Construction on the 72-unit affordable housing development project on West Farms Road in Howell Township will likely be delayed at least six months.
HOWELL - The controversial 72-unit affordable housing project on West Farms Road is reportedly being held up by a lawsuit filed against the township by a resident.
Joe Del Duca, an attorney for the Barnegat-based developer Walters Group, told the Asbury Park Press that construction on the $22.6 million Howell Family Apartments will likely be delayed at least six months due to a civil lawsuit challenging two ordinances Howell Township approved in October to enable the project to move forward.
The lawsuit was filed in Monmouth County Superior Court on Nov. 23 by Red Bank-based attorney Ronald Gasiorowski on behalf of township resident John Bonevich and there is a trial date set for Oct. 12, the newspaper reported.
The residential complex would include nine separate two-story buildings of one-, two- and three-bedroom units, an office, a maintenance garage, parking lots and basketball court.
The remainder of the roughly 27-acre property could potentially be subdivided for commercial use.
The project is expected to be substantially funded through federal low-income housing tax credits and Hurricane Sandy recovery funds, officials said.
The lawsuit claims that the township's ordinances - one that creates an affordable housing zone and another that rezone the property - are inconsistent with the town's master plan, that the township failed to exercise its authority to promote general welfare with reasonable consideration to the character of the district and that the project is spot zoned illegally, the Asbury Park Press reported.
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