Two Municipalities Receive COAH Certification
50 Towns Now Certified Under COAH's Revised Third Round Rules


TRENTON - Two more municipalities received substantive certification under the Council on Affordable Housing's (COAH) revised third round rules. The action came during today's COAH Board meeting. The municipalities are Rockleigh Borough in Bergen County and Somerdale Borough in Camden County.

"It is important, now more than ever, to provide working families, senior citizens and special needs residents with good, affordable places to live. The fact that COAH has certified affordable housing plans for 50 towns shows we are making real progress," said New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) Acting Commissioner Charles A. Richman, who also chairs the COAH Board. "Rockleigh and Somerdale boroughs and all the other municipalities that have received certification over the past seven months are to be commended for their commitment to providing their fair share of affordable housing."

The two municipalities join Allendale Borough, Andover Township, Beverly City, Blairstown Township, Boonton Town, Cape May City, Cape May Point Borough, Clayton Borough, Collingswood Borough, Delaware Township, Eastampton Township, East Brunswick Township, Flemington Borough, Florence Township, Frelinghuysen Township, Frenchtown Borough, Harding Township, Hardyston Township, Knowlton Township, Lawrence Township (Mercer County), Maplewood Township, Middletown Township, Milford Borough, Millville City, Montclair Township, Netcong Borough, North Hanover Township, Old Bridge Township, Orange City, Palmyra Borough, Peapack & Gladstone Borough, Pennsauken Township, Pennsville Township, Pine Hill Township, Piscataway Township, Plainsboro Township, Readington Township, Robbinsville Township, Rocky Hill Borough, Roxbury Township, Sandyston Township, South Hackensack Township, South Plainfield Borough, Springfield Township, Stockton Borough, Stone Harbor Borough, Upper Pittsgrove Township and West Amwell Township as the first 50 towns in the state to receive certification under the third round rules.

The third round rules are COAH's regulations governing affordable housing obligations through 2018. Under the plans certified for these 50 municipalities, 9,223 newly constructed affordable units have already been completed, with another 3,956 proposed. Additionally, 640 units have already been rehabilitated, with another 1,189 proposed.

Substantive certification is COAH's determination that a municipal fair share plan presents a realistic opportunity for the production of affordable housing to address the town's portion of the affordable housing need. The substantive certifications granted to these 50 municipalities are valid for 10 years from the municipality's date of petition and provide protection from builder's remedy lawsuits.

COAH, an affiliate of the DCA, facilitates the production of sound, affordable housing for low and moderate income households by providing the most effective process to municipalities, housing providers, nonprofit and for profit developers to address a constitutional obligation within the framework of sound, comprehensive planning.

For more information about COAH, log on to http://www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/coah/index.html on the DCA's website.


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