Merchants and shoppers say the renovations under way at the Town Place Shopping Center on Route 27 already are making a big difference.
By: Chinenye Okparanta
Merchants and shoppers at the recently renovated Town Place Shopping Center on Route 27, formerly the Kendall Park Shopping Center, say changes to the strip mall have really helped business.
Store owners say the first phase of the renovations has them looking forward to the completion of the second phase and the opening of more stores, which they believe will draw even more customers.
"So far we’re doing good because of the high visibility," said Tuan Ong, owner of the Nail Salon, which moved from Hillsborough to the center in June. "And with the way the strip mall is remodeled, it’s more attractive to customers."
The recent jump in business at the strip mall is a drastic change from just over a year ago.
One of the oldest strip malls in the township, the Kendall Park Shopping Center had grown empty of both shoppers and merchants in the last decade and area residents had begun complaining about its appearance.
A renovation plan had been approved by the Planning Board in 1999 and changes were subsequently made to the plan. The current plan calls for construction of an approximately 86,000-square-foot building, replacing the original 55,053-square-foot shopping center. Work began in April 2004 with the demolition of the original building.
The first phase of the renovations included the expansion of the old Kendall Park Cinemas building to house a 14,431-square-foot CVS Pharmacy. The pharmacy building became a part of the larger shopping center and not a free-standing building, as the theaters had been.
Phase II renovations started this fall with the demolition of the remaining buildings, said Terry Katula, spokesperson for VAP, which manages the mall. Phase II plans call for construction of 32,000 square feet of store space.
"Phase I is complete, construction-wise, and Phase II is currently under construction," Ms. Katula said. "We’re looking at completion sometime in spring of 2006."
CVS, Quiznos Subs, Cold Stone Creamery, KaBloom florist and The Travel Center all opened in May. Glendale Liquors, which had been in the older shopping center, also reopened in the new building in May.
Lili’s Oriental Cuisine, Hair Mania and the Nail Spa opened in late June.
Kendall Park Cleaners, which had been located in the older center, will re-open when Phase II is complete. Hudson City Savings Bank, Monsoon Grille and Data Doctors also are scheduled to open when Phase II is done, Ms. Katula said.
Ms. Katula said that VAP is waiting to finalize three leases to complete the rental of all storefronts in Phase I.
"We have leases out for review on spaces in Phase I and several spaces in Phase II and once those leases are executed then we can announce what the other stores will be," Ms. Katula said.
She said that there is one 1,600-square-foot space and at least one 2,500-square-foot-space still available for rental in Phase II.
"Assuming that all that goes through, once those deals are executed there will be no vacancy," Ms. Katula said.
Hair Mania, a unisex full-service salon, has experienced a steady flow of customers since the salon opened in June.
The stylists at the salon said that when the new stores open up, there would probably be even more business.
Wendy Lu, manager of Lili’s Oriental Cuisine said that business has been good since the restaurant opened five months ago.
A lot of people come to the restaurant because of the location, Ms. Lu said. She said that dinnertime is probably the busiest.
Carol D’Angelo of Kendall Park, a customer at the Nail Spa, said the location and the quality of the spa are the reasons she keeps going back.
"This is like what you can get in Princeton," Ms. D’Angelo said. "It’s high-end compared to many of the other nail places around here."

