Garden State Park
Encyclopedia
Garden State Park was a harness
and thoroughbred
race track
in Cherry Hill
, Camden County
, New Jersey
. It is now the site of a high-end, mixed-use "town center" development of stores, restaurants, apartments, townhouses, and condominiums. Garden State Park's 600 acre (≈1 square mile) land area is roughly bounded by New Jersey State Route 70, Haddonfield Road, Chapel Avenue, and New Jersey Transit's Atlantic City Rail Line.
' entry into World War II
. Due to the seizure of 30,000 tons of structural steel by war authorities, developer Eugene Mori mostly constructed Garden State Park's ornate Georgian-style grandstand of wood. Limited amounts of steel came from the demolition of New York City's elevated railways. Despite this inauspicious start, 'the Garden,' as it was known, was officially 'out of the gate.'
In 1959, Philadelphia Phillies
owner Bob Carpenter
proposed building a new ballpark for the Phillies on 72 acres (291,373.9 m²) adjacent to the race track. Connie Mack Stadium was 50-years old, did not have sufficient parking, and the sale of alcohol was banned at sports venues in Pennsylvania. Beer sales were legal in New Jersey.
The Phillies would eventually move to the South Philadelphia Sports Complex
in 1971.
In its heyday, it would host some of the finest thoroughbred
racehorses
in the nation at the signature Jersey Derby
. Its Garden State Stakes and the Gardenia Stakes
offered one of the largest purses available to for two-year-olds. Legendary horses raced at Garden State Park included Whirlaway
, Citation
, and the great Secretariat
on a cold, rainy Saturday afternoon in early 1972 in the Garden State Futurity
.
Garden State Park's success sparked a wave of entertainment-oriented growth and development in the formerly rural community of Delaware Township, New Jersey (now Cherry Hill Township). Mori followed his achievement at the racetrack with the construction of the Cherry Hill Inn on the site of Abraham Browning's Cherry Hill Farm (at Route 38
and Haddonfield Road); and in 1967 the Cherry Hill Lodge, also on Route 38 to the east of the Cherry Hill Mall
. Soon to follow in 1961 was the Cherry Hill Shopping Center (today's Cherry Hill Mall
, the first enclosed shopping mall on the East Coast
) and the super-luxurious Rickshaw Inn
with its legendary gold-plated roof, which was situated on Route 70
opposite Garden State Park.
Diagonally across Route 70 on the map in then-Delaware Township was the Latin Casino
, adjacent to the Rickshaw and the Garden. This dinner nightclub hosted legendary acts like Frank Sinatra
, Dean Martin
, Liberace
, Cherry Hill Estates neighbors Al Martino
& Frankie Avalon
and more; before closing due to competition from casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey
.
Followed later by Atlantic City Race Course
and Monmouth Park Racetrack
(1946), Garden State Park became a crucial part of what was called the "Golden Triangle" of New Jersey racing.
across the street and the wooden barns & stables on the backstretch, the damage was contained to the massive grandstand complex. Three lives were lost in the fire- one patron and one employee were later found in the rubble- and one fire officer (McWilliams) died of a heart attack on-scene. But, the very next day, the vault with the previous days' "take" was opened, with the money intact; while outside on the track, horses continued to train.
financed construction of a new $178,000,000 steel and glass grandstand which opened on April 1, 1985. The first race that day followed the schedule from the day the original track burned. The track, running night programs, would provide racing for standardbred harness racing
as well as thoroughbred racing. The grandstand also had on the Clubhouse level The Phoenix Room, which also served as a large banquet hall that hosted events year-round.
On May 27, 1985, Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year
winner Spend A Buck
won the first Jersey Derby
at the new Garden State Park, having earlier the same year won the Cherry Hill Mile and the Garden State Stakes, both at Garden State Park, and also the Kentucky Derby
. The $2.6 million purse, including a $2 million bonus put up by Brennan for winning the four races, was the largest single purse in American racing history up to that point.
One of the controversial tax breaks the facility enjoyed was a legislative loophole that allowed a near total exemption from what would have been high county property taxes because it was categorized as a "farm." It qualified for this special exemption because its operations generated horse manure that could be sold. The tax classification was allowed because the business "produced over $500 per year in agricultural products".
