Flynn Pushes Back on Affordable Housing Calculations

NJ Assembly GOP

The number of affordable housing units that need to be rehabilitated and built in each town was released by the state late Friday afternoon. Many towns that were identified as not having the land capacity to build are still obligated to build.

“Two simple questions can pinpoint the problem with the law: How does it make sense and where is it possible to build?” said Assemblywoman Victoria Flynn (R-Monmouth). “The report finds that there isn’t any land to develop but still mandates massive development throughout our state. This is not realistic.”

Affordable housing is typically only 20% of any new development project. For instance, Monmouth Beach, a community represented by Flynn that is considered at risk for flooding with state projections of a five-foot sea level rise by 2100, is still obligated to build 47 new affordable housing units, which would require a 235-unit development. The state Dept. of Environmental Protection’s newly proposed flood rules, known as NJPACT, restricts new development of that scale in Monmouth Beach.

Nearby Colts Neck Township also does not have any land to build according to the report, but has a 101 affordable housing unit obligation.

“Making New Jersey more affordable for everyone is my number one goal in the legislature,” said Flynn. 

“This law makes New Jersey less affordable because it is a logistical nightmare.

“Democrats in New Jersey have been struggling to manage a myriad of very expensive problems in the state that the new affordable housing obligations will exacerbate,” Flynn added.

“There isn’t enough land in New Jersey to meet these development goals. The state’s electrical and water infrastructure cannot afford to absorb additional development. Our roads and bridges are in constant disrepair, and public transportation is insufficient or nearly non-existent in most of the state. The high-density development proposed will cause irreparable and irreversible harm to the environment,” said Flynn. “We had an opportunity to engage in a more meaningful conversation on how to address making housing more affordable to our residents, but the solution offered by the Democrats missed the mark and made the state less affordable for everybody.”