The Voorhees Township Committee passed several new resolutions during its virtual meeting on Monday, April 26 that show improvements are coming to Voorhees. On the top of the agenda, the committee gave a first reading on an ordinance to adopt a redevelopment plan for the old main street area between Somerdale and Evesham roads.
”The old plaza 1000 building was emptied out a couple years ago and new developers want to put up some retail and housing there, and we allowed them to take the first step in doing that,” explained Larry Spellman, Voorhees Township Administrator, after the meeting. There will be a second reading and a public hearing on the ordinance at the next virtual meeting, on Monday, May 10. The Zoom meeting link will be available at voorheesnj.com.
During this brief meeting, the committee also passed a resolution that authorized a settlement agreement with Fair Share Housing after a lengthy legal battle between the township and Mount Laurel IV “to adopt a Housing Element and Fair Share Plan to satisfy the third round of affordable housing obligation in accordance with the Mount Laurel IV decision” that has been ongoing since 2015. This settlement allows for the conditions for the third round of affordable housing obligations to be met by having 510 units for affordable housing, nine units for rehabilitation, and 456 units of affordable housing to meet the prior round’s obligation.
According to the state Department of Community Affairs (DCA) website, “affordable housing is listed for people with low and moderate incomes. Low income is defined as at or below 50 percent of median family income. Moderate income is over 50 percent, but no more than 80 percent of median family income.” To see if you qualify, check out the DCA’s affordable housing regional income limit table at www.nj.gov/dca/affiliates/coah/reports/incomelimits.pdf.
Voorhees Township will be using a combination of pre-existing units and new units to provide affordable housing for seniors, low-income families and people with special needs. A full breakdown of the units that will fulfill the agreement can be seen on the April 26 committee agenda on the township website (www.voorheesnj.com).
The committee also resolved to join the Borough of Laurel Springs in a shared services agreement, where Laurel Springs will pay to have Voorhees Certified Recycling Professionals provide services for the borough. In a separate effort to reduce costs of solid waste disposal, the council has also resolved to join the Borough of Somerdale in a shared services agreement for solid waste disposal starting in January 2022. The hope is that in joining Somerdale, the annual cost for disposing of solid waste will be reduced over the next few years because they will be disposing in bulk.
In other news,
- Nickolaus Construction Company will be resurfacing the basketball courts and adding two new basketball courts that will replace the tennis courts at Kirkwood Park
- Route 73 will be receiving restoration work by H & H Landscape Management
- The township will be hosting a drive-in showing of“Moana” on May 14 at 8:30 p.m. in the Voorhees Town Center parking lot. Parking will begin at 7:30 p.m. Cars must have their lights off during the duration of the show. The Voorhees Arts Council will have candy, popcorn, snacks and bottled water for a $2.00 donation, and J-Dog will be there as a vendor. The showing will be free, with limited spacing
