OLD BRIDGE — Some local business owners said they don’t know how much longer they can stay in business due to the one-way closure of Matawan Road.
“We’re hurting,” said Rich Panassidi, owner of Giordano Italian American Eatery in the Town Square Shopping Center, at a Township Council meeting on Aug. 24. “A month or two more of this, we will be out of business.”
Business owners have been waiting for traffic modifications, which have been expected since a meeting on July 9, when business owners shared with New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) officials, township officials, and state Sen. Samuel D. Thompson (R-Middlesex) how they are being impacted by the temporary road detour in place since May 15.
“There has been no final determination,” said Township Administrator Christopher Marion.
Modifications discussed at the July meeting included opening the roadway in both directions during off-peak hours to allow access to the shopping center from Matawan Road.
William Wilson, supervising engineer at the NJTA, said in July that they would go back to the reconstruction designs; however, safety would be their first concern.
Marion said safety has prevented NJTA from signing off on opening both lanes of the roadway.
“They were skeptical if it was safe enough,” he said, adding there were a lot of concerns regarding liability. “There has been talk about phasing the project.”
As of last week, Thomas Feeney, who handles media relations for the NJTA, confirmed that no final decisions have been made.
The reconstruction by Northeast Remsco Construction, contractor for the turnpike authority, began on May 15 and will continue for approximately one year.
A switch was implemented that allows emergency personnel responding to an emergency to access and travel on the closed road.
During the project, the eastbound lane of Matawan Road is open at all times. The westbound lane of Matawan Road is detoured, with appropriate signage, in a triangle down Matawan Road onto Route 35 and Cliffwood Avenue.
The detour, business owners have said, sends people as much as 10 to 20 minutes out of the way just to make it back to where the businesses are located.
Wilson has said the dramatic loss of business reported by the owners was not anticipated. If it had been, he said, turnpike officials would not have agreed to the traffic pattern for the reconstruction of the Laurence Harbor Parkway Bridge over the Garden State Parkway, at Exit 120.
Business owners located west of the reconstruction of the bridge have revealed that they are losing $500 to $600 a day and are worried that the reconstruction, which will take 13 months, will force them out of business.
Panassidi, who came to the council meeting with his wife Maria, and several other business owners, said he feels like a bomb has been dropped on the business owners.
He has said he and his wife poured their lives into their establishment, which opened 16 months ago.
“We just want to know what is going on,” he said, adding that the business owners are seeking compensation to stay viable.
Wilson had said there are no state funds available or allowed for any type of compensation. Marion said he would continue looking into if there could be any type of relief for the business owners.
Some of the businesses in the Town Square center include a dry cleaner, a tanning salon, a bagel store, a floral shop, Party & Play USA, a Chinese restaurant, a Japanese restaurant, a Pizza Hut, a liquor store, a Dunkin’ Donuts and an ice cream store.
The businesses located west of the roadwork include a 7-Eleven convenience store, Walgreens, a CVS Pharmacy, a Quick Chek and others.