New Jersey reaches settlement with Hoboken over affordable housing residency preference

This story first appeared in our statewide-sister-publication, The Jersey Vindicator.

New Jersey has reached a settlement with the City of Hoboken that will expand access to affordable housing after a state investigation found that a city residency preference policy may have discriminated based on race, Attorney General Matthew Platkin and the Division on Civil Rights announced on Monday.

The agreement resolves a complaint alleging that Hoboken’s affordable housing residency preference violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination by disproportionately excluding applicants from surrounding, more racially diverse communities.

Some Princeton officials and affordable housing advocates have at times expressed the desire for a preference for Princeton residents when it comes to some affordable housing developments. The settlement raises issues over whether such a preference would be challenged.

The Division on Civil Rights opened its investigation after a Black Jersey City resident filed a complaint alleging she was denied the opportunity to apply for an affordable housing unit in Hoboken despite having been on the waitlist for five years. The complainant alleged that the city discriminated based on race.

At issue was Hoboken’s Municipal Ordinance Amendment B-175, enacted in 2019, which gave current Hoboken residents preferential access to affordable housing. The ordinance replaced a prior policy that extended residency preference to a broader four-county region of Hudson, Bergen, Passaic, and Sussex counties.

As part of the settlement, Hoboken has agreed to amend its ordinance to eliminate the Hoboken-only residency requirement and revert to a regional preference covering the four-county COAH Region 1 area.

Going forward, the city will apply the regional residency preference to newly constructed affordable housing units used to satisfy Hoboken’s 2025 to 2035 affordable housing obligations under the Mount Laurel doctrine and related affordable housing laws.

“Housing discrimination continues to deny too many New Jerseyans the opportunity to access safe, affordable housing,” Platkin said in a statement. “The agreement announced today will make it easier for eligible low-income people to access affordable housing in a part of our state where rents are skyrocketing and affordable housing opportunities are at a premium.”

Division on Civil Rights Director Yolanda Melville said the settlement represents an important step toward ensuring equitable access to housing.

“Discrimination has no place in affordable housing policy,” Melville said. “This settlement is a significant step forward in our mission to promote equal access to housing for all New Jersey residents.”

The Division on Civil Rights investigated whether Hoboken’s residency preference had an unlawful disparate impact in violation of the Law Against Discrimination, which prohibits housing discrimination based on race, national origin, and other protected characteristics.

While the policy did not explicitly single out a protected class, the Division of Civil Rights raised concerns that the residency preference may have disproportionately excluded residents of surrounding municipalities that are more racially diverse than Hoboken.

In addition to amending its ordinance, Hoboken agreed to provide relief to individuals affected by the policy. Applicants who were previously denied or skipped on the waitlist because of the residency preference will have their prior waitlist positions reinstated. Those removed from the waitlist for failing to complete annual recertifications may seek reinstatement if they originally applied before the ordinance amendment.

Applicants who were previously skipped or removed will be screened for opportunities to apply for affordable housing units if otherwise eligible.

The city also agreed to allocate at least $30,000 toward additional affordability assistance and other fair housing projects or training, and to require all staff involved in affordable housing administration to complete training on housing discrimination laws.

State officials said the agreement will ensure that affordable housing in Hoboken is available to a larger and more diverse pool of applicants.