The Christie administration had warned towns to spend subsidized housing money and now officials have begun the process of seizing those funds. Fair Share Housing Center Associate Director Kevin Walsh told NJ Today Managing Editor Mike Schneider that he believes the total amount seized could be more than $200 million. His organization is against the seizure of funds because he explained that the money could be used to provide needed housing to individuals in the state.
Walsh explained that the money was collected by municipalities from developers. “For instance, a new Home Depot or something like that comes into town and they have to pay a fee for the building. That occurs with the idea being that the workers who work in that building need a place to live and this money will help fund that housing,” he said. “And so it’s money that the towns have had and it’s money that we want them to keep.”
While Walsh agrees that municipalities shouldn’t be allowed to hold onto the money indefinitely, saying his organization has fought to push municipalities to spend the funds over the years, he said as municipalities have faced the deadline, officials asked for guidance and began reaching agreements with groups like Habitat for Humanity and non-profits that help people with disabilities.
“All throughout the state of New Jersey, a couple hundred different municipalities have those sorts of contracts because they finally felt the push to spend the money. And just as they felt that push and started making those contracts, the Christie administration started pulling the rug out from underneath them,” Walsh said. “So it’s really a missed opportunity, especially after Hurricane Sandy when at a time in our state we already have a really expensive housing market.”
According to Walsh, the housing created with the funds would help people who earn less than 80 percent of the median income. “It’s people who are working hard, oftentimes working one, two, three jobs in a household but they might be earning minimum wage or just above it and with New Jersey being one of the most expensive housing markets in the country, those are folks who oftentimes can’t afford a place to live,” he explained.
In addition to helping those with financial difficulties, Walsh said additional housing could provide assistance to individuals and families with physical disabilities who want to live in accessible housing. “It really runs the gamut of different types of housing. But it’s housing that I don’t think anyone could argue is not needed,” he said.
Walsh said municipal officials have tried to get the seizure of funds postponed and sought guidance from the Christie administration about how to protect the funds without getting answers.
“I don’t spend much of my day saying municipalities are proceeding in good faith. It’s my job to push municipalities to do something that they often don’t want to do,” Walsh said. “And so when you see housing advocates and municipalities on the same side of an issue, it’s a good sense that something’s wrong here. And what’s wrong is that the administration has developed a process that seems to comply with the law, but it’s really intending to exploit that process.”
According to Walsh, municipal officials who have asked for guidance have been given the run around, being told they will get an answer at a later date.
“As we go into a process in which the administration is preparing to raid up to $200 million in housing money, no one knows what the standard is that has to be met. And they’re not being transparent in what they’re asking for,” Walsh said.
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