Some of the important annual races at Garden State Park Racetrack include:
Garden State Park never re-acquired its glamorous past. Over sixteen years, the track suffered from the apathy of New Jersey horsemen and New Jersey state officials, and unrestrained competition from the Atlantic City casinos. The final straw came when Governor of New Jersey
Christine Todd Whitman
vetoed legislation that would have permitted slot machines at New Jersey racetracks, a measure that possibly could have saved the Cherry Hill landmark.
On October 30, 2003, with the property sold to Realen-Turnberry for a mixed-use 'town center' redevelopment, demolition started on the grandstand often referred to as a masterpiece. By late March 2004, all that remained of the racecourse was the original 1942 gatehouse on Route 70. The gatehouse still stands and is slated to be renovated as part of a planned off-track betting facility at the site.
- a collaboration of Turnberry Associates
(Aventura, Florida
) and M & M Realty Partners (Clifton, New Jersey
).
500,000 square feet (46,000 m²) of retail space are planned along Route 70, west of Haddonfield Road at The Marketplace at Garden State Park. Open anchor stores Wegmans and Home Depot are joined by Bed Bath & Beyond
, Christmas Tree Shops
, Dick's Sporting Goods
, and Best Buy
. Included in The Marketplace are the restaurants Panera Bread
Company and Baja Fresh
. It also includes Houlihan's
, Cheeburger Cheeburger
, and Starbucks Coffee.
The Cheesecake Factory
, Brio Tuscan Grille, McCormick & Schmick's
, and Cosi
restaurants are open at Garden State Park's Towne Place lifestyle "town center" area, which will serve the entire development. Coming soon are additional restaurants. Retailers proposed include Anthropologie
, Bandolino, BCBG
, Hugo Boss
, Kenneth Cole
, Lucy, and more.
At the Park Place section of the reborn Park, luxury townhouses and condominiums are currently for sale by Edgewood Properties of Clifton.
The Plaza Grande area, under construction by D.R. Horton of Fort Worth, Texas
, will be a 26-building active adult community of 608 luxury 55 and over condominium units near the intersection of Chapel Avenue and Haddonfield Road.
Harness racing
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait . They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, although racing under saddle is also conducted in Europe.-Breeds:...
and thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
race track
Race track
A race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
in Cherry Hill
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Cherry Hill is a township in Camden County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township had a population of 71,045, representing an increase of 1,080 from the 69,965 residents enumerated during the 2000 Census...
, Camden County
Camden County, New Jersey
-Demographics:As of the 2010 Census the population of Camden County was 60.28% Non-Hispanic white, 18.45% Non-Hispanic black, 1.12% Hispanic blacks, 0.17% Non-Hispanic Native American, 0.15% Hispanic Native Americans, 5.07% Non-Hispanic Asian, and 0.14% non-Hispanics reporting some other race...
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. It is now the site of a high-end, mixed-use "town center" development of stores, restaurants, apartments, townhouses, and condominiums. Garden State Park's 600 acre (≈1 square mile) land area is roughly bounded by New Jersey State Route 70, Haddonfield Road, Chapel Avenue, and New Jersey Transit's Atlantic City Rail Line.
History
Garden State Park opened on July 7, 1942 after delays caused by raw material rationing at the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
' entry into World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Due to the seizure of 30,000 tons of structural steel by war authorities, developer Eugene Mori mostly constructed Garden State Park's ornate Georgian-style grandstand of wood. Limited amounts of steel came from the demolition of New York City's elevated railways. Despite this inauspicious start, 'the Garden,' as it was known, was officially 'out of the gate.'
In 1959, Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
owner Bob Carpenter
R. R. M. Carpenter, Jr.
Robert Ruliph Morgan Carpenter Jr. was an owner and club president of the Philadelphia Phillies of American Major League Baseball. When he took command of the Phils, in November 1943 after his father purchased the franchise, Carpenter became the youngest club president in baseball history, and he...
proposed building a new ballpark for the Phillies on 72 acres (291,373.9 m²) adjacent to the race track. Connie Mack Stadium was 50-years old, did not have sufficient parking, and the sale of alcohol was banned at sports venues in Pennsylvania. Beer sales were legal in New Jersey.
