Construction may begin before the end of the year
By: Lea Kahn
The developers of the proposed ShopRite grocery store at the Brunswick Circle have been given the green light by township planners to forge ahead with their plans.
The Planning Board granted final site plan approval for Brunswick Circle Associates’ plan to build the grocery store on the 9.6-acre tract Monday night. The land is bordered by the Brunswick Circle Extension, Princeton Avenue and Route 206.
The plan calls for building a 92,686-square-foot building. ShopRite will occupy 80,237 square feet, and two smaller stores will occupy 7,000 square feet and 2,600 square feet, respectively. Tenants have not been signed up for the two smaller stores.
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Related stories: • Planners eye ShopRite application (March 23, 2000) • ShopRite gets preliminary approval (April 21, 2000) • Visions of a new ‘main street’ (May 18, 2000) • ShopRite seeks final approval (Aug. 17, 2000) • ShopRite hearing pushed back one month (Aug. 24, 2000) |
Brunswick Circle Associates outlined modifications to the site plan, including reducing the intensity of the lighting fixtures from 1,000 watts to 400 watts. The plan also shows 388 parking spaces, and not 384.
Traffic engineer Arnold Garonzik, who represents Brunswick Circle Associates, told the Planning Board that county and state transportation officials have rejected a proposal to designate crosswalks on Princeton Avenue and the Brunswick Circle Extension. Motorists know to slow down and watch for pedestrians, he said.
Access to the ShopRite grocery store will be provided from all three streets. The Brunswick Circle Extension and Route 206 entrances will be limited to right turns into the site and right turns out of the site. The Princeton Avenue driveway will allow left and right turns into and out of the shopping center.
Developer Philip Vinch, a principal in Brunswick Circle Associates, said his group expects to break ground for the grocery store before the end of this year. The new store will be open next spring, he said.
The 9.6-acre tract formerly was the site of a 50,000-square-foot bowling alley and a strip shopping center that were demolished several years ago. The site is currently occupied by the shuttered Shop ‘N Bag grocery store, which is 21,900 square feet. The site also contains a house, which will be torn down.
The site of the planned ShopRite is the hub of the redevelopment area in southern Lawrence Township, said Mayor Gregory Puliti, who sits on the Planning Board. The new supermarket will be good for the town, he said.
Township officials have expressed concern over the deterioration of the southern end of the township. A one-mile-long stretch of Brunswick Pike, between the Brunswick Traffic Circle and an area north of Whitehead Road, recently was designated as the Brunswick Pike South Redevelopment Area by township officials. A formal plan for redeveloping the area is in the works.
Related stories:
• Planners eye ShopRite application (March 23, 2000)
• ShopRite gets preliminary approval (April 21, 2000)
• Visions of a new ‘main street’ (May 18, 2000)
• ShopRite seeks final approval (Aug. 17, 2000)
• ShopRite hearing pushed back one month (Aug. 24, 2000)