Grocer to create ‘unique to market’

store in Manalapan

7960668888?profile=originalThe new Publix will anchor a major renovation of Plaza del Mar.

Rendering provided by Cuhaci & Peterson

By Dan Moffett

    After a year of impassioned negotiation and ample planning, the arranged marriage between Publix and Manalapan appears headed for the altar.
    A short list of design changes from representatives for the supermarket giant persuaded town commissioners to unanimously approve plans for a 26,000-square-foot store in the middle of the Plaza del Mar shopping center.
    Publix and Manalapan. Manalapan and Publix. Together at last.
    Matt Buehler, retail vice president with Kitson & Partners, the plaza’s landlords, told commissioners the company was building its store specifically with Manalapan in mind. He said extensive renovation of the site would revive a shopping plaza that has languished for years.
    And the centerpiece would be the stylish new Publix.
    “The grocer is creating a unique store to this market that does not exist in its portfolio today,” Buehler said. “It’s not a stock set of plans that came off the shelf. This is a uniquely designed store that will not exist anywhere else in the country.”
    Kitson’s proposed overhaul includes planting 37 royal palm trees, adding two pocket parks and a drip irrigation system, installing LED parking lights, and repaving the entire plaza. Kitson had offered to create an outdoor seating area for roughly 100 people, but dropped the idea when several commissioners objected, fearing a potential nuisance.
    The plans go to the town’s architectural committee next. Demolition could begin in October, with construction underway by the first of the year. The Publix is expected to open for business in 2018.
    Two skeptics on the commission, Basil Diamond and Simone Bonutti, voted to support Kitson after coaxing concessions from the landlord during three hours of debate at the July 19 town meeting.
    Diamond and Bonutti had worried that the store would create traffic bottlenecks on the corner of Ocean Avenue and A1A, disturb neighbors with noise and pollution, and pose safety problems with large delivery trucks driving through the parking lot.
    “My concern is the site plan itself,” Diamond said. “Does it make a negative impact on the plaza and the community?”
    Buehler said Kitson was willing to build a continuous 8-foot concrete wall along the western and southern boundaries of the property to screen neighbors from delivery vehicles.
    Engineers for the developers told the commission that the renovation actually will decrease the total amount of retail space at the plaza by about 20,000 square feet. The plan would also increase the setback area on the south side by about 35 feet, adding to the buffer zone with homeowners. Engineers said the project complies with all town codes and building rules.
    Kitson withdrew plans to add a separate liquor package store near the Publix after complaints from several commissioners at the June meeting. Buehler said the two-story tower in the heart of the plaza will be removed, opening the skyline view for neighboring residents.
    Robert Rennebaum, a traffic engineer with the West Palm Beach firm of Simmons & White, told commissioners the completed project would “meet all applicable standards.”
    Rennebaum said the new Publix figures to generate 615 fewer trips per day — about a 15 percent reduction — than the current limits on the property. “It’s not even close to capacity,” he said.
    Mayor David Cheifetz and Diamond pointed out, however, that current traffic to the plaza falls well below the limits because of underperforming businesses. So, while adding a Publix may not exceed theoretical traffic standards, in the real world, it is virtually certain to draw more cars to the site than go there today.
    Buehler assured commissioners that Kitson has the expertise to manage vehicle and foot traffic to the new store: “We do have shopping centers throughout the state of Florida. We’re shopping center experts.”
    He said typically, no more than two or three large delivery trucks would be going to the supermarket each day. “There’s not going to be a superhighway going through the center of that shopping center,” he said. “They’ll go to the back of the store, be hidden, then get the heck out of Dodge and nobody will be the wiser.”
    The path of the expanded north-south delivery access road will force out a half-dozen businesses, among them Jewelry Artisans, Manalapan Italian Cuisine and Jeannie’s Ocean Boutique. Kitson has given the merchants until Sept. 30 to relocate.
    Cheifetz, who as mayor has no vote, said he would have voted to approve the project if allowed. He commended commissioners for “a job well done” in protecting the interests of the town and working to improve plans for Manalapan’s largest commercial project in decades.

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  • Rennebaum said the new Publix figures to generate 615 fewer trips per day — about a 15 percent reduction — than the current limits on the property. “It’s not even close to capacity,” he said.

    When Kitson was ask how many customers a day did Publix feel they would have, the answer was that it was confidential information.

    Information from Publix centers on customer count!

