A state law known as the Mount Laurel Doctrine mandates that each jurisdiction accommodate enough new housing units to meet the local demand for affordable housing.
In an article for the Morristown Daily Record, William Westhoven describes the tension between some New Jersey suburbs and the state government, which is calling on each local jurisdiction to accommodate enough housing production to meet demand and lower the cost of housing through its Mount Laurel Doctrine, a 1975 law strengthened by 2015 legislation. The doctrine is designed to ease zoning regulations that bar high-density housing.
The state’s Department of Community Affairs is calling for 85,000 new housing units, mostly in the northern part of the state. Some local officials, such as Parsippany Mayor James Barberio, say the push more higher-density housing could strain local infrastructure and budgets and force cities to “sacrifice quality for quantity.”
While some cities are fighting the mandates, others are building hundreds of units of new housing. According to the Fair Share Housing Center, “Since the reinvigoration of Mount Laurel enforcement in 2015, the rate of affordable housing production has nearly doubled.”
According to the DCA, their numbers are non-binding, and “Towns can present their own calculations or challenge the agency's determination based on issues including sewer capacity, slope angles on open space or other environmental concerns. Additional credits can be obtained for certain housing categories including group homes for individuals with disabilities.”
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