Why Island Road Matters to ALL of Ramsey

There has been confusion, concern, and misinformation about why Ramsey adopted an overlay zone on Island Road when the Borough had already developed a Fourth-Round Affordable Housing Plan. The answer is important: The Island Road overlay was not part of Ramsey’s original plan, nor was it created because the Borough had identified a development for that location.

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Ramsey’s original Fourth Round Housing Element and Fair Share Plan was submitted without the Island Road overlay. That plan was subsequently challenged by both the Fair Share Housing Center and a developer, requiring the Borough to enter into confidential state-supervised mediation and renegotiate portions of its plan. Those negotiations ultimately resulted in agreements that required Ramsey to adopt two overlay zones, including the R-5E Island Road Overlay Zone at the insistence of the Fair Share Housing Center.

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The distinction between what must actually be built and what Ramsey must make possible under the law is critical. Ramsey’s Fourth Round obligation was calculated at 450 units, but because Ramsey is a largely built-out municipality, the Borough receives a vacant-land adjustment that reduced its Realistic Development Potential- the number of units that must actually be produced during the ten-year period- to 26 units.

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Those 26 units are expected to be satisfied through other identified projects and housing opportunities. In fact, several of those units have already been built as part of the special needs housing development on North Central and 11 more units will be built at the age-restricted property under development at 425 Island Road.

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No units from the Island Road R-5E Overlay are included in Ramsey’s 26-unit Realistic Development Potential. In other words, the Island Road overlay is not being counted on to produce the housing Ramsey needs to meet its ten-year obligation.

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The Key Number Is 26, Not 450

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Ramsey’s Fourth-Round obligation is calculated at 450 units, but the Borough’s vacant-land adjustment reduces its Realistic development Potential to 26 units over the ten-year period. Those 26 units are expected to be met through other identified housing opportunities. Importantly, the Island Road overlay is NOT part of those 26 units. Ramsey is not relying on Island Road to satisfy its ten-year housing obligation.

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So why create it? Because the Fourth-Round law requires municipalities to provide zoning opportunities that could accommodate a portion of their unmet housing need—even if those opportunities are never developed.

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Ramsey faced a similar situation in the Third Round. In 2018, as part of a settlement with Fair Share Housing, the Borough created two overlay zones. Ramsey ultimately met its affordable housing obligation through other projects, and no units have been built in either of those overlay zones. Those zones allowed development of up to 20 units per acre, more than 40 percent greater density than the 14 units per acre permitted under the new Fourth-Round Island Road overlay.

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The Island Road overlay therefore represents a potential development opportunity, not an approved project or a mandate that the property be developed. If a property owner or developer chooses to pursue development, any proposal would still have to comply with the applicable zoning requirements such as density, setbacks, and height restrictions, including other site standards, and approval processes.

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In other words, the overlay creates an option for future development- it does not guarantee that development will occur or allow development without following the Borough's zoning requirements.

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An Overlay Is an Opportunity- Not a Development Approval

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• The R-5E Overlay does not approve a development, require the property to be developed, or guarantee that housing will ever be built there.

• The underlying zoning remains in place, and there is currently no development proposal attached to the overlay.

• The overlay simply creates a zoning opportunity that state housing law required Ramsey to make available.

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That distinction is what makes the decision important to the entire Borough. By complying with the negotiated Fourth Round requirements- including the overlay- Ramsey maintains its protection against builder's-remedy and other exclusionary-zoning lawsuits filed by property developers.

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Losing that protection could expose the Borough to litigation in which a developer seeks to build a multi-family housing project in a location of its choosing and leaving the Borough with substantially less control over important zoning requirements such as density, height, setbacks, and parking.

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By taking the necessary steps to establish and demonstrate its compliance, a Borough strengthens its legal position and helps protect itself from developer litigation and exclusionary-zoning challenges.

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“Builder’s Remedy”

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“Builder’s remedy” is a legal mechanism under New Jersey’s affordable housing law that can come into play when a municipality’s compliance with its affordable housing obligation is challenged.

By taking the necessary steps to establish and demonstrate its compliance, a Borough strengthens its legal position and helps protect itself from developer litigation and exclusionary-zoning challenges.

Most importantly, compliance helps preserve the municipality’s ability to determine, within the requirements of state law, where and how affordable housing can be accommodated in the community.

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Protecting Ramsey’s Future Through Responsible Planning

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The Borough has therefore chosen to accept a limited possibility of future development in specifically designated areas, where Ramsey has set the zoning limits on density, height, setbacks, parking and site design.

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In fact, only one property of the 30 in the Island Road R-5E Overlay meets the minimum 2.5 acres required for development.

In this way, the Borough maintains broader control over development throughout Ramsey.

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The bottom line is that the Island Road overlay should not be viewed in isolation.

It was one component of a larger legal and planning settlement designed to preserve Ramsey's ability to control its own future while still meeting its New Jersey mandated Fourth-Round requirements.

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The overlay may never produce a project. However, adopting it allows Ramsey to satisfy the condition of the negotiated settlement, maintain its Fourth-Round compliance and preserve the Borough's legal protections.