Voorhees approves 60 affordable apartments
on the Laurel Oak parking lot.
By Justin Kelly
NJ Real Estate Broker-Salesperson
The Planning Board granted preliminary and final major site plan approval 5 to 0 for two three-story buildings, 30 apartments each, on part of the lot behind the Ritz and AMC theater.
What was reported
- Voorhees Township's Planning Board approved preliminary and final major site plan for a 60 apartment community off Laurel Oak Road, 5 to 0, with none against
- Two three story buildings, 30 apartments each, all of them income restricted, on part of the parking lot behind the Ritz and AMC theater
- The township had already zoned for it, through an affordable housing overlay and the Laurel Oak Redevelopment Plan. The financing is a separate step and is not in hand yet
The story
Voorhees Township's Planning Board has approved preliminary and final major site plan for a 60-apartment community on part of the parking lot behind the Ritz and AMC theater, off Laurel Oak Road at Berlin Road. The vote was 5 to 0, with none against. The applicant is Voorhees Family Apartments, LLC, which the minutes describe as a special purpose company owned by principals of the Walters Group, an affordable housing developer.
The plan is two buildings of three stories, 30 apartments in each, and every one of the 60 is income restricted. These are rentals; counsel told the board the developer has never sold any of its units.
The township had already done the zoning: one ordinance created an affordable housing overlay for this site and another adopted the Laurel Oak Redevelopment Plan, and a development agreement between the township and the developer was signed in March. Counsel described the application as largely one the zoning already allowed.
It is not finished. The approval carries conditions and design waivers, hydrant placement was left to be worked out with the fire marshal, and the board's written resolution confirming the approval does not appear in this record. The financing is its own step: the developer still had to file for state housing tax credits, and municipal approval was what allowed that filing to happen at all. Nothing about rents, unit sizes, or a construction date is public at this stage.
Site plan approval carries conditions. Financing had not been secured when this was written. Written by Justin Kelly, NJ Real Estate Broker-Salesperson, from the Voorhees Township Planning Board minutes.
Our take
The township had already zoned this site, and the board approved it 5 to 0. If you are following new construction in Voorhees, state housing tax credits are the next step, and we can tell you where it stands.
