Fair Share Housing of Cherry Hill, an advocacy group, wants so-called affordable housing included among the 1,500-unit residential component of Realen's mixed-use project. Under the Mount Laurel decisions issued by the New Jersey Supreme Court and subsequently backed by state legislation, communities are required to provide a certain number of affordable housing units.

Cherry Hill officials insist that they've exceeded their state-mandated requirement of 758 such units; Fair Share Housing attorney Kevin Walsh disagrees. In this case, the suit has been filed against Cherry Hill Township itself, which has accepted a "housing impact fee" of $4.7 million from Realen to relieve the developer of any affordable housing obligation.

Officials of Berwyn, PA-based Realen have said that the project's housing will be in the $125,000 to $210,000 range. Superior Court hearings on the suit are pending.