Food choices in Newark are about to get a whole lot better after both Wholefoods and ShopRite signed deals to open there.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Newark Mayor Cory Booker joined Tucker Development Corporation to break ground on Springfield Avenue Marketplace, one of New Jersey’s most highly anticipated urban, mixed-use developments.
Featuring 125,000 s/f of retail space, Springfield Avenue Marketplace is Newark’s largest new retail development. In May, Tucker Development announced that it had signed a 67,000 s/f lease with the Wakefern Food Corp. retail cooperative, the merchandising and distribution arm for ShopRite stores, to open a new supermarket at the site.
The Marketplace will service the shopping needs of approximately 280,000 Newark residents, 180,000 members of the city’s workforce and 60,000 college students and faculty.
The development will also have 152 apartments and is expected to create 240 construction jobs and almost 400 permanent jobs. The $92 million investment project is part of Newark’s Urban Enterprise Zone, where customers are entitled to a 50-percent reduction of sales tax on most purchases along with the full exemption of taxes on grocery and clothing purchases in New Jersey.
“We have worked tirelessly to increase opportunities for economic and nutritional empowerment for our residents,” said Mayor Booker. “The construction and opening of the Springfield Avenue Marketplace will address both of these critical issues, bringing jobs and a vibrant retail network into a neighborhood that needs it, while expanding access to fresh, healthy food options for Newark residents.”
The site is close to six of the city’s major colleges and one block from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, the nation’s largest health sciences university.
While Newark is densely populated, prior studies have shown that 38 percent of residents’ purchases are made outside of the city, resulting in approximately $575 million in lost sales each year.
Tucker Development President and CEO Richard Tucker believes that Springfield Avenue Marketplace will help to reverse this trend. “This project is going to play an integral role in addressing pent-up demand for retail options in Newark,” Tucker said.
“This is Newark shopping for Newark residents and workers. And most importantly, it’s going to be readily accessible to nearly everyone in the City. Further, the project’s residential component will serve the growing demand for market-rate apartments in Newark, specifically in University Heights and the surrounding neighborhoods.”
Tucker Development is actively marketing several shop spaces and a larger “junior anchor” space at Springfield Avenue Marketplace to tenants.
The Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group will provide approximately $65 million of financing for the development of Springfield Avenue Marketplace. Meanwhile, L+M Development Partners, Hanini Group, Prudential, and the Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group announced that Whole Foods Market has signed a lease for space in the soon-to-be-restored historic Hahne & Company building at 609 Broad Street.
Slated to open in 2016, the leading organic and natural foods grocer, will occupy a 29,000 s/f space. The company expects to employ 150 team members. The new Whole Foods will be housed on the ground floor of the 400,000 s/f landmark building, which was once home to the Hahne’s department store.
The project, one of Newark’s largest rehabilitation efforts in recent years, was approved in July by Newark’s Central Planning Board and Landmarks and Historic Preservation Commission. The redevelopment, a project that L+M and Hanini will co-develop with Regan Development Corporation and Crawford Street Partners, will provide more than 180 residential units, an underground parking garage, 80,000 s/f of commercial, community, and office space on upper floors, and 50,000 s/f of ground-level retail space in addition to the Whole Foods Market.
“Hahne’s was once the heart of Newark’s bustling downtown corridor, and bringing exciting new retail and housing opportunities back to the building will be critical for its restoration,” said Ron Moelis, chairman and CEO of L+M. The lease with Whole Foods Market was brokered by Shopping Center Group.
