Post by Freehold Resident on Sept 28, 2006 19:28:32 GMT -5
Freehold Raceway Mall announces plans to expand
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Living in Freehold Township provides residents with many amenities such as lush greenery, country roads, farms and many lovely subdivisions. What the township does not have, however, is a Main Street.
That is about to change - kind of.
The Macerich Co., which owns the Freehold Raceway Mall, has put together a plan that will not only give shoppers some wonderful new shops to frequent, it will provide an open-air lifestyle component that the mall's owner says will resemble a main street.
On Sept. 14, the Macerich Co. unveiled plans for an expansion project that will begin in January and be completed about 10 months later.
Township Committeewoman Dorothy Avallone joined the representatives of the mall's owner for the announcement of the project.
According to Debra Panzarella, senior marketing manager for the Macerich Co., the plan includes a 100,000-square-foot addition with retail specialty shops and two restaurants. The plan proposes a new open-air lifestyle expansion that will introduce a pedestrian environment to the mall.
According to Panzarella, the new stores will be built on the east side of Freehold Raceway Mall between Sears and J.C. Penney. The addition will feature a "Main Street" atmosphere with landscape vignettes, comfortable outdoor seating areas and a seasonal performance venue.
According to Panzarella, the project designed by ka architecture, Cleveland, Ohio, will include brick and stone masonry with aesthetic touches such as trellises, canopies and glass accents. The warm earth tones of the proposed lifestyle addition will complement the center's current facade.
"This will be a dynamic open-air environment with a Main Street feel that welcomes the community to gather, unwind and enjoy themselves," said Frank Lucia, senior property manager. "It will also be the site of some exciting and new-to-area retailers and restaurants. Our center will be the only enclosed regional mall in our area with an outdoor lifestyle component, giving shoppers and diners the best of both worlds. The outdoor lifestyle center is the latest trend in shopping center designs and we are looking forward to bringing this relaxed shopping and dining experience to our community."
The proposed addition will include two full-service restaurants, a two-level bookstore and about 15 retail specialty shops. According to Lucia, the addition's brick and stone exterior, accented by decorative steel, glass and metal details, will complement the existing mall's architecture.
The idea, according to Lucia, is to provide shoppers with a pedestrian-oriented center that resembles shopping on a small town main street. This center is designed to be a casual gathering place for the community. Pedestrian-only promenades alongside the center's current east entrances, between Sears and J.C. Penney, will create a natural flow between the existing enclosed mall and the new outdoor lifestyle center. The new lifestyle center will also allow access to the mall. The existing mall entrances, although altered a bit in style, will remain the same access to the mall they have always been.
The 100,000-square-foot addition falls within the property's current zoning requirements, but does require a full site plan approval before construction can begin. The review process will hopefully result in an approval by the end of the year, according to Doug Morrow, vice president, real estate, for the Macerich Company.
The proposed expansion plan is supported by the Township Committee, according to Avallone, who said members of the governing body are excited about the proposed lifestyle center envisioned by mall officials.
Avallone said although Freehold Township does not have a downtown area, this plan will come close to one. She likes the idea that it will be a place where people can gather in a relaxed outdoor environment.
"It's much as we envisioned," she said. "We plan things here, we just don't do them. This will be a place where people can enjoy eating outdoors and shopping as well."
Freehold Township Mayor Anthony J. Ammiano said the mall is an important part of the community and that municipal officials are "very pleased about the plans to add a dynamic new dimension to the center."
Two parking lots are planned for the lifestyle center.
The expansion could create between 400 and 500 jobs. The addition of two nearby remote parking lots for employees and valet parking will leave plenty of good on-site parking for shoppers, according to mall officials.
A part of Monmouth County since 1990, the Freehold Raceway Mall is an approximately 1.4-million-square-foot regional enclosed shopping center that offers more than 200 specialty stores and five major department stores: Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, Sears, Macy's and JC Penney.
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer
FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Living in Freehold Township provides residents with many amenities such as lush greenery, country roads, farms and many lovely subdivisions. What the township does not have, however, is a Main Street.
That is about to change - kind of.
The Macerich Co., which owns the Freehold Raceway Mall, has put together a plan that will not only give shoppers some wonderful new shops to frequent, it will provide an open-air lifestyle component that the mall's owner says will resemble a main street.
On Sept. 14, the Macerich Co. unveiled plans for an expansion project that will begin in January and be completed about 10 months later.
Township Committeewoman Dorothy Avallone joined the representatives of the mall's owner for the announcement of the project.
According to Debra Panzarella, senior marketing manager for the Macerich Co., the plan includes a 100,000-square-foot addition with retail specialty shops and two restaurants. The plan proposes a new open-air lifestyle expansion that will introduce a pedestrian environment to the mall.
According to Panzarella, the new stores will be built on the east side of Freehold Raceway Mall between Sears and J.C. Penney. The addition will feature a "Main Street" atmosphere with landscape vignettes, comfortable outdoor seating areas and a seasonal performance venue.
According to Panzarella, the project designed by ka architecture, Cleveland, Ohio, will include brick and stone masonry with aesthetic touches such as trellises, canopies and glass accents. The warm earth tones of the proposed lifestyle addition will complement the center's current facade.
"This will be a dynamic open-air environment with a Main Street feel that welcomes the community to gather, unwind and enjoy themselves," said Frank Lucia, senior property manager. "It will also be the site of some exciting and new-to-area retailers and restaurants. Our center will be the only enclosed regional mall in our area with an outdoor lifestyle component, giving shoppers and diners the best of both worlds. The outdoor lifestyle center is the latest trend in shopping center designs and we are looking forward to bringing this relaxed shopping and dining experience to our community."
The proposed addition will include two full-service restaurants, a two-level bookstore and about 15 retail specialty shops. According to Lucia, the addition's brick and stone exterior, accented by decorative steel, glass and metal details, will complement the existing mall's architecture.
The idea, according to Lucia, is to provide shoppers with a pedestrian-oriented center that resembles shopping on a small town main street. This center is designed to be a casual gathering place for the community. Pedestrian-only promenades alongside the center's current east entrances, between Sears and J.C. Penney, will create a natural flow between the existing enclosed mall and the new outdoor lifestyle center. The new lifestyle center will also allow access to the mall. The existing mall entrances, although altered a bit in style, will remain the same access to the mall they have always been.
The 100,000-square-foot addition falls within the property's current zoning requirements, but does require a full site plan approval before construction can begin. The review process will hopefully result in an approval by the end of the year, according to Doug Morrow, vice president, real estate, for the Macerich Company.
The proposed expansion plan is supported by the Township Committee, according to Avallone, who said members of the governing body are excited about the proposed lifestyle center envisioned by mall officials.
Avallone said although Freehold Township does not have a downtown area, this plan will come close to one. She likes the idea that it will be a place where people can gather in a relaxed outdoor environment.
"It's much as we envisioned," she said. "We plan things here, we just don't do them. This will be a place where people can enjoy eating outdoors and shopping as well."
Freehold Township Mayor Anthony J. Ammiano said the mall is an important part of the community and that municipal officials are "very pleased about the plans to add a dynamic new dimension to the center."
Two parking lots are planned for the lifestyle center.
The expansion could create between 400 and 500 jobs. The addition of two nearby remote parking lots for employees and valet parking will leave plenty of good on-site parking for shoppers, according to mall officials.
A part of Monmouth County since 1990, the Freehold Raceway Mall is an approximately 1.4-million-square-foot regional enclosed shopping center that offers more than 200 specialty stores and five major department stores: Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, Sears, Macy's and JC Penney.