Final Hearing For Chatham's Post Office Plaza Development Set

CHATHAM, NJ — After months of waiting, Chatham Borough is nearing completion of its affordable housing obligations and will hear the final ruling on compliance next week, according to Mayor Thaddeus Kobylarz.

The hearing is scheduled for Nov. 28 at 10 a.m., and will be heard by Superior Court Judge Stephan C. Hansbury at the Morris County Courthouse.

In Chatham Borough, the current development plan is to construct a 15-unit all-affordable building in the parking lot of Post Office Plaza near Bowers Lane.

The construction plans were halted due to ongoing legal conflict between the Borough of Chatham and developers whose plans for the Post Office Plaza redevelopment project were turned down.

Earlier this fall, Judge Hansbury ruled in favor of Chatham Borough in its decision to build 15 stand-alone affordable housing units and denied SV's motion for intervention at the August hearing.

According to Jonathan Drill, Chatham's affordable housing attorney, Judge Hansbury denied the motions, siding with the borough because he did not believe they met the legal standard for intervention and denied the claim for the litigant's rights.

Following the hearing, the borough named Bergen County United Way as the new developers for the project.

To gain compliance from the Fair Share Housing Center, the Borough Council also passed a resolution at its regular meeting to bond in excess of $6 million, if necessary, to cover any additional costs to complete the BCUW project at Post Office Plaza.

The $6 million bond ordinance was first introduced at the Sept. 12 meeting, and then further discussed by Mayor Kobylarz in a public letter addressing the cost.

Read more: Increased Funding For Post Office Plaza Addressed By Chatham Mayor

According to Mayor Kobylarz, the borough fully expects to obtain funding from a number of sources to cover the cost of the project and should only anticipate a net cost of $1,319,074.

The Fair Share Housing Center dropped its objection to the 15-unit plan at the Nov. 14 hearing, but Judge Hansbury said he would hear oral arguments from SV for reconsideration before issuing his compliance ruling on Nov. 28.

"We should have a resolution to this matter in two weeks time," Mayor Kobylarz said.