    Square Footage

    89,930

    Information

    3-Mile

    Population 70,744
    Avg. Household Income $86,131
    Vehicles per Day 37,000

    Features

    • Densely populated market surrounded by affluent neighborhoods with an avg household income of $86,000+
    • Highly trafficked center with Publix drawing more than 22,000 customers per week, along with other strong daily draws such as Panera Bread & Starbucks
    • Signalized accessibility & visibility off of Red Bug Lake Rd & Tuskawilla Rd with 37,000+ VPD
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    Information

    3-Mile

    Population 61,489
    Avg. Household Income $64,617
    Vehicles per Day 21,112

    Features

    • Signalized access and visibility off of Radio Rd and Santa Barbara Blvd
    • Positioned within a densely populated market with 61,000+ people within a 3-mile radius and 127,000+ within a 5-mile radius
    • Highly trafficked center with Publix drawing an average of more than 26,000 customers/week

    Square Footage

    78,998

    Information

    3-Mile

    Population 52,053
    Avg. Household Income $103,596
    Vehicles per Day 20,712

    Features

    • High-volume dominant grocer within the highly successful, affluent Westchase planned community serving 25,000+ customers/week
    • Surrounding area averages a household income of $114,000+ within a 1-mile radius

    The information is available , but if it was presented as ask, there is no way that what there traffic engineer presented could be believed.

    The Publix will probably have a minimum of 2000 customers a day.

    So if  Kipson truly runs shopping centers than they should have all this information at hand.

    Buehler assured commissioners that Kitson has the expertise to manage vehicle and foot traffic to the new store: “We do have shopping centers throughout the state of Florida. We’re shopping center experts.”

        He said typically, no more than two or three large delivery trucks would be going to the supermarket each day. 

    How many delivers does a Publix receive a week?

    Remember a small store has very little storage so it needs more deliveries a week!

    Tractor Trailers

    Publix, Grocery, Perishable, Frozen Food this will possibly equal 12 trailer deliveries a week minimum

    Pepsi, Coke, 7 up, Nabisco Cookies, Kehe Foods, Unfi and others. Possibly a minimum of 12 deliveries a week.

    Other size trucks.

    Frito lay and other snack delivery companies probably 9 deliveries a week.

    Haagen daz, edy's, blue bell 3 delivers a week.

    Bread companies, Pepperidge farms, Arnold, Holsum, Martins, Flowers, Probably will be required to deliver 4 times a week each. Probably 20 plus.

    Beer, Budweiser, Miller, Brown, Probably 6 times a week.  

    Wine, Southern, Transatlantic, RNDC, and possibly 2 others will probably deliver a minimum of 2 times a week each.

    Boars head, GFI probably 2 times a week.

    Mcarthur Dairy 5 days a week.

    This is around 75 deliveries.

    Probably missed a few, but Kipson could have used city place as a n example.

    Remember they are the Shopping center expert that had no real data. WOW!

    Sure seems like the fix was in on this.

    So we might have 75 deliveries a week. 15,000 cars a week. seems more than the 2 to 3 truck deliveries and the 600 less cars a day.

    The Commissioner should have probably hired an outside consultant to give them a real study on how a Publix would impact the Plaza.  This would have had to been paid for by the Developer.

    I know on one hand Kipson say its not Publix but then say it is Publix, kinda misleading!

    I was also wondering if Commissioner Keith Waters company still does work for the Palm Beach Zoo?

    If he does it might be a concern as Sydney W. Kitson, owner of Kipson Partner serves on the Board of Directors. for the Palm Beach Zoo.

    Remember it is in the best interest of the developer not to let the public know everything they know!

    Because if I was able to supply all the above information with some assumptions, then Kipson according to Matt Buehler statement as follows,

      Buehler assured commissioners that Kitson has the expertise to manage vehicle and foot traffic to the new store: “We do have shopping centers throughout the state of Florida. We’re shopping center experts.

    Could have easily supplied the Town with the information they asked for.

    The Town should hire a building planner to review all of the plans that are going to be submitted. They are not experts.

    The Mayor shouldn't have been so fast to dismiss the testimony or comments from the citizens.

    Thanks for taking the time to read this.

    Meanwhile, litigation continues to prevent Publix from building a 34,062-square-foot, 161-parking-space store at mile marker 83 on Upper Matecumbe Key. The five-member Islamorada Village Council unanimously approved the site plan in September 2014, but some residents, including the Bay Hammock Homeowners Association and a group called Keep Islamorada Peaceful Prosperous and Safe, sued in county circuit court to block construction.

    They say it is too large for the village commercial zoning and that it is out of character with the rest of Islamorada businesses. The litigants’ opinion is at odds with the village planning department.

    MAY 20, 2016 12:28 AM

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