The Phillies would eventually move to the South Philadelphia Sports Complex
South Philadelphia Sports Complex
The South Philadelphia Sports Complex is the current home of Philadelphia's professional sports teams. It is the site of the Wells Fargo Center, Lincoln Financial Field and Citizens Bank Park...
in 1971.
In its heyday, it would host some of the finest thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
racehorses
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
in the nation at the signature Jersey Derby
Jersey Derby
The Jersey Derby is a $100,000 American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in late July/early August at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. Since 1993 it has been raced on grass at a distance of 1 1/16 miles....
. Its Garden State Stakes and the Gardenia Stakes
Gardenia Stakes
The Gardenia Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the second week of November. Created in 1955 at Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, the 11/16 mile event was the world's richest race for two-year-old fillies, offering a total purse of US$130,300 in...
offered one of the largest purses available to for two-year-olds. Legendary horses raced at Garden State Park included Whirlaway
Whirlaway
Whirlaway was an American champion thoroughbred racehorse.The chestnut horse was sired by English Derby winner Blenheim II, out of the broodmare Dustwhirl. Whirlaway was bred at Calumet Farm in Lexington, Kentucky....
, Citation
Citation (horse)
Citation was the eighth American Triple Crown winner, and one of three major North American Thoroughbreds to win at least 16 consecutive races in major stakes race competition...
, and the great Secretariat
Secretariat (horse)
Secretariat was an American Thoroughbred racehorse, that in 1973 became the first U.S. Triple Crown champion in 25 years, setting new race records in two of the three events in the Series—the Kentucky Derby , and the Belmont Stakes —records that still stand today.Secretariat was sired by Bold...
on a cold, rainy Saturday afternoon in early 1972 in the Garden State Futurity
Garden State Futurity
The Garden State Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid November at the now defunct Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. A futurity event for two-year-olds, it is sometimes referred to as the Garden State Futurity...
.
Garden State Park's success sparked a wave of entertainment-oriented growth and development in the formerly rural community of Delaware Township, New Jersey (now Cherry Hill Township). Mori followed his achievement at the racetrack with the construction of the Cherry Hill Inn on the site of Abraham Browning's Cherry Hill Farm (at Route 38
Route 38 (New Jersey)
Route 38 is a state highway in the southern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey serving the Philadelphia metropolitan area. It extends from the Airport Circle, where it intersects U.S. Route 30 and U.S. Route 130, in Pennsauken Township, Camden County to an intersection with U.S. Route 206 and...
and Haddonfield Road); and in 1967 the Cherry Hill Lodge, also on Route 38 to the east of the Cherry Hill Mall
Cherry Hill Mall (shopping mall)
Cherry Hill Mall, owned by Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust , was originally known as Cherry Hill Shopping Center, the first indoor, climate-controlled shopping center east of the Mississippi River in the United States, and opened in October 1961.Cherry Hill Mall is located at 2000 Route...
. Soon to follow in 1961 was the Cherry Hill Shopping Center (today's Cherry Hill Mall
Cherry Hill Mall (shopping mall)
Cherry Hill Mall, owned by Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust , was originally known as Cherry Hill Shopping Center, the first indoor, climate-controlled shopping center east of the Mississippi River in the United States, and opened in October 1961.Cherry Hill Mall is located at 2000 Route...
, the first enclosed shopping mall on the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
) and the super-luxurious Rickshaw Inn
Rickshaw Inn
The Rickshaw Inn was a 180 room hotel with a gold-plated roof, which was situated on Route 70 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, opposite Garden State Park and next door to the Latin Casino....
with its legendary gold-plated roof, which was situated on Route 70
Route 70 (New Jersey)
first you will arrive at a place called harmony christy Route 70 is a state highway located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It extends from an interchange with Route 38 in Pennsauken Township, Camden County to an intersection with Route 34 and Route 35 in Wall Township, Monmouth County...
opposite Garden State Park.
Diagonally across Route 70 on the map in then-Delaware Township was the Latin Casino
Latin Casino
The Latin Casino was a Philadelphia-area nightclub just across the Delaware River in Cherry Hill. The Latin was famous for showcasing entertainers like Cherry Hill Estates neighbors Bobby Darin, Al Martino, and Frankie Avalon , Richard Pryor , Frank Sinatra, The...
