Questions arise over development tenants

Stop & Shop may limit competition at Montgomery Promenade.

By: Jake Uitti
   MONTGOMERY — Questions were raised at Monday’s meeting of the township Planning Board about what kinds of food stores would be allowed in the proposed Montgomery Promenade development on Route 206, given that the development has a lease with Stop & Shop, a large grocery store.
   The Stop & Shop facility in Montgomery Promenade plans to sell everything from cheeses, fish and flowers to deli meats, groceries, coffee and prescription drugs.
   Planning Board member John Warms, who is also a member of the Township Committee, questioned representatives of Stop & Shop as to whether a butcher, a flower shop or a coffee shop would be allowed in the stores in Montgomery Promenade, given that the Stop & Shop facility plans to sell many of the same products in its large store.
   John Lanham, a representative of Madison Marquette, the firm developing Montgomery Promenade, said the Stop & Shop lease prohibits other supermarkets in Montgomery Promenade. In addition, Mr. Lanham said, a farmers’ market — like the one that occupies space in the Princeton North Shopping Center once a week for several months out of the year, and whose organizers have expressed interest in moving to Montgomery Promenade — would not likely be permitted.
   Stores that would sell food predominantly for on-site consumption, such as an ice cream store or a Starbucks, would be allowed, Mr. Lanham said. But another pharmacy or a deli would pose a problem, he added.
   The intention of the Montgomery Promenade is to promote a strong sense of community, Mr. Lanham said, adding that prospective stores could try to negotiate with Madison Marquette.
   Mr. Warms suggested that Madison Marquette be more flexible in its plans.
   "We’re looking forward to a shopping center that will meet the needs of the people," Mr. Warms said. "It’s a big world. Competition never hurt anybody."
   Stop & Shop and Madison Marquette representatives said they would talk further and come back to the board with more information at its next meeting.
   In a related development, a 32-unit, age-restricted housing development proposed for the northwest corner of Montgomery Promenade was discussed at Monday’s meeting. Board members expressed concern that the homes all showed substantially the same architecture, and suggested they be redesigned to look more diverse. It is anticipated that these plans will be brought back to the board at their next meeting. A considerable amount of landscaping and buffering is also planned for the homes and throughout the site.
   The next meeting regarding the Montgomery Promenade development is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Monday in the Municipal Building.
   In other business, the Planning Board unanimously approved a subdivision of the Donald Drake farm, located on Route 518 adjacent to the Bloomberg offices, in order to permit farmland preservation of the property and to permit township pathways on the property.