JACKSON -- Jackson's growing population is driving demand for new housing, but a plan for affordable housing and market-rate homes is under criticism from local environmentalists.
In December, Jackson's Council approved ordinances to create a residential development overlay zone designed to meet the township's obligation to build more affordable housing. The new rules permit builders to create new mixed-use, multifamily housing developments, with 15% to 20% of the new units set aside for low- and moderate-income people.
The new zoning overlay also requires building new commercial space into neighborhoods with at least 50 new residential units.
But local environmentalists say portions of the plan are within areas of Jackson where building is regulated by the New Jersey Pinelands Commission, a government organization tasked with protecting the unique one million-acre Pinelands forest. In its duties, the commission restricts and redirects development around the forest periphery into growth zones and away from environmentally sensitive areas.
Adam Haidi, founder of the Jackson Conservation Coalition, is a Jackson resident who is worried by the new building rules. The new housing could break up existing nature and wildlife corridors, he said.
Also, "Jackson sits on top of one of the biggest aquifers in the region, the Kirkwood-Cohansey aquifer," said Haidi, referring to the primary drinking water source for most of southern New Jersey. "We risk contaminating these resources that… not just Jackson depends on, but Brick, Howell, all of Ocean County."
Jason Howell of the Pinelands Alliance, an organization that advocates for environmental protection of the Pinelands, also objected to the new ordinances. He said he was concerned about the potential impact on the surrounding water system.
"The Toms River corridor is one of the key river corridors of the Pinelands," he said. "This is the stretch from Colliers Mills Wildlife Management Area all the way out to the Barnegat Bay. What happens in the headwaters, which is what Jackson is, makes a difference for the estuary. So it's a big connected system.
"It's great that people want to live in the Pinelands," Howell said. "The thing is that unless we protect the resources, which is the water and the clean air and… the peace and harmony of the communities, people won't want to live here anymore."
Out of compliance with Pinelands rules
In early December, the state's Pinelands Commission notified Jackson's Council and Mayor Jennifer Kuhn that the township's new housing ordinances do not comply with the Pineland's Comprehensive Management Plan. The management plan sets development rules regarding housing density and sewer systems, makes some areas off limits to builders, and other areas designated for limited growth.
Much of the southern portion of Jackson lies within the Pinelands Commission management area.
In the letter, Pinelands Commission Executive Director Susan Grogan said building densities in Jackson's ordinances were higher than what is permitted in the selected neighborhoods.
For instance, in Jackson's Cassville neighborhood, one of the areas slated for housing development, the Pinelands' Comprehensive Management Plan rules do not permit the kinds of centralized sewer systems that would be needed for a high-density housing development, Grogan's letter said.
Municipal master plans and land use ordinances, including affordable housing plans, located inside the Pinelands boundaries are not considered to be in effect until they are also approved by the Pinelands Commission, a spokesperson for the commission told the Asbury Park Press.
The commission will review the ordinance and hold a public hearing on the issue, commission spokesperson Joel Mott said in an email. The commission can vote to certify, or approve; certify with required conditions; or disapprove municipal ordinances, he said. Towns with ordinances that do not comply can also request an extension to amend their plans, he said. The entire process can take up to 120 days, Mott said.
Township Council President Mordechai Burnstein said the council has a deadline of Dec. 31 to adopt the ordinances as part of a negotiation with New Jersey officials and affordable housing advocates.
"It was not the council's job to determine if something was environmentally a problem or other things were problematic," he said. "The job of the council with these ordinances (was) just to follow what the Planning Board picked already, and the Planning Board picked these locations."
The council president said Jackson officials and Pinelands staff are planning to meet in January to discuss the issue.
Housing shortage persists across New Jersey
Affordable housing advocates say ordinances that expand the supply of affordable housing, like the one in Jackson, are integral for New Jersey residents and communities.
"New Jersey is short of more than 200,000 homes (which are) affordable to extremely low-income residents, and the overall need (for affordable housing) is much greater statewide," said Jag Davies, a spokesperson for the Fair Share Housing Center, a New Jersey-based advocacy organization for access to affordable housing.
"Families are being squeezed so hard by housing costs that they're having to choose between rent and basic necessities, like food and medicine," Davies said. "And as a result, homelessness is rising as federal housing support is cut."
For the past 50 years, a New Jersey law known as the Mount Laurel Doctrine has required communities to allow affordable housing. In 1985, New Jersey officials created the state's Council on Affordable Housing to help enforce the law.
Towns that do not comply with the state's affordable housing law can be sued by builders, which is called a "builder's remedy." When builders win those lawsuits, towns have limited say in what is constructed on the property.
"More municipalities than ever are complying with the state's affordable housing laws because they realize that affordable housing strengthens entire communities," said Davies. "It improves health outcomes, it improves educational outcomes, it improves economic opportunities. And, it ensures teachers, nurses and essential workers can live near the areas where they work."
Beyond new housing
Burnstein, Jackson's council president, said the benefits of the township's new ordinances extend beyond providing more affordable housing and meeting the township's legal obligations.
"We put many restrictions into these ordinances that never existed before in Jackson when it came to development," he said. "We put in open space requirements that never existed in Jackson."
The new rules require developers to set aside 16% of a neighborhood's area for open space.
"Every developer is forced to give up a large percentage of development for open space," Burnstein said. "And I can tell you, some of the developers were not happy with that.
The new ordinances also require that commercial development be built alongside any neighborhoods with more than 50 new residential units.
The rule "is a win for Jackson because… we get rateables, but besides getting rateables, is one of the big concerns we have obviously in town is traffic," the council president said.
More storefronts spread throughout Jackson will help alleviate existing traffic problems, he said.
In the future, "not everyone's going to one grocery store on County Line Road," he said. "Or not everyone is going into the same pizzeria. That gives a better traffic pattern."
The new rules also prevent the creation of basement apartments, a practice that has become more common in neighboring towns recently, he said.
Burnstein said the agreement with state officials and housing advocates requires Jackson to build fewer affordable homes in the future than what was originally required. Previous Jackson Mayor Michael Reina was able to negotiate the agreement down to 1,000 affordable units, from a previously higher requirement of 1,350 units, Burnstein said.
"Part of the settlement was that the town would redo its master plan, and within this master plan, we would find appropriate locations for these 1,000 units," he said.
The township's Planning Board picked the locations for those future units, he said.
The council president said Jackson officials are preparing to meet with Pinelands Commission staff and affordable housing advocates to discuss the ordinances and compliance with the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan within the coming weeks.
Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 17 years. Reach her at [email protected] or 732-557-5701.
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