By Geena Molinaro, Special Writer
MONTGOMERY — Several new stores have popped up along Route 206 just one month after Deputy Mayor Chris Sugden attended a "Meet the Mayors" event in Hillsborough to discuss how to support and increase local businesses in the township.
Cory Wingerter, president of the Montgomery Business Association (MBA) and owner of The Tiger’s Tale, said more businesses are opening in the township this year than in previous years.
He said he could think of four new places, Ricky’s Thai restaurant, which opened two months ago, True Value, Halter’s Cycles and a Wells Fargo Bank.
"Montgomery has a lot to offer," he said.
Mr. Wingerter also said new housing developments and a commercial retail center are being built.
Montgomery True Value opened its doors to customers on June 30. The store is located in the Montgomery Shopping Center and is owned by brothers Robert and Tom Nemeck.
Robert Nemeck said he and his brother have owned another True Value store in West Trenton since 1996.
They thought Montgomery was a good location for another store since the hardware store in the area before had closed, he said.
"The community needed to have that replaced," said Mr. Nemeck. "We’re happy with the location."
Business has been steadily increasing, but Mr. Nemeck said he hopes business picks up when the store has its grand opening during the first weekend in October.
"We’ve never had a second store before," he said, "and we are training people now so we can be ready when we get a large influx of people."
He said eight out of 10 employees live in Montgomery.
After stopping by the store, Mr. Wingerter said, "I’m thrilled. They carry everything."
He said he was also happy to see the store employed a lot of younger people from the area.
Mr. Nemeck said the store carries plumbing, electrical, lawn and garden equipment as well as paints, grills, hardware and some house-ware items.
In the same shopping center, a bike store is opening where Friendly’s was. Halter’s Cycles, which has sold bikes in Monmouth Junction since 1987, is relocating to Montgomery in the fall, said owner Jason Fenton.
This move will allow the business to expand and add new brands to its inventory, said Mr. Fenton, who has owned Halter’s since 2006. The business has doubled in size over the last 10 years.
"We found a large density of our customers are from the Princeton and Montgomery area," he said.
Mr. Fenton said the Montgomery location is more bicycle accessible than the store’s current location along Route 1.
"This is an exciting move for us," he said. "Our customers are excited too because, for many of them, Route 1 is inconvenient."
Mr. Fenton said he likes that the store is only 4.2 miles from Princeton University and is also located near several places where cyclists frequently ride.
He said Halter’s Cycles has "bikes for every member of the family — mountain bikers, road bikers and kids."
Although the bikes are more expensive than something found at a department store, Halter’s Cycles provides a higher quality product, said Mr. Fenton.
He said the bikes are for people who "want to ride long term."
The store offers personal bike fittings, which typically fill up a week in advance, he said.
Mr. Fenton said he hopes the shop will be ready to open in early September but is not rushing the construction.
And, construction has been ongoing for about six months, he said.
The space was completely stripped down, he said, and the work is being done from the ground up.
Halter’s Cycles will bring all current staff members with it during the move, said Mr. Fenton. The shop has one employee from Montgomery and another from Hillsborough, he said.
The MBA wants to encourage more businesses to come to the area, said Mr. Wingerter, and it is holding a breakfast on July 15 about banking and loans for small businesses.
According to the MBA website, Lori Parisi of 1st Constitution Bank will host the meeting at the Mary Jacobs Library at 8 a.m.

