Dive Brief:
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Courts in New Jersey are preparing for a rush of lawsuits by homebuilders and property owners who want judges to force city governments to allow low- and moderate-income housing developments.
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The state Supreme Court in March ruled that judges are responsible for setting rules for how many low-cost housing units each municipality should build. Time has run out for cities to come up with those plans on their own, and as of last week, builders may go directly to the courts rather than to a state agency — for the first time in nearly three decades — to challenge local restrictions on the building of affordable housing.
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Of the 306 municipalities that had the option of filing housing plans, 254 had submitted them as of last week’s deadline. The courts eventually will rule on whether those plans are acceptable. Some municipalities did not submit plans because officials there believe they have no land suitable for construction, according to The Record.
Dive Insight:
The opportunity for builders to go to court for the right to build affordable housing coincides with a new Obama administration plan to diversify neighborhoods by integrating affordable housing into better neighborhoods.
The rule will require cities to show how they will use federal housing funds to desegregate housing in their neighborhoods.
Congressional Republicans have already filed legislation to block the rule.