, adjacent to the Rickshaw and the Garden. This dinner nightclub hosted legendary acts like Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Dean Martin
Dean Martin
Dean Martin was an American singer, film actor, television star and comedian. Martin's hit singles included "Memories Are Made of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", "You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"...
, Liberace
Liberace
Wladziu Valentino Liberace , best known simply as Liberace, was a famous American pianist and vocalist.In a career that spanned four decades of concerts, recordings, motion pictures, television and endorsements, Liberace became world-renowned...
, Cherry Hill Estates neighbors Al Martino
Al Martino
Al Martino was an American singer and actor. He had his greatest success as a singer between the early 1950s and mid 1970s, being described as "one of the great Italian American pop crooners", and also became well known as an actor, particularly for his role as singer Johnny Fontane in The...
& Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon
Frankie Avalon is an American actor, singer, playwright, and former teen idol.-Career:By the time he was 12, Avalon was on U.S. television playing his trumpet. As a teenager he played with Bobby Rydell in Rocco and the Saints...
and more; before closing due to competition from casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
.
Followed later by Atlantic City Race Course
Atlantic City Race Course
The Atlantic City Race Course , formerly the Atlantic City Race Track, is a thoroughbred horse race track located in the Mays Landing section of Hamilton Township, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The track is located off the Black Horse Pike next to the Hamilton Mall...
and Monmouth Park Racetrack
Monmouth Park Racetrack
Monmouth Park Racetrack is an American race track for thoroughbred horse racing in Oceanport, New Jersey. It is owned by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and is operated under a five-year lease as a partnership with Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City.Monmouth Park's marquee event...
(1946), Garden State Park became a crucial part of what was called the "Golden Triangle" of New Jersey racing.
Fire
This triangle would lose a leg on April 14, 1977, when a fire raged undetected at Garden State Park in the Colonial Room restaurant's kitchen during a racing program. Despite no functional firefighting system, the wooden grandstand would last long enough to allow more than 11,000 patrons and employees to escape the inferno. At 4:45 p.m., the walls and massive roof overhang of the grandstand gave way to the flames and reduced the structure to a smoking ruin. Despite the flying embers very nearly igniting The Rickshaw InnRickshaw Inn
The Rickshaw Inn was a 180 room hotel with a gold-plated roof, which was situated on Route 70 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, opposite Garden State Park and next door to the Latin Casino....
across the street and the wooden barns & stables on the backstretch, the damage was contained to the massive grandstand complex. Three lives were lost in the fire- one patron and one employee were later found in the rubble- and one fire officer (McWilliams) died of a heart attack on-scene. But, the very next day, the vault with the previous days' "take" was opened, with the money intact; while outside on the track, horses continued to train.
Rebuilding
Despite the stables on the east side of the track remaining open for training, Garden State Park no longer held races until securities trader Robert BrennanRobert Brennan
Robert Emmet Brennan was an American businessman who built the infamous penny stock brokerage firm, First Jersey Securities. The firm specialized in promoting "Pump and dump" penny stocks to unsuspecting investors, many of them elderly, who lost their entire investments when the stocks inevitably...
financed construction of a new $178,000,000 steel and glass grandstand which opened on April 1, 1985. The first race that day followed the schedule from the day the original track burned. The track, running night programs, would provide racing for standardbred harness racing
Standardbred horse
Standardbreds are a breed of horse best known for their ability to race in harness at a trot or pace instead of under saddle at a gallop. Developed in North America, the breed is now recognized worldwide for its harness racing ability...
as well as thoroughbred racing. The grandstand also had on the Clubhouse level The Phoenix Room, which also served as a large banquet hall that hosted events year-round.
On May 27, 1985, Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year
Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year
The American Award for Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. It has been awarded since 1887 to the horse, irrespective of age, whose performance during the racing year is deemed the most outstanding....
winner Spend A Buck
Spend A Buck
Spend A Buck was an American thoroughbred race horse.-Background:Spend A Buck was sired by Buckaroo out of the dam Belle de Jour...
won the first Jersey Derby
Jersey Derby
The Jersey Derby is a $100,000 American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in late July/early August at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. Since 1993 it has been raced on grass at a distance of 1 1/16 miles....
at the new Garden State Park, having earlier the same year won the Cherry Hill Mile and the Garden State Stakes, both at Garden State Park, and also the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
. The $2.6 million purse, including a $2 million bonus put up by Brennan for winning the four races, was the largest single purse in American racing history up to that point.
