Seven Food Tenants Signed for New Brunswick Redevelopment

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—Pierson Commercial and New Brunswick Development Corporation have signed seven retail tenants within The Yard @ College Avenue, one of the College Avenue Redevelopment Initiative Projects, a $300 million development project transforming approximately ten acres of land in the heart of the Rutgers campus.

The seven new tenants include: Starbucks, honeygrow, Bella's Burger Shack, RU Hungry, House of Cupcakes, Jersey Mike's Subs and Krispy Pizza. The Yard @ College Avenue project is currently under construction and is anticipated to open in August of 2016. The new establishments represent a dramatic departure from the previous collection of “grease trucks,” the food trucks that use to park at the site and serve a wide range of less healthy food alternatives to Rutgers students.

“They hired us to make this a unique, eclectic tenant mix,” Jason Pierson, president of Pierson Commercial, tells GlobeSt.com exclusively. “Starbucks is the only national tenant that we signed up. Everyone else is more localized to New Jersey or regionalized. Most Rutgers students are from in-state, so people are familiar with these concepts.”

The Yard @ College Avenue will be a state-of-the-art mixed-use complex including approximately 14,000 square feet of retail, housing for 550 students and an interactive open-pavilion park consisting of a 350 square foot LED monitor that will permit patrons to watch live sporting events, concerts, movies and other programming in an open-air setting.

“We are thrilled to have these businesses join this transformational project and further showcase New Brunswick as one of America's most exciting college towns,” says Christopher J. Paladino, president of Devco. “This project, combined with Rutgers' entrance into the Big Ten Conference, is placing the University among the top tier academic institutions nationwide.”

The College Avenue Redevelopment Initiative also includes a new Residential Honors College, which is now open to this year's class of incoming students, and a new University Academic Building which will be completed in August of 2016.  Devco completed and opened a new building for the New Brunswick Theological Seminary in September 2014 as the first phase of the initiative.

The Yard @ College Avenue's retail tenants to date include:

Starbucks Coffee –The world's largest coffee chain will operate a 2,096 square foot free standing café.

honeygrow – Born in Philadelphia in 2012, serving farm-to-fork stir-fry, salads, kale'atta + honeybars grown as locally as possible. honeygrow will occupy a 2,311 square foot corner space. Douglas Green, principal from MSC Retail, represented the tenant.

Bella's Burger Shack – Founded in 2009, Bella's Burger Shack is a Basking Ridge burger concept that specializes in made-to-order burgers, onion rings and hand-cut fries.  Bella's will occupy a 1,705 SF space adjacent to Krispy Pizza.

RU Hungry – An updated restaurant-based implementation of the original “grease truck” – known worldwide for its Fat Sandwiches, RU Hungry returns to where it all began.  Offering a full menu including its Famous Fat Sandwiches, RU hungry will occupy a 1,062 square foot location.

House of Cupcakes – Started in 2008, House of Cupcakes sells nearly 45 varieties of its delicious, award-winning cupcakes, as well as decorative pull-apart cakes, fancy personalized cupcakes for special occasions and over 30 indulgent gourmet cookies. It's will lease a 677 square foot space.

Jersey Mike's Subs – The fast-casual sub sandwich franchise that began in 1956 at the Jersey Shore now has over 1,500 locations open and under development nationwide. Still serving its authentic East Coast-style subs on fresh baked bread “Mike's Way,” with olive oil and red wine vinegar, Jersey Mike's has a deep commitment to community involvement. Its opening week's sales will be donated to a local charity.

Krispy Pizza – A family run pizzeria begun in Brooklyn 40 years ago, with other locations in Staten Island, Jersey City and several New Jersey towns. The winner of “Battle at the Borough” contest (featuring pizza from all five boroughs and Long Island) Krispy Pizza will occupy a 1,265 square foot corner adjacent to the busiest bus stop on the Rutgers Campus.