reposted from the Montclair Times

Montclair Forum Addresses Pros and Cons of Affordable Housing

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 1, 2012, 4:10 AM
BY LINDA MOSS
STAFF WRITER
THE MONTCLAIR TIMES

A panel of experts extolled the value of affordable housing in Montclair Tuesday night, but residents still lined up to passionately debate the pros and cons of selling township-owned land on Wildwood Avenue for low- and moderate income dwellings.

Residents stand in line to speak their minds about affordable housing during 4th Ward Councilwoman Renée Baskerville's 4th Ward Collaborative meeting, which was held in the Township Council chambers Tuesday night.

Howard Gardner speaks out in favor of affordable housing to a panel of experts during 4th Ward Councilwoman Renée Baskerville's community meeting Tuesday.

The 4th Ward Collaborative's forum included eight experts, most of whom explained why additional affordable housing is imperative for Montclair to maintain its racial and socioeconomic diversity, despite high local taxes and home costs.

"The challenge now is to live the values that drew many of us to this town," said Harold Simon, executive director of the National Housing Institute and a member of the Montclair Housing Commission.

Several panelists, including Simon, also maintained that the creation of housing for low- and middle-income people doesn't have to conflict with the environmental concerns of the town.

The round table, which was held in the Municipal Council chambers before a crowded audience, also became a platform for opponents and proponents of using the Wildwood Avenue tract for affordable housing to speak their minds. More than a dozen residents lined up to have their say at the podium, with most of them voicing their frank opinions about controversial Wildwood Avenue, including 1st Ward Councilman Rich Murnick.

"I know the Wildwood people," he said. "They're not against affordable housing. They're against the township not looking at all the different options at what we might possibly be able to do before we give away the last piece of open space here in Montclair."

The four-lot site, which is near Brookdale Park, would have to be sold at below-market value in order to be used for affordable housing it would have to be sold at below-market value. The lots were was assessed at $400,000. Murnick suggested that the township look into buying a home in foreclosure to use for affordable housing, rather than selling the town-owned property.

But panelist Laurena White, a real estate agent with Sotheby who is also a trustee of HomeCORP, told Murnick, "Foreclosures don't necessarily mean cheap."

Before the question-and-answer session of the panel, which lasted almost an hour more than scheduled, panelists put Montclair's affordable housing situation in context, particularly the drive to put affordable housing in the 1st Ward. Right now 4 percent of Montclair's housing inventory is affordable, shy of the government benchmark of 10 percent, according to Janice Talley, director of the Township Department of Planning and Community Development.

Panelist William Scott, president of the Montclair Residential Preservation Group, said that Montclair has 651 affordable housing units, with 81 percent of them, 525, in the 4th Ward. The 3rd ward has 18 percent, or 118; the 2nd Ward has eight, or 1 percent, and the 1st Ward has none.

"There are basically zero units in the 1st Ward ... If you're going to commit to affordable housing in the township of Montclair, there should be a balance," Scott said. "It has to be an understanding and a commitment to all four wards."

David Trout, an economic development law professor at Rutgers University, and Wendy McNeil, chair of the Montclair Housing Commission, both addressed misconceptions about affordable housing, in terms of who lives in the dwellings and the effect on property values.

"The academic literature is astoundingly universal in its conclusions: Affordable housing does not diminish property values," Trout said..

Said McNeil, "It is not housing projects. Montclair does not have housing projects. It is not housing for people who are unemployed o r people who are homeless. It is simply housing that is more affordable to the owner."

Regarding the Wildwood tract, McNeil said, "As it looks now, it's a dump ... It would be much improved [with affordable housing]."

But several Wildwood Avenue residents disagreed, while stressing that they were not against affordable housing. Rather, they said they questioned the loss of the trees and open space if the township's land is developed.

"I do love looking at the trees across from the street from my house," said Susan Synnott. "It's not a dump. It's beautiful. There's birds. There's foxes that live there. Deer actually come out of there because they were pushed out of wherever they used to live.'

Her husband, Brian Synnott, also spoke, noting that 35 trees will have to be cut on the township's land to make way for construction. He also asked if the township had done an environmental study on the site.

"I object to the perception that somehow the people in the 1st Ward and the people on Wildwood think that bad people are going to move in because it's low-income housing," Synnott said. "The reality is to build on this land is a bad idea ... To be very honest with you, if I wanted to live in Elizabeth, I would have moved to Elizabeth and paid $10,000 less in taxes ... Maybe in all of your studies of why people are moving out, you can look into maybe the taxes are too high in this towns and the services are not that great."

The plan for affordable housing to be built on the Wildwood Avenue land had its proponents.

"I think most people, especially people in Montclair, probably when they think of affordable housing, they probably think of the big 'P' as in project," said Howard Gardner, "They probably think of some project in Newark.... so I think a lot more education needs to happen."

He added that Wildwood Avenue residents need to take a broader view picture, "not the narrow window - 'I want to see the birds out my window in the morning' - which is great. But you have to look at the bigger picture. It's not just about you."

Emil Schattner pointed out that Montclair has 770 acres of local and county parks.

"There are lots and lots of trees in the area," he said. "I think it's unfortunate if we have to make a choice. And I think that the choice for affordable housing is the one that I would make."

Lauren Tyler-Fuller accused some of the residents who spoke of not really listening to what the panelists had said.

"I'm more shocked, and probably borderline appalled, at the level of divisiveness, cattiness, misinformation," she said. "You have a right to your opinion... but did you listen to anything that was said before you came up to the podium and make comments, or did you come to the podium staunch in your stance."

Thomas Reynolds, president of the Montclair NAACP, told the panel that the only way he could afford to reside in Montclair was that he lived with his grandparents.

"The town has more parks and open space, and one of the largest county parks sitting right next to that open space," he said. 'Yeah, it sucks that you're losing those four small lots, but the bigger issue is can we afford to keep this a town of cops that live here, of firefighters that live here. of teachers that live here."

Fourth Ward Councilwoman Renée Baskerville, who hosted the panel, said that she hoped it would "help us shape some of the decisions that we have to make in terms of policy on affordable housing moving forward ."

While the Wildwood Avenue plans would be a topic of discussion, she said, "It definitely is a more broad-brushed meeting .. this meeting is really an opportunity to teach us in a broader sense."

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