Market vendors wonder what future will hold

Redevelopment means existing businesses may have to close or relocate

BY VINCENT TODARO

Staff Writer

Mac McCarthy could always retire if he’s unable to find a new place to relocate, but for many vendors at the Route 18 Market in East Brunswick, the future is more uncertain.

McCarthy, 76, owner of Century Coin, spent years as a vendor at a Route 1 flea market before moving his business to the site at Route 18 and Tices Lane. The township-owned property, which in addition to the Route 18 Market is home to Sam’s Club, Jason’s Furniture and a township park-and-ride, is being sold to Toll Brothers for a redevelopment project that will replace the existing buildings with condos, upscale retail stores, offices and commuter parking.

The existing businesses on the site, which township officials call the Golden Triangle, are expected to close or relocate when their leases expire in 2008. Attempts to reach representatives of Sam’s Club and Jason’s Furniture to find out what they may do were unsuccessful.

McCarthy said he is unhappy about the prospect of having to close. Unlike many vendors at the Route 18 Market, his stand is not a part-time or “moonlighting” gig; it’s his primary place of employment.

Though closing may “hurt,” he at least has the choice of retirement, he noted.

Nicholas Raymond, owner of a jewelry operation at the market, is too young to retire. He said he is fearful about the possibility of the market closing, mainly because he does not know when it will happen. Raymond, who said he has been at that market for five years and was at the Route 1 Market before that, said that although Sam’s Club will know when it will have to close its location, he believes that market

vendors could continue to wonder about closing until the day arrives.

“If the lease holder and township can find an equitable arrangement, they can terminate the lease earlier than 2008,” he said.

Raymond said he fears vendors would be kept “in the dark” about such an arrangement until it is time to move.

“They want the market to run strong and collect rents until the last day,” he said, explaining that if people know the market is closing, they might be less likely to shop there.

Anxiety was a familiar theme among vendors at the indoor market on Saturday, which saw a good amount of business despite the heat outside.

“Trepidatious” is how Lewis Glogower, owner of Francisco Cigars, described his feelings about the proposed redevelopment project, which was made official last week when the Township Council adopted an ordinance to convey the 32-acre site to Toll Brothers. Glogower said vendors do not know what will happen as a result of the redevelopment, and that there is no “trust factor” between the businesses and the township.

Unless the market continues on-site or elsewhere, vendors like him could be out of business unless they can make the leap to being a “brick and mortar” store, a tough thing to do, considering rents on Route 18. Glogower said storefronts on the corridor go for no less than $5,000 a month, and he feels that a lot of vendors would be too small to compete there with larger businesses anyway.

“None of the jewelers or clothing stores can compete with the big ones in the malls,” he said.

“It’s going to take away a lot of livelihoods,” he said.

But the Toll Brothers plan will also pump revenue into the township. Over the next several years, the developer will give the township approximately $35 million for the site, including $5 million for the town to build a community center on another site, and the rest to fill a budget gap and provide future tax relief.

Township officials declared the site in need of redevelopment in 2003, saying it was underutilized. It then sought and reviewed several proposals from builders, and spent about a year in negotiations with Toll Brothers before reaching an agreement last month.

The market, which is open Fridays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sundays 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., offers a unique shopping experience in the area, accommodating a wide variety of businesses and a food court.

The nearly 30-year-old market, which has about 150 vendors, “is a good place to do business,” Glogower said, adding that unlike a mall, it does not bring in a lot of people who are just window shopping or “hanging out.”

Raymond offered hope by saying that if the vendors band together, they could probably afford another place on Route 18. He said he believes the township is expected to find Sam’s Club another location in East Brunswick.

But in the meantime, vendors will have to investigate matters on their own, because they are “not apprised of anything that’s going on,” Raymond said.

Glogower and McCarthy were both critical of the redevelopment plan.

McCarthy said that with the price tag of condos at $500,000, he believes families with children will move in, causing a potential increase in school taxes. Despite the fact that township officials expect the new homeowners to be mostly senior citizens and young couples with no children, he feels the stacking of the units will discourage older people from buying.

“These politicians are saying you will only have another 100 kids in the system,” he said. “You gotta be a real jerk to believe that.”

Toll Brothers has agreed to give the township $20,000 for each school-age child who moves into the new units.

“I can see many detriments, but the benefits aren’t clear,” Glogower said of the project.