Indoor kids playground, convenience store may be coming to Linden mall. Here's what we know
LINDEN - An indoor playground for children as well as a convenience store with a gas station could be the next additions to the Linden Legacy Square Mall site on Route 1.
Kids Empire, an indoor playground facility, is coming soon to the mall on the former General Motors property, Mayor Derek Armstead announced in a recent Facebook post.
"The company was founded and operated in France, where it ran successfully for 10 years with 100’s of parks. With this track record of success, Kids Empire has begun to develop quickly in the U.S and now has found a new home in Linden, New Jersey," Armstead's post states.
The facility has a tentative opening date for this winter, according to company's website, which indicates facilities in Watchung and Woodbridge area already open. The Watchung facility is located at 1515 Route 22 and the Woodbridge facility is located at 465 Green St. The indoor playground would join the Walmart Supercenter already at the Linden mall.
Kids Empire is an active play area featuring a playground with floor-to-ceiling climbing walls, play structures and a drop-in ball pit. The facility includes activities for children to climb, spin, build creatively, ride, slide and kick a ball, dance and conquer obstacles such as crossing bridges and balancing on a beam, according to the company's website.
For younger children there are sliding, bouncing, crawling, dancing and riding activities, the website states.
The facility also features a snack bar and is available to host birthday parties, according to the website.
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Meanwhile, a application will be presented next week for a convenience store on a portion of the property.
Applicant Linden Development LLC, based in Dallas, Texas, has filed an amended application for preliminary and final major site plan approval with the Linden Planning Board for property within the Legacy Square shopping center to build a 5,051-square-foot convenience store, according to a public notice.
The application and Planning Board public hearing is scheduled to be held 6:30 p.m. Dec. 14 at Linden City Hall, 301 North Wood Ave.
The Planning Board previously granted preliminary site plan approval for the construction of a commercial building on the property, located in a planned commercial development district zone, to be occupied by retail, service, restaurant, bank, indoor recreation, health club and/o professional or business offices.
The applicant is now amending the preliminary and final site plan approval and is seeking variance relief for a convenience store, which will sell food, and a canopied gas station along with related site improvements for parking, drainage, utility, signage, lighting and landscaping, the public notice states.
The applicant also will be seeking variance relief from the Linden zoning ordinance for a 20-foot high by 9-foot wide, two-sided pylon sign, with a proposed sign area of approximately 60 feet, because the type and size of the sign is not permitted.
Email: srussell@gannettnj.com
Suzanne Russell is a breaking news reporter for MyCentralJersey.com covering crime, courts and other mayhem. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Indoor kids playground, convenience store may be coming to Linden mall
