Mayor: Place New Emphasis On Housing For Seniors, Disabled Residents

Cranford mayor Dan Aschenbach will ask the Township Committee this week to re-examine the local housing situation and place emphasis on senior citizens and disabled community members.

"A new senior citizen housing complex and meeting the needs of Cranford's disabled residents are two of Cranford's top affordable housing needs that have gone unmet," Aschenbach said.

At the root of the issue is the ongoing battle to fight overdevelopment in the township's flood zone. With that in mind, Aschenbach said, a four-part strategy is being proposed.

"The township has to put forward a constructive plan on affordable housing but one that meets the township's own housing needs.  We can't solve the state's objective of more  without first addressing the needs of our own community," the mayor said, referring to the proposed development projects on and . "Rather than trying to ram into Cranford two developments that will crowd the school system and in the case of Birchwood allow a massive development in a flood way, Cranford should, while going all out in opposing Birchwood, focus now on two constructive projects to make a difference."

In a press release Monday, Aschenbach said that at 555 South Ave., the owner of the property is a hedge fund company "that has yet to realize the community will not settle but will continue to fight the proposed project. The property site has numerous problems and we should be proposing a constructive solution."

"Blocks away, Cranford developed two senior citizen centers that have had a great reputation as places that are like a community within a community. We need to replicate that at the 555 South Ave. site.  I am meeting with state officials to discuss federal tax credits, state financing agency loans and ground leases. There is an opportunity here to meet a community need. There is now a four-year waiting list for our current senior citizen housing. Many residents want to downsize but not leave Cranford," the mayor said. The other priority is for the development of housing opportunities for the disabled-whether it be developmentally disabled, blind or medically needy."

One option the town has, according to the mayor, would be to develop property at 326 North Ave. by a private developer. Aschenbach said the township should also begin to make improvements to the existing apartment complexes in order to make them handicap accessible.

"We cannot allow the court in a mindless way to allow massive overdevelopment," Aschenbach said, referring to a judge's decision earlier this summer to allow the construction of 360 apartment units on Birchwood Avenue - a known flood zone. "We should focus our attention on what can be done to meet our community's housing needs."