Owners anticipate new tenants will move into large retail space
Correspondent
BRICK –– Plans to redevelop Value City Plaza, Brick Boulevard, were presented to the Brick Planning Board at its Sept. 24 meeting.
Property owners Third Venture LLC hope that improved signage, landscaping and lighting, a facelift to the building’s facade and a new name will invigorate business at the shopping plaza.
"This is an upgrade of an older shopping plaza," said Mark Troncone, the applicant’s attorney. "We are not seeking one additional square foot of retail space."
Value City Plaza occupies approximately 37,000 square feet of space on the east side of Brick Boulevard. The layout of the property will remain unchanged with the three buildings forming a U and the parking lot in the middle of the site.
"Boulevard Square," as the new plaza will be known, will also be looking for a major national retailer to replace Value City Furniture, whose lease is up in October 2004.
David Levy, managing member of Third Venture, said that he has had "informal" talks with Value City Furniture regarding their lease.
"It’s more than likely Value City will not be there," Levy said. "I’m 95 percent sure."
Levy also said that the three other tenants, Classic Cuts, Cuddle Cove Day Care and Party Fair, would be staying. He said that the plaza could accommodate up to 20 tenants, but that somewhere between six and eight tenants total was "more realistic."
If Value City vacates the plaza when its lease expires, Third Venture will need a variance from the board to keep the number of parking spaces in the lot at 184. The parking lot would be required to have approximately 208 spaces if retailers that produce higher traffic volumes moved in.
Third Venture would also need a variance for a new sign, which would be slightly larger than the existing sign. The new pylon sign would have an "open letter design," rather than the billboard type that currently exists, said Architect Paul Barlo. He also assured the board that neon would not be used in the sign.
"A new sign is necessary to give the center identity and to attract more upscale tenants," Troncone said.
The proposal before the board also calls for improvements to the landscaping at the front of the site and to enclose the garbage disposal areas with trees and shrubs, according to Engineer Charles Lindstrom.
Among other local shopping plazas, Third Venture also owns the Town Hall Shoppes on Cedar Bridge Avenue.
The board will discuss the plan with its professionals in a workshop meeting tonight and will vote on it at a later date.