit what we are trying to do. And ultimately, I keep coming back to the idea that if we want to set people up for success and give them access to jobs and access to supermarkets, access uh to classrooms that already exist because urban
populations are shrinking. Uh um sewer utility, all these things, they already exist without forcing us to make them exist. So, you know, that's the short version. Um so you know I want to thank you again
for your time not just tonight obviously but throughout you know many many months and years. Um you know your your help guiding us. Um and again you know it's not perfect but I think it's as as best as best we can hope for. And um
as was pointed out though I don't know I don't know what this this planning board's going to do in 10 years because you know fewer fewer and fewer viable properties exist. Um but you know, we'll see what the future holds. Thank you,
Miss Green. Arriving to the conclusions presented this evening clearly doesn't happen by chance. Um I appreciate the tremendous efforts, the months, days, and the hours by you and the team. Uh it's not exactly easy um undertaking, especially when you're given the time constraints that Trenton has given you.
um you made a compelling argument, you know, that you put us in a better position, especially with the surplus credits and Councilman Kers brought up several questions this evening that you effectively answered. And I appreciate that. Um for 17 years, I lived right off of uh exit 40 from 78. And uh I can only
imagine today if I were still living there, what I would feel, especially with that knee-jerk reaction uh type of development going on. And uh it's just unfortunately it's going to have a change as the councilman brought up earlier. Um it will change but I don't believe it's going to be a radical
change. Uh it won't be an unexpected change. Uh and I think uh I need to give credit to where credit's due as well. Our previous planner and that administration uh or that that staff uh have done they've they've clearly put the rungs in the ladder for the future
generations and uh makes me proud certainly that's the type of work that's going on here in Bridgewater. And for that reason I also will approve this Mr. Ch. Everybody else could not do it.
they've already redistributed the allocation from the urban aid areas to the suburban areas. So in this rule set, they've continued what they had done under COA's jurisdiction. So, the DCA's
numbers issued almost 85,000 affordable housing units for the entire state of New Jersey. That 85,000 is um accumulated from every town in the state, but then the 85,000 affordable
housing units are only allocated back out to non urban aid communities. So places like Bridgewater and other suburban areas are building the units
that the urban aid communities have generated in this calculation. And at the end of the day, you know, we allegedly are a home rule state, but until we're not and and
you know, you look you look at the un and then you and then you you you put on top of that the unfunded mandate, you know, and then you know, so our community is going to grow not by a lot, but by some and there are formulas associated with that, you know, h how how many police officers do you need to
safely um uh uh maintain your community? Um and how, you know, potentially are we now going to need more, you know, DPW equipment? Maybe. Um the county is now let's look at the county level. The county is now going to have more recycling bins that they have to process
every two weeks. Um you know, where does that come from? Um, you know, the future is scary. It it it really is. And I think that since we're looking at again, what is it about 600 potential total units uh off of the
15,000? Yeah, it's a change. Um, you know, if if we had had a number that was the 2,000 or whatever or some of our surrounding communities that are looking at on a percentage basis much larger, yeah, they're looking at they're looking at big problems. they're looking at serious questions about how they are
going to continue to um uh deliver the services. Um but you know I guess that's why we have elections. Thank you Mr. Chair. Are there any other deliberative comments?
No. I mean I don't know if we need to get guidance from Mr. peck on the action to to take or if it's inherently inherently so obvious that I could just make my motion. Well, there's going to actually be two votes. There'll be a vote to uh you know adopt the plan, but
then there's going to be a second vote to adopt the resolution. All right. Well, we want to make sure we have the proper iteration of the version that I have the resolution with earlier drafts. So, okay. Well, then I have I'll work that out with Maria. Okay. After
and get her the All right. So, I believe it's in order then for me to make uh make a motion uh to adopt the fourth round housing element and fair share plan of the township's master plan as presented to
us uh by by our um professional um uh staff. U so I make that motion. I'll need a second. Second. That's Miss Sakura. Could I please have a roll call?
Mr. Papis? Yes. Mr. Wang? Yes. Mr. McGora? Yes. Councilman Kersh? Yes. Miss Sakura? Yes. Mr. Chowry? Yes. And Chairman Vesio?
Yes. Mr. Pek, at this point, uh, after ironing out the resolution, amended. But yeah, you you can uh someone can make a motion to Perfect. Yeah. Do we just so that there's
absolute clarity would would we want to even just read it into the record even though No. Um one thing I would point out uh I think it has to be signed by either the secretary of the board or assistant secretary and uh neither is here tonight. Can we make actually the
board perhaps before you arrive have have an acting secretary? Good. Very good. Thank you. So So then h how is the resolution different than what we see in front of us? There's not there's just in the fourth whereas there's a placeholder
that says insert name of municipality subsequent version that I sent out says bridgewater attachment. That's it. It's nothing substantive. It's just okay. Then then I will make the motion
uh to adopt the resolution uh notating that uh in the whereas fourth clause we are speaking of the township of Bridgewater uh and that um Mr. Mcora uh will uh be
authorized to take action as our assistant secretary tonight. Thank you, Councilman. And I'll take a second motion. That's Mr. Chowry. Could I please have a roll call?
Mr. Papis? Yes. Mr. Wang? Yes. Mr. McGor? Yes. Councilman Kersh? Yes. Miss Sakura? Yes. Mr. Chowry? Yes. And Chairman Vesio? Yes. Miss Green. Thank you very much once
again. And I don't need to re-echo or reestablish anything that's been said here tonight, but this was very educational for the entire board. Very detailed, thorough, a lot of great questions and a lot of very proficient answers. Thank you very much. Thank you and best of luck. I think you've given that presentation before couple times,
very smooth. and we'll echo uh the public commentary before. This is probably one of the better presentations that we've heard under this planning board. So, thank you again. Okay, we don't have any other business this evening. So, at that point, I'll take a motion for adjournment of this
meeting. Do we have a meeting on next Tuesday? Yeah, I don't believe so. No, I was going to mention that we don't have any applications on uh schedule so far. What about is it looking like for the 15th? No, nothing on the 15th either.
We have to provide you with the sheet that uh they handed out last meeting. Okay, Katie, we we may not want to cancel the 15th just yet. Just never know what might come up.
Okay. So, I'll I'll send out a a cancellation for this July 1 meeting. Make a motion to adjurnn. I'll make the motion. That's Mr. Sakor in a second. I'll second. Councilman Kersh. All in favor? I
Thank you. 9:05. Thank you guys. Thank you.