Long dead Hazlet ShopRite finally getting new business

HAZLET - It may never have groceries for sale inside again, but the vacant ShopRite building on Route 36 is about to come back to life.

It will be filled by Snapbox Self Storage, which earlier this month received approval by the township's Land Use Board to convert the store's interior into 345 storage units. The building will be remodeled, which will include a new facade, doors and windows, and lighting.

It will be Snapbox's ninth location in New Jersey, including one in Manchester. The company has 23 storage centers in eight states, according to its website. A representative could not be reached for comment.

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In 2013, ShopRite moved out of the 43,464-square-foot store, which was built more than a half century ago, into a new store on Route 35 in Hazlet. That location was formerly a Super Foodtown supermarket.

"We believe it is going to be a really great fit for the community because it has been abandoned for so long," Hazlet Mayor Tara Clark said. 

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Besides interior storage, the facility will have spaces in the rear for storage of recreational vehicles, boats and commercial vehicles. Clark said the business expects about 30 vehicles a day will come to the storage center.

"It will be a quiet location to our residents," the mayor said, adding it will maintain a "large tree buffer" on the property.

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The developer also plans a second phase for the project, which will be sited on what is now the building's large parking lot. "They are going to evaluate what they are going to do," Clark said. "Within 12 months, they will then come up with another redevelopment plan for that area."

There is a need for storage facilities, the mayor said.

"The real estate market in Hazlet is so hot," Clark said. "Many people are using storage facilities to store belongings."

Another storage company may be looking to move into another large vacant store in the township.

A developer, Hazlet Self Storage Redevelopment LLC, has filed some paperwork proposing to remodel the former Sports Authority store on Route 35 and open a Devon Self Storage location with 651 storage units. 

The township recently approved a construction permit to demolish the store's interior and remove the old store's sign. Sports Authority closed in 2016.

David P. Willis, an award-winning business writer, has covered business and consumer news at the Asbury Park Press for more than 20 years. He writes APP.com's What's Going There and Press on Your Side columns and can be reached at dwillis@gannettnj.com. Join his What's Going There page on Facebook for updates.