Tax Incentive Approved For Gloucester Township Dave & Buster's

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — The Gloucester Township Council gave final approval to a five-year tax abatement for the recently opened Dave & Buster’s at the Gloucester Premium Outlets Monday night.

The proposal was approved with a 5-0 vote at Monday night’s council meeting. It came after resident Paul Krug said tax incentives should be focused on areas in need, as such as the Blackwood West Redevelopment area.

“Obviously large corporations are going to look towards an open space similar to where they are because they need parking, and it’s easier for them to build their new facilities,” Krug said. “It’s much more difficult to take existing space like we have in Downtown Blackwood and get businesses into those buildings and get those rehabbed. If we were able to divert attention to specific areas throughout the township through these tax abatements, I actually do think that’s quite a good idea.”

His comments echoed those made at the Nov. 30 meeting and previously that tax incentives should be reserved for struggling areas of the township. Read more here: Proposed Incentive For Gloucester Dave & Buster’s Sparks Debate

A tax abatement is a temporary reduction or elimination of property taxes. Municipalities use them to entice developers into their town, offering a complete elimination of taxes in the first year and slowly building so that the owner of the property is eventually paying full property taxes due.

Opponents argue the abatements aren’t needed in every situation, and amount to a giveaway. Proponents of the idea argue that if the township didn’t offer them, businesses would seek to build in towns that do. Read more here: Vote On Gloucester Twp. Development Sparks Tax Incentive Debate

The abatement was approved one week after Dave & Buster’s opened its 40,000 square-foot restaurant and entertainment center at the Gloucester Premium Outlets in the Blackwood section of the township.

The idea for Dave & Buster’s began when two entrepreneurs met in the 1970s. They combined food and entertainment in a 40,000 square foot warehouse in Dallas. The first Dave & Buster’s opened in 1982, and has grown to have a presence in 42 states. There are now three in New Jersey. The Gloucester Township location is the only one in South Jersey.

Its opening was delayed several times due to the coronavirus pandemic. When it finally opened, it did so following the guidelines set forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to stop the spread of the virus. Read more here: Gloucester Twp. Dave & Buster’s Opens With Safety Measures Monday

“The health and well-being of our guests and employees is our top priority,” Dave & Buster’s Gloucester Township General Manager Dean Sholders said in a statement released by the township last week. “We’ve enhanced our health and safety protocols to create a safe environment, and we’re so excited to bring good clean fun to the community.”

“We are extremely excited to finally welcome Dave and Buster’s to our township and honored that they chose Gloucester Township to represent them in the South Jersey region,” Gloucester Township Mayor David Mayer said in the same statement. “We believe they are going to complement our Gloucester Outlets extremely well and will attract even more traffic to our thriving shopping area. It’s always great to see national companies like these showing interest in our township and taking advantage of the business potential we have here in Gloucester Township.”

The tax abatement for Dave & Buster’s is the second abatement approved for a business in a month. At the Nov. 30 meeting, Gloucester Township Council approved a five-year tax abatement for a building owned by Chews Landing LLC in an office complex at 1365 Chews Landing-Clementon Road.

That building was the last of eight projects that was started about 10 years ago, according to Gloucester Township Council President Orlando Mercado.

Both tax abatements apply only to the improvements and new structures, not on the actual land itself.