New South Avenue businesses a focus of lively Plainwood Square meeting

Cake celebrating Plainwood Square Park
and South Avenue Streetscape, 2001.

It is always instructive to watch Plainwood Square Merchants Association president Donna Albanese conduct a meeting, but never more so than when there is good news.

And in these challenging economic times, there was some good news indeed with fresh prospects for the tight-knit South Avenue business district. Announcements included a new 7-Eleven slated for the former gas station at the corner of South Avenue and Terrill Road; the planned relocation of the Central Jersey Arts Charter School from downtown to the former ARC building next to G.O. Keller's; work is under way on a new C-Town in the former Drug Fair location; and the opening of Jersey Landscape and Garden Supply at the former D. Altman site next to Dairy Queen.

My table mate turned out to be Jennifer Hartman, who with her husband is opening the new garden supply business. With an April 1 opening date slated, they are busy at the moment with the final touches to the building, and then will start stocking up the spacious lot with landscaping materials and garden supplies. Mark your calendars, this is going to be a 'keeper'.

The 7-Eleven is a longer-term project, with remediation and construction slated to take about four months, according to Albanese, with a further four months for 7-Eleven to complete the outfitting of the store. (CORRECTION: One month to outfit store, so it should open late summer. -- DD)

With about 30 merchants and guests gathered, each business present was asked to make a brief presentation updating the group on their latest news.

There was lighthearted bantering among the 'burger kings-and-queen' owners representing the busy McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's outlets. Jeff Lichtman, whose South Avenue store was his father's first, let it slip that they now have 52 stores. Burgers weren't the only food champs, though, with KFC's Percy Fennell also getting to do a star turn.

Guests who gave presentations included --

• Harvest Radio (1070 AM, www.enjoyharvest.com/) whose marketing rep outlined free business promotion opportunities with the Plainfield-based station, which is broadening its community programming;
  
  
• UCEDC (formerly the Union County Economic Development Corporation), a certified statewide small business development nonprofit that is getting a lot of press attention recently for its 'microloan' program -- which makes possible small loans from $500 to $35,000 for qualifying small businesses; and
  
  
• LAURIE WOOG, ESQ., an immigration attorney who specializes in employment-related immigration matters and is based in Westfield and Scotch Plains.

The long-running Thursday evening summer concerts and car shows at Plainwood Square Park will be featured again this year, on an every-two-week cycle from May through August, all under the nimble leadership of Plainfield's favorite event planner, Pat Fields. (I'll have more on that as time approaches.)

Keeping an eye on the clock -- and her promise to keep the meeting to one hour -- Donna gently moved along those who took a little too long with their presentations, leaving time at the end for some remarks and a good-natured give-and-take with Council President Annie McWilliams.

A topic of concern addressed to the Council President was the proposed health inspection fee changes. (Health Officer Mark Colicchio had been expected at the February meeting -- postponed on account of weather -- and was re-invited to this meeting, but was a no-show.)

Councilor McWilliams took pains to assure the merchants that the Council was aware of their concerns, both as to the size of any proposed increases and how to phase them in.

Saying there were questions about whether some of the municipal comparisons made by Colicchio were apt, McWilliams reassured business owners that the Council was looking at a phased introduction of the new inspection fees.

However, she was firm in pointing out that they have not been revised for many years (Colicchio has said fifteen years), while the cost of performing the inspections has gone up. She noted that the fees (by state law) are not allowed to be set as 'money raisers', but are supposed to reflect the true costs of maintaining the public health aspect of food-handling businesses, which requires both time spent in inspecting businesses and administrative overhead for record-keeping mandated by the state.

After some short, sharp repartée over whether merchants receive any benefits or services for the taxes they pay (thank you, Joe Albanese, 'mayor of South Avenue'!), which McWilliams handled with aplomb, Donna adjourned the meeting at 10:05 AM, an hour after its start.

Maybe the Council could offer her a consultancy in meeting management?

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

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