6 events in Passaic County with a date

Affordable housing challenge rejected

Towns vow to 'regroup'after high court action

By: Marsha A. Stoltz
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey

..... U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito denied a group of municipalities' emergency request to delay the implementation of New Jersey's Fourth round affordable housing deadline on February 24. [2026]
..... The docket simply reads: "Application (25A898) denied by Justice Alito." No additional information was available.
..... A coalition of nine New Jersey towns form the 29-member Local Leaders for responsible Planning had field an application on February 4 [2026] asking the court to suspend a state law that requires communicates to adopt the state's newest affordable housing assignments with resolutions and ordinances by March 15. [2026]
..... They argued that failures to meet the deadline while they pursued legal remedies with the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of appeals would open their municipalities to damaging removal of exemption from "builder's remedy" lawsuits.
..... "We promised our residents that we would take this fight to the highest court in the land - and I am proud that we did just that - just over one year int the fight. Regrettably, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito denied our application for an emergency injunction earlier today, [02/24/2026] Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali said after learning of Alito's reply.
..... The Mount Laurel doctrine has existed for 50 years, Ghassali said, and the group "made no illusion that it may take a very long time to reverse the harmful elements of it that are destroying our New Jersey communities."
..... He said the group will continue to work with other municipalities and continue to fight "against' a system that serves developers over residents and will lead to bad results decade after decade unless we act," He promised that the towns would "regroup" and continue to "push back against high-density development being labeled affordable housing."
..... "Meanwhile, a temporary delay of the implementation of instant law will not meaningfully affect New Jersey's zoning scheme," the municipalities argued.
..... In responses, acting New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport filed a brief February 17 [2026] opposing the towns' application an injunction. She argued that they "cannot show the kind of irreparable harm that justifies the extraordinary remedy they seek."
..... The Supreme Court ruling follows a January 30 [2026] denial by the 3rd U.S. circuit court of Appeals in a one-page order issued by Judges Cindy Chung and D. Michael fisher. that ruling came shortly after U.S. district Judge Zahid N. Quraishi dismissed the municipalities' federal lawsuit and denied their request to delay the law's implementation.
..... The decision represents the eighth legal rejection of these arguments against the state's affordable housing edict by every level of the state and federal court system.
..... "With the U.S. Supreme Court's denial of relief in Montivale v. Davenport, every level of the sate and federal courts has now rejected this effort by a small group of towns and their officials to upend New Jersey's landmark affordable-housing law." Davenport said on February 24. [2026] "We look forward to continuing to defend New Jerseyans' right to affordable housing under our law."
..... State Senator Troy Singleton, chairman of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee and author of New Jersey's landmark affordable housing law, issued a statement on February 24 [2026] praising Alito's decision "to once again soundly reject the baseless, politically-motivated attempts to undermine constitutional obligation under Mount Laurel."
..... "These attempts, which would intentionally delay the much-needed creation of affordable housing, have now been rejected eight times at every judicial level, all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court," Singleton said. "a vast majority of towns have participated in the process and accepted their reasonable obligations - far more than at any other point in the past five decades of Mount Laurel."
..... Singleton urged "the mayors of these towns to finally join there peers in constructively engaging in the housing process."
..... "This was a far-fetched effort to undermine and delay a law that is already working wonders," said Joshua Bauers, director of exclusionary zoning litigation at Fair Share Housing Center. "the overwhelming majority of municipalities are embracing New Jersey's affordable housing law and moving ahead with implementation. It's time to focus on creating the affordable homes New Jerseyans urgently need."
..... In New Jersey, each municipality is required to provide its "fair share" of affordable homes under its constitutional Mount Laurel doctrine. Municipal affordable housing assignments are recalculated every 10 years base on factors such as jobs and existing affordability.
..... The challenge was to the state's Fourth Round assignments, issued in 2025 with several compliance deadlines due in 2026.
..... Ghassali, who has led the consortium, said each participating town contributed $20,000 to pay for the effort.

Towns involved in the suit

..... Local Leaders fro Responsible Planning consist of 29 towns, including:
* Bergen County: Allendale, Closter Franklin Lakes, Hillsdale, Montvale, Norwood, Old Tappan, Oradell, Washington township, Westwood and Wyckoff.
* Morris County: Denville, East Hanover, Florham Park, Hanover, Parsippany, Mendham, Montville and Warton.
* Essex County: Ceder Grove, Millburn and West Caldwell.
* Hunterdon County: West Amwell.
* Monmouth County: Wall and Holmdel.
* Passaic County: Hawthorne, Little Falls and Totowa.
* Salem County: Mannington.
* Somerset County: warren.
..... However relief was sought on behalf of only nine municipalities: Franklin Lakes, Montvale, Norwood and Wychoff in Bergen County; Hawthorne and Totowa in Passaic County; Millburn in Essex County; and Holmdel and Wall Township in Monmouth County.

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