University and local officials are discussing how to meet the state requirements for low-cost housing as the deadline for submission of a plan draws near.
The slew of campus construction planned for the next decade could impose a large burden on the University and the surrounding municipalities because of the state Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) guidelines.
Though local and University officials have requested that COAH waive the guidelines to accommodate the nature of campus construction, this resolution is unlikely, Director of Community and State Affairs Pam Hersh said.
COAH establishes guidelines for "growth share," which link the amount of affordable housing required to other development in a community. Municipalities must calculate their projected growth for 1999-2014 and submit a plan outlining construction of low-cost housing by Dec. 19.
University construction affects this commitment because growth share is calculated by a COAH formula based on square-footage of new construction. Local and University officials are displeased with this method because "there is no specific category for universities," Ed Schmierer, attorney for Princeton Township. "When you try to fit [the University's] growth into this schedule, it summarily generates an incredible amount of housing, about 40 units."
Municipal and University officials believe the formulas are unrealistic. For instance, the Friend Center added 70,000 square feet to the Borough, and according to the COAH formula, should have generated 210 new jobs.
In reality, the building only has 12 employees, the majority of which were not new hires, according to Hersh.
The formula requires construction of one housing unit for every 25 jobs created. The Friend Center would incur an affordable-housing obligation of 8.4 units. If calculated according to the actual number of people employed, the building would require half a unit to be constructed.
A typical unit is a 1,000-square-foot home that costs $250,000 to build. "That's an outrageous amount of money," Hersh said.
Municipalities are also burdened by these guidelines because local government must plan and help fund the housing.
Hersh said Princeton owns land in five municipalities, and that campus construction could affect them all. This makes the distribution of the affordable-housing commitment extremely complex.
Hersh added that local governments "don't even get tax benefits from our construction" because the University is a nonprofit organization.
The University has provided $1.5 million in cash and land toward low-income housing in the past 15 years, according to Hersh. The University has also constructed the Lawrence Apartments for graduate students, which some consider affordable housing but do not count toward the COAH obligation because they are not marketed to the public.
"We are extremely supportive of affordable housing," Hersh said, but added that the University wants to find a "workable contribution" to that commitment that is not too expensive.
"Princeton should be committed to affordable-housing, and there should be a policy, but it should be a realistic one," she said.
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