TOMS RIVER, N.J. — Toms River officials are pushing back against a state mandate requiring the township to build nearly 700 new high-density affordable housing units, arguing that the municipality has already met and exceeded its obligations.
Mayor Dan Rodrick and the township council unanimously voted to reject the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs’ (DCA) housing calculations, calling them inaccurate and excessive. The state’s latest assessment claims Toms River must construct 670 additional units, despite a four-year period of significant development under former Mayor Maurice Hill.
“The prior administration, under former Mayor Hill, built 1,250 units, the state says we need 670 more,” Rodrick said. “It looks like we may not have to do any affordable housing because we were only obligated to build 250.”
The township’s planning firm, Alaimo Associates, reviewed the state’s calculations and found that a large portion of the designated land was improperly classified, including road medians, school fields, and cemeteries. Even after adjustments, Rodrick said the required number of units remained unreasonably high.
Council President Justin Lamb called the mandate an overreach by state officials, accusing them of attempting to impose social policies on Toms River. “We’re certainly not going to allow that. We’re going to fight back, and this resolution is a sound rejection of Trenton’s efforts for local control,” Lamb said.
Councilman James Quinlisk, while agreeing the state’s numbers were too high, said Toms River should still work to provide affordable housing for young residents, seniors, and single mothers. Despite his reservations, he voted in favor of the resolution.
Rodrick pointed to case law capping municipal affordable housing mandates at 1,000 units per round and argued that Toms River had already surpassed its requirement. With the council’s formal rejection of the DCA’s directive, township officials vowed to challenge the state’s demands.
