Coalition seeks commission on affordable housing City officials say 2,000 affordable units created BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer LONG BRANCH –– Advocates for affordable housing are asking the city to provide more housing opportunities for low-income residents. “There is a concern on the difference of affordable housing and low-income housing,” a member of the Concerned Citizens Coalition said at a special meeting on affordable housing in Long Branch last week. “We know the city is constructing affordable housing,” said Bill Nordahl. “One of our concerns is that there is a huge need for low-income housing. “We are losing the supply of affordable housing,” Nordahl said. “I believe it is shrinking.” At the request of the grassroots coalition, Long Branch officials discussed the city’s affordable housing stock at a special meeting last week. CCC member Avery Grant said the coalition wants to work with the city to address the areas where the city is falling short. “The purpose of this meeting is to highlight the issues and form a commission,” Grant said. “We want to be able to say, ‘Where can we help you and where can we provide assistance?’ “We want to work together.” Long Branch Mayor Adam Schneider said he would think about establishing a committee. At the beginning of the meeting, Schneider defended his administration’s record on creating affordable housing. “Affordable housing is a huge issue in the state of New Jersey. I have had a commitment to affordable housing since my first term,” he said, adding that his administration has worked with Habitat for Humanity, the state and the Long Branch Housing Authority (LBHA). “I am very proud of the work we have done. And we are not done.” In addition to Schneider, city officials at the meeting included Jacob L. Jones, director of community and economic development, and Tyrone Garrett, LBHA executive director. Nordahl said that the city’s redevelopment on the oceanfront has displaced close to 300 residents and replaced affordable housing units with luxury condominiums. “That is one example where we lost housing,” Nordahl said. “Many of the houses torn down on the oceanfront were not affordable, Jones responded. “Many were market rate that were deteriorated. When you say those houses are being torn down and not replaced, you are not being fair.” According to the city, Long Branch has approximately 13,000 households, and almost 2,000 housing units that are deemed affordable. A packet distributed at the meeting by the city said the LBHA has brought in more than $51 million in funding from several state and federal agencies. In the last three years, the LBHA has constructed close to 100 new units of affordable housing and the agency plans to construct another 400 affordable housing rental and for-sale units in the next five years, according to the packet. Also in attendance at the meeting were two representatives of the New Jersey Council on Affordable Housing (COAH). “Affordable housing, low-income housing, is not a Long Branch problem,” Jones said, adding, “It is a state problem; it is a national problem. [Long Branch] is 5.1 square miles,” he said. “You can only build so much. I think Long Branch has done well with what we have.” But CCC member Avery Grant said the grassroots group wants to help the city address the areas it is missing. Keith Henderson, director of planning for COAH, told the meeting the state defines affordable housing as costing 50 to 80 percent of median income and defines low income as any income falling below 50 percent of the median income. The median family income in Long Branch is about $38,000 and the average family income is $50,000, according to the city’s packet. The median property value in the city is more than $220,000. “In the last five years, the housing authority and the city have taken great strides,” Garrett said. “When you talk about low-income [housing], when you talk about affordable [housing], we are all working toward that.” But one CCC member called out, “So far they have not addressed anything we’ve asked for.” Some CCC members said they have not seen affordable housing opportunities grow in Long Branch. “Where do the poor people live?” CCC member Julia Wheeler asked. “How do poor people live in Long Branch?”