Redevelop NJ

Tiny Homes – A Creative Solution for Affordable Housing and Homelessness

By: Kevin J. Moore

Good things often come in small packages, and one of those may be a simple solution to New Jersey’s well-documented shortage of affordable housing: tiny homes. A tiny home is a single family home with a floor area of 400 square feet or less, which requires creative use of space and multipurpose features. Some are built on a foundation and others are chassis mounted mobile homes. Many jurisdictions, notably California, are beginning to use tiny homes as a means of providing inexpensive housing for low and moderate income and homeless individuals.

The Revenge of the Parking Lot

By: Ted Zangari

It’s true: COVID-19 has breathed new life into parking lots. As Neal Freyman of Morning Brew has observed:

• Churches, synagogues, and other places of worship have been holding radio broadcasted services in their parking lots.
• DJs in Germany have been hosting drive-in raves in parking lots.
• With libraries, schools, and coffee shops closed, parking lots have become a “digital lifeline” for many Americans needing to access wi-fi.

These adaptive uses may be temporary, but “curbside” delivery and “patio” or “outdoor” bar/restaurant seating may become permanent features of the modern-day parking lot (and shopping center sidewalks) long after the epidemic subsides.

 

> Click here to read "The Revenge of the Parking Lot" from Morning Brew

 

Governor Murphy Issues Extensions of NJDEP Timeframes and Deadlines

By: Andrew B. Robins

On Saturday May 2, 2020, New Jersey Governor Philip D. Murphy issued Executive Order (EO) 136 providing for sweeping extensions of many statutory deadlines required under environmental laws and regulations administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP or Department) and suspending timeframes for certain NJDEP permit decisions and reporting. The extensions and suspensions are retroactive to March 9, 2020. Specifically, EO-136 includes the following: