Officials at Madison Marquette, the managment company that operates the MarketFair shopping center, are in the “planning stages” of a possible renovation or expansion, but have not yet released any formal plans for the site.##M:[more]##
Speculation about a renovation and possible expansion at the shopping center were brought up during a Township Council budget session last month.
Mark Wampler, the center’s manager, did say that the company was in its “planning stages,” but “we’re not confirming that we’re doing anything. We’re not ready to announce anything at this point.”
Planning Board Chairman Marvin Gardner said his understanding is that “they certainly intend to do a renovation sometime this year, hopefully completing it by Thanksgiving for the holiday season, and the distinct possibility exists that they are considering expansion.” Obviously, he said, this would be subject to changing economic conditions, something developers always monitor.
If the plans are restricted to an interior renovation, there would be no requirement for the company to appear before the planning board, he said, except if the applicant wants to modify or erect a new pylon sign (the sign that identifies the shopping center), or in cases where the developer might want to modify the areas of ingress or egress, or delivery docks.
An appearance before the Planning Board would be required, however, in any case of expansion, including horizontal expansion, adding a second level, or constructing a free-standing building like the P.F. Chang’s that exists in the shopping center already.
“However, they would be experiencing severe limitation in terms of that expansion due to the layout of the overall site,” he said. “They would probably have to construct a second level if they want to add tenants to their roster.”
And that could require them to increase the number of parking spaces, “and that, conceivably, could entail structured parking,” Gardner said.
No plans, however, have been officially released by Madison Marquette. Gardner said that generally, such announcements would be made at the Global Retail Real Estate Convention, known as Recon, held every year in Las Vegas. This year, Recon 2008 is slated for May 18 to 21. It is during the convention where renderings and details of the plan could be released.
The 24,”000 square foot mall, located on Route 1 at Meadow Road, is home to about 40 stores. It is owned by TIAA-CREF, which retained Madison Marquette, a Washington, D.C.-based firm and a previous owner of MarketFair, to manage and lease the mall. The mall was built in 1986.
