Bridgewater Starbucks Unveils New Site Plan, Eliminates Route 22 Entrance

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Starbucks returned with an all new site plan for its proposed restaurant and drive-thru on Route 22 in Bridgewater following safety and traffic concerns.

The applicant, Bridgewater Realty II LLC, went over its new plans at the Bridgewater Zoning Board of Adjustment meeting on Tuesday night.

"We are focusing number one on removing the entrance onto Route 22. That has now been taken off the plan. It’s no longer shown here," said Robert Moschello, the project engineer for Starbucks.

The Route 22 entrance in the previous plan was a point of contention for Zoning Board members due to concerns of traffic backing up onto the highway or causing accidents.

As a result, Moschello said they relocated the entrance for the Starbucks to Morgan Lane. The entrance is a right-in-only entrance.

"If you are coming down Route 22, you go past the main entrance to the property… will continue down to make a right onto Morgan Lane and then right into the property," said Moschello.

Originally, there was a two-lane drive-thru and the new plan now calls for a single lane with a bypass.

Moschello said the new drive-thru lane can hold about 15 to 16 cars and almost 30 to 35 stacked within the internal parking lot.

The canopy of the building and the number of outdoor seats was reduced from 40 to 16 to allow for more parking spaces.

"By doing this, we are able to put nine extra parking spaces right next to the building for patrons to park there to access the building directly," said Moschello.

The overall lot coverage was also reduced from 60.7 percent to 60.4 percent due to the elimination of the second drive-thru lane.

"Also, we took the Starbucks building and moved it back 10 feet," said Moschello.

Originally, they were asking for a setback variance for 119.4 feet from Route 22. That number is now 129.4 feet by moving the building back 10 feet away from Route 22.

Concerns were still raised by Chairman Jeffrey Foose over whether patrons will still try to exit through the entrance onto Morgan Lane.

Foose suggested installing a solar-lit sign that would blink to alert drivers not to make a right turn.

"We’ll certainly work with your staff. We’ll do what we can do - our best efforts to try and stop people from turning right there," said Henry Kent Smith, Fox Rothchild, who is the attorney representing Bridgewater Realty (Starbucks applicant).

Township Planner Katherine Sarmed also liked the idea of a sign and also suggested police enforcement during the grand opening and the first few weeks of Starbucks opening.

"If people actually get tickets, they are not going to do it again," said Sarmed. "That's a way to measure behavior. Ticket it, and then hopefully, it will taper off and stop."

The next hearing on the application is set for May 13 at 7 p.m.

Previous Reporting:

• Concerns Over Fatal Crashes Send Proposed Bridgewater Starbucks Back To Drawing Board
• Proposed Bridgewater Starbucks Modifies Drive-Thru Plans To Address Traffic Concerns
• Traffic Issues With Proposed Bridgewater Starbucks To Be Addressed

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