In the Region | New Jersey
A New Face for an Anonymous Mall
By ANTOINETTE MARTIN
MILLBURN
THERE is a little commercial strip here at the corner of Vauxhall Road and Route 124 that houses a top-drawer kosher butcher and kosher restaurant and a bakery whose bagels are legendary among Jersey cognoscenti. Another business here, Syd’s Luncheonette, has been lauded in online forums on foodie Web sites. A tribute posted on roadfood.com, for instance, said it offered “the best all-beef dog in the East, and perhaps the country.”
On the other hand, the humble corner plaza built in 1963 is so undistinguished and timeworn in appearance that many would be likely to drive by it without noticing — and even in Millburn, a lot of people don’t seem to know what Millburn Mall actually is.
“Millburn Mall? What are you talking about?” was the response from a former 20-year resident of the town when the shopping center was mentioned in an online forum. At a gas station just over the line in Union Township last week, none of the employees or patrons had ever heard of the place.
Of course, its reputation is dwarfed — maybe, obliterated — for out-of-towners by that of the Mall at Short Hills, which is not far away on Route 124 in Millburn. The ultra-upscale shopping center has branches of Bloomingdale’s, Brooks Brothers, Tiffany, Ralph Lauren and Nordstrom, along with numerous designer shops and fine restaurants.
Now, though, the owners of the Millburn Mall are giving it a makeover, with a mind to earning it a spot of its own on the area shopping map.
Sustained over the years by its surrounding neighborhood, which is affluent and has a large Orthodox Jewish presence, the mall could actually serve that neighborhood and the entire area better, said Jeffrey A. Dash. He has managed the center for many years, both for its builder, Saul Cantor, and for the Lightstone Group, the large Lakewood-based real estate firm that bought Mr. Cantor’s portfolio of retail properties three years ago.
The mall could also generate a lot more business than it does now, Mr. Dash said.
Lightstone has a history of “value added” investment — that is, buying worn-out properties and upgrading them to increase their value. That is what Lightstone seeks to do here in Millburn, said Mr. Dash, a vice president with the company.
For the moment, the mall finds itself shrouded in greater obscurity than ever, as construction scaffolding hides shop facades and plywood covers sidewalks while work goes on to retool its overall look. The mall will be given a modern appearance with corner towers and color-coordinated brick, new canopies and lighting, a newly paved parking lot, a landscaped outdoor seating area for restaurant patrons, and renovated space for a new anchor tenant — the Staples office supplies store — to be ready by next fall.
“Staples is a true destination store,” said Mr. Dash. “It’s going to put life’s blood into the site.”
A Drug Fair pharmacy has been the lone chain operator at the mall for more than 20 years, Mr. Dash said. Other current tenants include Kicks ’n’ Sticks, an independent sporting goods store; a hairdresser of the vintage that still offers Tuesday/Wednesday specials on perms; a tailor; a bank; and various small convenience stores.
In addition to its 67,000 square feet of retail space, there are 10,500 square feet of office space at the site. That is being renovated too, Mr. Dash said.
Jack Tarica, owner of the Maple Kosher Meat Market at the mall for 15 years, said he was not entirely certain the changes would help his business. Both the Tabatchnik’s delicatessen and Sonny Aster’s bakery are closing in the transition, Mr. Tarica pointed out, and both draw customers to his own shop, whereas Staples will not.
But Syd’s and Mosaica, a well-reviewed glatt kosher eatery, are staying, he noted. “And the place is going to look great and be a lot prettier,” Mr. Tarica said, “so maybe. ... Who knows?”
Mr. Dash says he believes that installing Staples and providing the shopping center with “a new identity” will benefit all tenants. “This neighborhood can support it,” he said. “The average home value is now upward of $500,000.”
The renovated mall will provide shoppers with “a place to come when they need floppy disks, and also need hair care products — and meanwhile, they might stop to get something to eat over at Syd’s, or pick up something for dinner at Maple Kosher.”
The Browntown Shopping Center in Old Bridge and the Newbridge Shopping Plaza in Bergenfield, which were also part of the Cantor holdings acquired by Lightstone, will be getting the same treatment, he said. “Neighborhoods need their shopping areas to keep up with the times,” Mr. Dash said. “It’s as simple as that.”
