The Planning Board unanimously approved the Royal Farms at Sunbird Drive at their meeting on November 26, 2018, along with an adjacent 21,000 foot shopping center. It was previously given preliminary approval in 2016 pending the developer being able to obtain a traffic signal at Sunbird and 73 from the State DOT. They were able to do so, so the Royal Farms is a go.
The location is just south of Target and just north of Outback Steakhouse. The property used to contain Scaturro's and a small house, both of which have been demolished in recent months. The rear of the property (furthest from Route 73) is actually in Voorhees. Because no development will be done to the rear of the property, this will not appear before the Voorhees Planning Board. There will be a lot adjustment to combine the two Evesham properties in a single lot going forward for tax purposes.
There are a few changes that have been made since the project was first proposed.
A major difference between the approved plan and the plan from two years ago is that there will NOT be an exit from Royal Farms on to Route 73. On the map shown above, there was an exit to Route 73 South. That has been removed. While you can still enter the Royal Farms from Route 73, all traffic will exit via the Sunbird Drive exit.
A new traffic light at Route 73 and Sunbird Drive, in conjunction with new left turn lanes, will allow people to make a left from Sunbird Drive on to Route 73 North. It will also allow people to make a left turn from Route 73 North to Sunbird Drive, so customers can get to Royal Farms.
The location is just south of Target and just north of Outback Steakhouse. The property used to contain Scaturro's and a small house, both of which have been demolished in recent months. The rear of the property (furthest from Route 73) is actually in Voorhees. Because no development will be done to the rear of the property, this will not appear before the Voorhees Planning Board. There will be a lot adjustment to combine the two Evesham properties in a single lot going forward for tax purposes.
There are a few changes that have been made since the project was first proposed.
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| Original proposal for Royal Farms |
A major difference between the approved plan and the plan from two years ago is that there will NOT be an exit from Royal Farms on to Route 73. On the map shown above, there was an exit to Route 73 South. That has been removed. While you can still enter the Royal Farms from Route 73, all traffic will exit via the Sunbird Drive exit.
A new traffic light at Route 73 and Sunbird Drive, in conjunction with new left turn lanes, will allow people to make a left from Sunbird Drive on to Route 73 North. It will also allow people to make a left turn from Route 73 North to Sunbird Drive, so customers can get to Royal Farms.
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| Sunbird Drive and the street across Route 73 will align when construction is completed |
In addition, as part of the requirement to obtain a traffic signal, the entrance to the Indian Cultural Center on the opposite side of Route 73 will be moved to align the entrance with Sunbird Drive. The developer is currently in negotiations with the owners of the properties affected to allow them to reconstruct that entrance. (While it was not discussed, I assume that Royal Farms will be paying to move the entrance to the ICC.) There is currently an abandoned house next to the entrance which would presumably be demolished.
- It was noted that the rear of the lots contain a wooded area, which will remain mostly untouched. The developer may be required to plant additional trees in the rear (after the landscaping plan is approved). Town Planner Leah Furey Bruder noted that these should contain some evergreen trees as well, to shield the homes on Peregrine Drive.
- The exit from Royal Farms onto Sunbird Drive will align with the entrance to Outback Steakhouse.
- The vote passed 7-0. Members present were DiEnna, Levenson, McGoey, Marrone, Parikh, Zeuli and Foster.
- A 21,150 square foot shopping center will also be included on the property, closest to Target. No tenants were discussed. The plan currently has it divided into two stores, though that may change depending on tenants.
- At some point, it is expected that the Township will take control of Sunbird Drive (it is currently a private road), which would allow police to enforce local traffic laws.
To close the meeting, Planning Chairwoman Alicia Marrone had some comments regarding the recent election. She stated that she had created a group back in 2009 to lobby the Town Council to move the elections to November, in order to increase voter participation - based on the last election, she was successful in her goal. She also noted that the members of the Planning Board and the professionals employed by the Board do not serve any political party - they serve the Township of Evesham. She looks forward to working together with the new administration, to keep Evesham as the top Town in South Jersey.
If you are looking for information regarding the proposed Royal Farms at Lincoln Drive, next to the Marlton 8 movie theater, there is an upcoming meeting at the Zoning Board on December 18th. I wrote about the current status last week. You can read about it here.
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