Work begins on Starbucks, Panera, Chipotle project in Newton

Bruce A. Scruton, New Jersey Herald
·1 min read

NEWTON — Work has begun on the project that will house restaurants and apartments on the former G&H lot at Water Street and South Park Drive.

Grading and site work is underway on the structures that will house a Starbucks, Panera Bread and Chipotle, said Owen Dykstra, the principal developer for Dykstra Associates.

The shells for the buildings will be ready in April 2022, he said, and the individual companies will then outfit the interiors with their own equipment and furnishings with openings expected to be in early 2023.

An architect rendering of the retail/residential complex now under construction at the corner of Water Street and South Park Drive in Newton. The view is from above Water Street looking toward the east.
An architect rendering of the retail/residential complex now under construction at the corner of Water Street and South Park Drive in Newton. The view is from above Water Street looking toward the east.

In the meantime, work has also begun on the rear half of the lot on what is to become a housing complex with 110 apartments in two buildings.

Frankford school board elections: Three challengers unseat Frankford school board incumbents

Under the agreement between the town and 121 Water Street Holdings, the company established to own the properties, the lot will be subdivided into the commercial and residential areas, each with their own agreement with the town on tax payments. The payments are based on sliding scale of how much income the projects generate over the 30 years of the agreement.

Work underway at the complex that will include Starbucks, Chipotle and Panera Bread restaurants as well as a multi-story, 110-unit apartment complex at the rear of the lot.
Work underway at the complex that will include Starbucks, Chipotle and Panera Bread restaurants as well as a multi-story, 110-unit apartment complex at the rear of the lot.

The development of the lot is also expected to spur further development of the former armory property behind ShopRite. A lot further to the north in Hampton Township, is also being developed and a new Wawa facility is in early construction near Lowe's, about a half-mile north of the Water Street/Park Drive intersection.

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Starbucks, Panera, Chipotle coming to former G&H lot in Newton NJ