Eight affordable housing units may not seem like much, but it’s drawing Saddle River and a developer into court next month.
Oral arguments in a lawsuit over a 60-unit project proposed for East Allendale Road are set for Dec. 16, NorthJersey.com reported.
The Saddle River Planning Board rejected the project application in late September. The development team, which includes Michael Kasparian, sued this month, contesting the application denial.
The lawsuit alleged “behind-the-scenes obstructionism” and called for the borough to be stripped of its power to reject affordable units under a settlement with the Fair Share Housing Center two and a half years ago.
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In its response to the lawsuit, the borough claimed part of the settlement was unenforceable. The borough also justified the project’s denial by claiming the applicant couldn’t prove two essential elements of the plan were feasible.
The fate of the Fair Share Housing Center agreement may be more critical to the borough than the 60-unit development. If the borough is declared in default, it could be forced to accept more affordable housing, which residents of single-family, suburban communities often associate with crime, traffic, and obliteration of their town’s “character.”
It’s not clear if the Fair Share Housing Center will be involved in the Dec. 16 hearing.
Prior to the legal fight, the development team jumped through many hoops in an effort to get the project off the ground. It fought for five waivers and one variance on the 10-acre site, but was still done in by allegedly inadequate snow removal and stormwater management plans.
The public has been pushing against the project for years, often claiming the site was inadequate. The board didn’t request a snow removal plan from the developers until April. An issue with test pits, another stated rationale for the denial, was reportedly never part of the discussion until the day the project was rejected.
— Holden Walter-Warner