Long awaited Rt. 33 curb cut seen as key to store’s survival
By: Michael Arges
EAST WINDSOR – A long awaited entrance to the Twin Rivers Shopping Center may be the best hope for the struggling grocery store there.
While company officials did not return messages seeking comment, shoppers at the store have noticed the lack of many items they go there to buy – including frozen foods, bread and produce.
"I was in the store myself, and the shelves are bare," Twin Rivers resident Bob Hudak said. "In the freezer section, all of the freezers are empty."
Construction on the curb cut began Wednesday and it is expected to be finished in about a week, but it remains unclear how the new entrance will affect the store.
"After Foodtown moved out, we were thrilled when Doyle’s came aboard," Mr. Hudak, who is a member of the Twin Rivers Community Trust board of directors, said. "Unfortunately, without the curb cut, I’m not sure that just our patronage is enough to support a shopping center."
Complicating the store’s situation were two incidents that caused many food items to be lost – a fire in November closed the store for more than two months, then damage to a freezer unit in April damaged many frozen food products.
Following the freezer incident, store manager John Sullivan said he felt as if someone was "out to get" the store. Mr. Sullivan did not respond to requests for comment this week.
According to board members for the Twin Rivers Trust, the curb cut is especially needed by the Doyle’s Thriftway Supermarket, the main tenant in the shopping center. They observed that the market seems sparsely stocked, especially with regard to fresh foods, and they speculated that the store’s volume of business has been insufficient to support a wider selection.
Doyle’s "is caught in a catch 22," said Marty Bernstein, a member of the board of the Twin Rivers Trust. "For a long, long time they stocked this store very completely, and did a great job of stocking it."
He added that "they haven’t had people buying all the products, and that’s been a major burden for them. I must say that the ownership and the management of the store have tried very hard to win over everyone in the community, and I salute their efforts. I think that other stores would have just packed it in the first year," Mr. Bernstein said. "Somehow, it didn’t catch on, partly because of the fact that that Super Shoprite (on Route 130 in East Windsor) had come in six months before, and had a chance to win over all the customers who are here. Then, of course, the Superfresh opened up, which made it even more complicated."
"Doyle’s was a very cooperative store with us," Mr. Bernstein said. "They worked with us hand-in-glove on everything. Anytime we had major events they made huge donations to those events. They were very community-minded."
He added, "I don’t know what their prospects are for the future. I pray for them, but I don’t know."
"The owners of that shopping center came before the (Twin Rivers) board two years ago, and presented us with plans of reconstructing and revitalizing that shopping center, and it’s been very slow progress," Mr. Hudak said. "And unfortunately Doyle’s has been suffering. The residents have been looking forward to this revitalization for years now."
Mr. Hudak noted that Thomas Orban, the developer for the owners of the shopping center, had come before the Twin Rivers residents and "painted a rosy picture" with plans for renewal of the shopping center, including plans for the curb cut.
"This is two years ago that he brought this to us," Mr. Hudak said, noting that in two years "I could have done that curb cut with a spoon!"
The developer and one of the owners of the shopping center were unavailable for comment.
Mayor Janice Mironov expressed optimism that the new, more direct entrance to the shopping center will really make a difference. The cut will mean that "someone who is driving along can easily access the center. Right now, to get in there is a kind of a convoluted process," she said. The cut "will enable someone to make a straight right turn in."
The East Windsor council and the Twin Rivers Trust board "have long advocated and asked the owners (of the shopping center) to do this."
Mayor Mironov added "we believe that it will make the center more accessible and is one of the important elements of the revitalization."
The curb cut "now seems to be moving along," Mayor Mironov added. Mayor Mironov noted "the town was instrumental in getting the curb cut engineered and approved by the state," adding "at least three of my gray hairs are attributable to this!"