Demolition crews are making quick work of the front facade of the former Kmart in Blackwood (Gloucester Township) NJ. This effort is ahead of the development of a large ShopRite supermarket.
The location for this upcoming Zallie Family ShopRite is on the Blackwood Clementon Road (at Little Gloucester Road) within the Cherrywood Plaza shopping center.
Just two weeks ago I reported that construction crews had arrived on site and were inside starting interior demolition and cleanup.
It’s only about two weeks later and I don’t normally do updates on a single project this frequently, but seeing that significant demolition work started today I felt this was a large enough of a milestone to put up an update.
Plus this REALLY solidifies that the project is 100% on. But honestly, anytime the community/readers see a demolition effort of this scale start… it raises eyebrows, and it’s tough for me not to publish some type of update!
I stopped over this afternoon to see that the demolition crews are really moving quickly through the front of the project with about 25% of the front wall fully demolished. Crews are also taking about 30 feet of the roof back off of the front of the building… and that roof removal already goes across maybe 60% of the front of the building.
Conversion or…?
One aspect of this effort that has raised some questions within the community and those in the construction industry is.… is this a conversion of the old Kmart building, or are they tearing down the entire building and starting over “fresh”?
And if you see the demolition work already today it could make you think they’re tearing the whole darn thing down!
I do know that the project moved through the Planning Board process presented as a conversion of the existing Kmart building.
Unfortunately, as big as this story is in “42Freeway Land” I was unable to attend that Planning Board hearing, to hear directly for myself the details of the approval!
But my understanding is this is a conversion with a partial demolition. There are a variety of advantages to fitting with the “rebuild” status of a former building, such as when Inspira rebuilt the Dick’s Sporting Goods building in Deptford and completely rebuilt the front wall.
It is likely the work that we are seeing is to remove the front blocky facade of the Kmart so that crews can then build the new distinctive ShopRite façade, which features 2 bump-out areas for the main entrance as well as for the order pickup/delivery area.
Consider that the former K-mart design esthetics we are all so familiar with was concrete blocky institutional-style design… whereas the Zallie ShopRite design will be modern and multi-layered with different attractive design elements.
It may just be that it was easier to take down the front portion of the building instead of trying to piece-by-piece change the former front brick wall.
Some are likely going to argue at this point “you might as well just take the whole darn building down and restart again”… but I can only go by what’s in the planning board documents.
I have met the leadership team of Zallie ShopRite and they’re wonderful people to have invited me in to meet them in 2024. That being said I’ve not been able to get an update just yet to fully clarify… but I am very certain they are only removing the front wall area and retaining the core building.
Zallie ShopRite Cherrywood
if you’re unfamiliar with this project, the Zallie Family owns several ShopRite locations in South Jersey including an existing location already on Blackwood-Clementon Road, about a mile away from this new project at the College Drive intersection.
That existing location is called ShopRite of Laurel Hill, and it is a much smaller store with an interior configuration that is not optimal, as well as a less than perfect parking setup.
Zallie’s is building this new and larger ShopRite as a replacement for the existing “Laurel Hill” location… When the new ShopRite is finished, Laurel Hill will close.
This new ShopRite of Cherrywood Plaza is expected to open in the second half of this year (2025).
There is another ShopRite in the area on Chews Landing Road. That locations is unaffected by these projects and will remain open
The new Cherrywood Plaza location will feature the latest supermarket designs and technology, offering a full supermarket experience including; Hot Food Bar, International Cheese Department, Zallie’s Fresh Kitchen Catering, Wokery & Sushi, Seafood Counter, Bakery and more.
Zallie ShopRite in recent years has been on an expansion and upgrade effort, building a new ShopRite in Woolwich, fully remodeling Glassboro, upgrading West Berlin, and soon adding a Liquor Store to Medford as well as a full remodel of West Deptford being planned.
Links and Location
ShopRite of Cherrywood Plaza (Construction Started)
1468 Blackwood Clementon Rd
Clementon, NJ 08021