One of the controversial tax breaks the facility enjoyed was a legislative loophole that allowed a near total exemption from what would have been high county property taxes because it was categorized as a "farm." It qualified for this special exemption because its operations generated horse manure that could be sold. The tax classification was allowed because the business "produced over $500 per year in agricultural products".
Some of the important annual races at Garden State Park Racetrack include:
- Gardenia StakesGardenia StakesThe Gardenia Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the second week of November. Created in 1955 at Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, the 11/16 mile event was the world's richest race for two-year-old fillies, offering a total purse of US$130,300 in...
- Garden State FuturityGarden State FuturityThe Garden State Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in mid November at the now defunct Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. A futurity event for two-year-olds, it is sometimes referred to as the Garden State Futurity...
- Garden State Stakes
- Jersey DerbyJersey DerbyThe Jersey Derby is a $100,000 American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in late July/early August at Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey. Since 1993 it has been raced on grass at a distance of 1 1/16 miles....
- Vineland HandicapVineland HandicapThe Vineland Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Garden State Park Racetrack in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Open to horses age three and older, it was contested on turf over a distance of a mile and a sixteenth....
Garden State Park never re-acquired its glamorous past. Over sixteen years, the track suffered from the apathy of New Jersey horsemen and New Jersey state officials, and unrestrained competition from the Atlantic City casinos. The final straw came when Governor of New Jersey
Governor of New Jersey
The Office of the Governor of New Jersey is the executive branch for the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of Governor is an elected position, for which elected officials serve four year terms. While individual politicians may serve as many terms as they can be elected to, Governors cannot be...
Christine Todd Whitman
Christine Todd Whitman
Christine Todd "Christie" Whitman is an American Republican politician and author who served as the 50th Governor of New Jersey from 1994 to 2001, and was the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration of President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2003. She was New...
vetoed legislation that would have permitted slot machines at New Jersey racetracks, a measure that possibly could have saved the Cherry Hill landmark.
Demolition
On May 3, 2001, 2,000 fans came to see the last racing program at Garden State Park. After 58 years, the Garden ran its last race.On October 30, 2003, with the property sold to Realen-Turnberry for a mixed-use 'town center' redevelopment, demolition started on the grandstand often referred to as a masterpiece. By late March 2004, all that remained of the racecourse was the original 1942 gatehouse on Route 70. The gatehouse still stands and is slated to be renovated as part of a planned off-track betting facility at the site.
Redevelopment
Now underway at Garden State Park is more than $500 million in private investment by Turnberry Cherry Hill, LLCLimited liability company
A limited liability company is a flexible form of enterprise that blends elements of partnership and corporate structures. It is a legal form of company that provides limited liability to its owners in the vast majority of United States jurisdictions...
- a collaboration of Turnberry Associates
Turnberry Associates
Turnberry Associates is an American real estate developer in residential, retail, hospitality and office. The company has developed more than $7 billion in commercial and residential property, including approximately of retail space, more than 7,000 condominium and condo-hotel residences, of...
(Aventura, Florida
Aventura, Florida
Aventura is a planned, suburban city located in northeastern Miami-Dade County, Florida. The city name is from the Spanish word for "adventure", and was named "Aventura" after one of the developers of the original group of condominiums in the area remarked to the others, "What an adventure this is...
) and M & M Realty Partners (Clifton, New Jersey
Clifton, New Jersey
Clifton is a city in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 84,136. The 2010 population represented an increase of 5,464 residents from its population of 78,672 in the 2000 Census, making it the state's 11th largest...
).
500,000 square feet (46,000 m²) of retail space are planned along Route 70, west of Haddonfield Road at The Marketplace at Garden State Park. Open anchor stores Wegmans and Home Depot are joined by Bed Bath & Beyond
Bed Bath & Beyond
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. was formed in 1971 and today operates a chain of domestic merchandise retail stores across United States, Puerto Rico and Canada. They feature mostly medium-ranged, but also a limited selection of high quality, domestic merchandise: items for the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen,...
