Store renovations approved
By Doug Carman, Staff Writer
EAST WINDSOR The township’s Planning Board thought Walmart’s plans to remodel its store on Route 130 were a bit off-color Monday.
Board member and Councilman Perry Shapiro called the proposed color scheme “dreary.”
However, Walmart’s proposal was approved by a 6-0 vote under the condition they came up with a different exterior color scheme.
Mayor Janice Mironov, who also sits on the Planning Board, asked Walmart attorney Donald Pepe and architect Perry Petrillo to keep the store’s current brown and green colors intact when the store is renovated.
None of the six Planning Board members objected to the interior floor plan presented Monday. That plan will include a full-service grocery and eliminate the tire and lube center. However, the proposed shift to earth tones and shades of brown on the store’s exterior clashed with Mr. Shapiro and Mayor Mironov’s preferences.
”I thought the building looked better before … I don’t think you’re improving the building, you’re making it less attractive,” Mr. Shapiro said. “It looks a lot drearier.”
Mr. Pepe and Mr. Petrillo told the board they would submit a new color scheme.
The exterior colors originally proposed, including one shade Mr. Petrillo called “roadhouse tan,” are similar to the current hues adorning the Walmart in Freehold, which is also being renovated.
The opposition to the color scheme wasn’t unanimous, despite the vote. Board member Skip Berman told the Walmart representatives he didn’t have a concern with the proposed color scheme and said he thought they should have the right to choose how they color its own store.
Mayor Mironov felt differently, stating the township historically had been involved with the store’s design since the Bentonville, Ark.-based company proposed building the Walmart in East Windsor in 2003. She said the store looked all the better for that involvement.
”It appears much nicer than many other Walmarts,” Mayor Mironov said.
Outside the meeting, Mr. Pepe said the remodel is part of Walmart’s strategy to update its stores throughout New Jersey and expand their grocery selections. Though he was not sure if any other additions would be included, such as a fabric center found in some Walmart stores in other states, the remodel would subtract the tire and lube express center.
Mr. Petrillo told the board the construction project would last six months.
Mr. Pepe said the project was planned for completion this year, though when asked for a more precise date, he said, “go ask the Mayor.”
A message left for Walmart’s corporate press office was not returned.
The Walmart in Freehold is undergoing a similar remodel, though Mr. Pepe said that one required a physical expansion of the store. Mr. Petrillo said the East Windsor store will remain 136,000 square feet.
According to the original plans, the store will be entirely renovated internally. Freezers will include timed lights that will shut off if people aren’t walking down the aisles, and the building as a whole will have its own reclaimed water system.
”At the end of the day it’s a totally new store inside,” Mr. Petrillo told the board. “It’s not remodeling a third of the store, it’s a total remodeling of the store. It’s sort of their way of keeping up with the times.”
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