Township Council expected to name redevelopers at July 26 meeting
By Joanne Degnan, Managing Editor
ROBBINSVILLE — Two developers have submitted proposals for different ends of the Town Center South Redevelopment Area that if approved, would bring a sports and entertainment complex, pharmacy and possibly a hotel or restaurants to the site.
The Township Council is expected to take action July 26 designating Ferber Co. and Sharbell Development Corp. as “redeveloper candidates” for portions of Town Center South, an area on the south side of Route 33 that includes vacant land and a mix of small homes and businesses. The two submitted proposals together comprise roughly half of the 90 acres of land in the redevelopment zone.
Although a number of potential redevelopers had expressed interest to the township officials over the past year, only Ferber and Sharbell sent in formal proposals, according to Tim McGough, the township’s economic development director. The deadline to submit redevelopment proposals was July 13.
Ferber submitted plans for a Walgreens on 2.4 acres at the redevelopment zone’s western end near Washington Boulevard that is owned by Roma Bank. Sharbell’s plan is for 52 acres of vacant township-owned land at the zone’s eastern end and includes: a 385-by-550-foot air supported field house for sports competitions and entertainment events; four mixed-use multi-story buildings with residential units on the top floors: and freestanding pad sites for restaurants or possibly a hotel.
Council President Ron Witt said Saturday he was relieved the residential component has been scaled back significantly from some of the early concept plans that had been floated by various developers at preliminary public hearings last year.
”We did not want anything that was dense with residential because of the impact it would have on our schools,” Mr. Witt said.
Sharbell’s redevelopment proposal potentially contains 120 to 150 condominium units in multi-story mixed-use buildings, similar to loft-style condos in the existing Town Center, which Sharbell also built. By contrast, the preliminary concept plans unveiled by several redevelopers at a public hearing in March 2011 had more than 500 apartments, condominiums or town houses.
Former Township Council President Chris Ciaccio, who leads the redevelopment subcommittee that vetted the developers’ submissions July 19, called the proposed sports facility “exciting” because it would make Town Center South a “destination” for residents and visitors alike.
Sports complex
The sports and entertainment complex, which would be operated by Elite Showcases LLC, has been proposed for 28 acres of township-owned land that is not visible from Route 33. Motorists would access the sports complex, which would have 1,400 parking spaces, using a new road called South Commerce Square.
Tom Troy, senior vice president for Sharbell, said Monday, there would likely be “shared construction activities” between Elite and Sharbell, but that the sports complex itself would be built by Elite. The township would provide Elite with a long-term lease for the use of the property, he said.
Ms. Ciaccio said the goal of the town center redevelopment plan approved earlier this year was to give potential redevelopers the flexibility to think outside the box.
”We wanted them to come up with ideas that knocked our socks off and they have,” Ms. Ciaccio said Friday, referring to the proposed sports and entertainment complex. She noted the facility would provide plenty of parking and also help draw visitors to the shops and restaurants in the downtown area.
Mr. Witt said the proposed Elite Showcase Complex would be able to have baseball and softball tournaments, adding it would be “much different” than the privately operated Robbinsville Fieldhouse located on Robbinsville-Allentown Road. The Robbinsville Fieldhouse is a 150-by-300 foot facility with three indoor turf fields that are used mainly by soccer and lacrosse leagues.
Liberty Street
Adjacent to the 28-acre sports facility parcel is a 13.5-acre area where Sharbell has proposed four multistory mixed-used buildings along a new road called Liberty Street, that would be built behind the privately owned properties that front Route 33. Two locations on Liberty Street are identified as potential sites for either a hotel and/or freestanding “pad-site” restaurants.
The Sharbell drawings show 10.5 acres at the western end of Liberty Street as the location of the town’s proposed community pool, parking lot, and recreation building. This is about half the size of the park and recreation complex that Mayor Dave Fried proposed in his State of the Township address in March.
Sharbell would only be purchasing the 13.5-acre section of the township property that is needed for the multi-story mixed-use buildings, the restaurants and hotel on the interior lots. Mr. Troy declined to say Monday how much Sharbell has offered the town for the land, saying it would be premature to disclose that now.
The privately owned properties directly fronting Route 33 across from the existing Town Center are not part of Sharbell’s proposal, though Mr. Troy said his company was not ruling out the possibility of “pursuing opportunities” there in the future.
The township’s redevelopment plan, adopted earlier this year, specifies that these Route-33-facing properties, which have existing buildings and different owners, must be redeveloped as four multi-story buildings that would mirror the Town Center buildings directly across the street.
Walgreens
At the other end of the redevelopment zone, the Ferber Company, a real estate development and investment firm based in Ponta Beach, Florida, is proposing to build a 14,820-square foot Walgreens pharmacy, with a drive-through window and 57 parking spaces. This project would be located on two parcels owned by Roma Bank near the corner of Washington Boulevard and Route 33, across from the entrance to the Foxmoor shopping center.
The Walgreens project would require the demolition of an existing building at 2313 Route 33, Mr. McGough said. The two-story building, a single-family home converted for commercial use, has the offices of a computer repair firm, a photography studio and a credit repair company.
Properties fronting Route 33 that are located between the proposed Walgreens and the proposed Sharbell project are not part of either of the two redevelopment proposals. The Washington Village and Robbinsville Commons residential/commercial projects had been planned for these vacant tracts until the developers lost their financing after the credit market collapse of 2008.
The next step
Mr. McGough said the resolution on the Township Council’s July 26 agenda would designate Ferber and Sharbell the “redeveloper candidates” for their respective redevelopment areas so that negotiations could begin to hammer out the details. The final redeveloper agreements would then be sent to the full Township Council for a public hearing and vote.
The township designated Town Center South as area in need of redevelopment in 2010, a move that gave the municipality extensive control over the redevelopment process, including the power to use eminent domain to force the sale of private property if needed. There are 15 different property owners in the redevelopment area, however, the township has said it wants to negotiate property sales, not force them through condemnation proceedings.
The redevelopment area designation also opens up a broader range of financing options than traditional bank loans. These include state Economic Development Authority loans, bonds and tax increment financing, which diverts future tax revenues to finance current redevelopment expenses.