, Christmas Tree Shops
Christmas Tree Shops
Christmas Tree Shops are a retail chain that started in Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts on Cape Cod in 1970 as a complex of three small stores; the Front Shop, the Back Shop, and the Barn Shop. The multiple store location, which was located on Route 6A, explains why the name is Christmas Tree Shops...
, Dick's Sporting Goods
Dick's Sporting Goods
Dick's Sporting Goods, Inc. , or Dick's, is a Fortune 500 American corporation in the sporting goods and retail industries.The company's headquarters are on the grounds of Pittsburgh International Airport in Findlay Township near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Dick's has 451 stores in 42 states as of...
, and Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
. Included in The Marketplace are the restaurants Panera Bread
Panera Bread
Panera Bread is a chain of bakery–café quick casual restaurants in the United States and Canada that sells breads, sandwiches, soups, salads, and other bakery items. Its headquarters are in Sunset Hills, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis.-Corporate history:In 1993, Au Bon Pain Co...
Company and Baja Fresh
Baja Fresh
Baja Fresh is a chain of fast-casual Tex Mex restaurants founded in Newbury Park, California in 1990 and headquartered in Cypress, California. The chain emphasizes fresh ingredients, and each restaurant features a self-serve salsa bar....
. It also includes Houlihan's
Houlihan's
Houlihan's is a Leawood, Kansas-based American contemporary restaurant chain. The first Houlihan's opened on April 1, 1972 on Kansas City's Country Club Plaza, and is now in 21 states...
, Cheeburger Cheeburger
Cheeburger Cheeburger
Cheeburger Cheeburger is a 1950s-style burger restaurant chain that started on Sanibel Island, Florida, United States, in 1986. They specialize in cheeseburgers, french fries, onion rings, and milkshakes....
, and Starbucks Coffee.
The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory
The Cheesecake Factory, Inc. is a restaurant company in the United States. The company operates 165 upscale, casual, full-service dining restaurants: 151 under The Cheesecake Factory mark, 13 under the Grand Lux Cafe mark and one under the RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen mark...
, Brio Tuscan Grille, McCormick & Schmick's
McCormick & Schmick's
McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants is an American seafood restaurant chain, based in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1979, the publicly-traded company operates a total of 92 locations in North America under various brands. This includes seven Canadian locations that operate under the Boathouse...
, and Cosi
Così (restaurant)
Così is an American restaurant chain that primarily offers gourmet sandwiches and salads. It was founded in 1996, and there are currently over 144 locations in the continental United States. The original Così restaurant was based on a cafe in Paris, France....
restaurants are open at Garden State Park's Towne Place lifestyle "town center" area, which will serve the entire development. Coming soon are additional restaurants. Retailers proposed include Anthropologie
Anthropologie
Anthropologie is a chain of retail stores that sells women's apparel and accessories, home furnishings, imitation found objects and an array of gifts and decorative items.Headquartered in Philadelphia, the company is owned by Urban Outfitters, Inc...
, Bandolino, BCBG
BCBG
BCBG may refer to:* the French acronym bon chic bon genre or * Women's clothing line created by Max Azria* Bon Chic Bon Genre, an album by Campag Velocet...
, Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss
Hugo Ferdinand Boss was the founder of clothing company Hugo Boss.-Early life:Boss was born in Metzingen, Germany. After completing his apprenticeship and one year of employment, he founded his own company in Metzingen in 1923.-Support of Nazism:Boss joined the Nazi Party in 1931, two years before...
, Kenneth Cole
Kenneth Cole Productions
Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. is an American fashion house founded in 1982 by Kenneth Cole. He originally named the company Kenneth Cole Incorporated in September 1982 and planned to showcase his new line of shoes during market week at the Hilton New York Hotel...
, Lucy, and more.
At the Park Place section of the reborn Park, luxury townhouses and condominiums are currently for sale by Edgewood Properties of Clifton.
The Plaza Grande area, under construction by D.R. Horton of Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, will be a 26-building active adult community of 608 luxury 55 and over condominium units near the intersection of Chapel Avenue and Haddonfield Road.
External links
- Garden State Park Summary at Cherry Hill Township municipal website
- Garden State Park Photo Gallery at Cherry Hill Township municipal website
- April 28, 2001 ESPN story on the closure of Garden State Park