New Starbucks Drive-Thru Is Coming To Route 22 After Bridgewater Zoning Approval

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Starbucks is coming to Route 22 near the Interstate 287 interchange in Bridgewater. The Township Zoning Board of Adjustment approved the application at its Tuesday meeting following 16 months of hearings.

The applicant, Bridgewater Realty II LLC, returned once again with some final adjustments to its site plan for a proposed restaurant and drive-thru to address Board members' safety and traffic concerns on Route 22 and Morgan Lane.

"I think the Board asked a lot of questions about Morgan Lane. We were very concerned about the traffic. We went through a lot of iterations. I think the applicant acted in good faith and did listen to the Board seriously, and made changes to address our questions. Especially the latest changes," said Board member Claudio Vescio on Tuesday. "I believe we have mitigated the safety risks to an acceptable level."

John S. Stolz, with Lowenstein Sandler's Real Estate Practice Group on behalf of the applicant, summarized the changes to the plan that show Starbucks will direct the flow of traffic naturally away from Morgan Lane toward the existing driveway in front of the Stone Tavern along Route 22.

"In middle May we submitted partial plan revisions, which were further intended to address certain traffic and on-site circulation comments that were raised and brought up during the March 11 hearing," said Stolz.

Overall, the applicant added additional pavement markings, additional signage, and extended curbing, which they were calling "a pork chop" because of the shape of the curbing.

"All under the guise of influencing the flow of traffic in a logical circular fashion away from Morgan Lane. As the natural tendencies for folks to circulate back in the way they came, which would be along Route 22 in front of the Stone Tavern," said Stolz.

The professional planner for the applicant, Michael Tobia, noted that Starbucks has eliminated direct driveways into the Starbucks site.

Additionally, outdoor seating on the west side was eliminated.

"There was some board concern that we had too many outdoor seats. So we reduced seating down from 40 to 16. And we put a small cluster of tables in front of the building," said Tobia.

Seating now will total 46 seats, which includes inside and outside. And there will be a slight reduction in parking down to 31 stalls from the 34 initially proposed.

"I think Starbucks is licking at the chops to get to this site. It’s so perfectly situated for their business," said Tobia.

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.

Several Board members referenced the Dunkin Donuts drive-thru that frequently backs up onto Route 22 in Somerville.

"My big concern was the Dunkin' going back to 22, that concern has been eliminated," said Board member Chris Gabbett.

Stolz noted that Starbucks will have a police presence at the site during the first month "to sort of train folks on the new traffic patterns, train them to understand the flow of traffic ,and certainly, if there are 35 vehicles in that queue, which is unprecedented, but should it happen, the officer will be there to prevent it."

Board member James Weideli was in favor of the project after the changes.

"That land has been empty for years, you can’t miss it," said Weideli. "We’ve asked for changes, and basically, you’ve given us everything we’ve asked for, you’ve been very accommodating... To me, you reached the criteria that I would have wanted to make this as safe as possible and to put a business there."

Board member Andrew Fresco noted that the applicant was successful in changing his mind about safety issues.

"I think that when it comes together, I really do think we are going to have the best Starbucks drive-thru," said Fresco. "I think we’ll have the best and we’ll have the safest, which is not what I originally said."

Previous Reporting:

• Bridgewater Starbucks Unveils New Site Plan, Eliminates Route 22 Entrance
• 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

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.