Victory Redevelopment Study Gets OK from Planning Board

After hearing a study that characterized the property as “grossly underutilized,” obsolete and potentially dangerous, the Cherry Hill planning board voted unanimously Monday night to recommend the Victory Refrigeration plant on Woodcrest Road as a possible redevelopment zone, potentially taking the first step in finding a new home for Subaru within the township's borders.

The study, commissioned this summer by the township council, laid out two major points in favor of redevelopment, dinging the 44-year-old property for being out-of-date and out-of-shape, and noting the potential for smart growth, given its proximity to Route 295, the Turnpike and the PATCO High-Speed Line.

But Robert Melvin of Group Melvin Design, who led the study, was careful to note this is just an initial step in a lengthy process.

“This is not a plan, and that's important to distinguish,” he said. “It's simply looking at the site as it is and to see if it qualifies.”

Melvin's analysis had the planning board members convinced of that.

He cited a host of problems with the property—everything from missing insulation to broken-out windows, to bulging exterior walls to a 50-year-old fire suppression system at the physical plant, which sits with 95,000 square feet of unused space.

“The building is 40-percent vacant,” Melvin said, and noted the setup makes it unlikely a second tenant could be added to bring it up to full use as it currently stands.

Other problems—a vacant penthouse area that had been a paint shop, low ceilings and excessive columns in the building, ineffective storm water management that leads to ponds across the parking lot and open space, and disused loading bays set up for an abandoned rail spur—make the property functionally obsolete, Melvin said.

And given some of those problems helped dropped the tax assessment from $4.7 million down to $3.85 million in 2012, there's clear evidence of harm being done to local taxpayers, Melvin said.

At the same time, the property's proximity to the Woodcrest PATCO stop—the edge of the property is well within the quarter-mile mark, and the entire property sits within the half-mile circle—makes it an excellent candidate for a smart growth site, Melvin said.

“To be within a quarter-mile of a train station is to hit the jackpot,” he said.

But more needs to be done in redevelopment to make it more suitable for pedestrians—Melvin cited the lack of crosswalks on Woodcrest Road and the lack of sidewalks both on the 34-acre property's edge and in the interior as problems.

Though Melvin's presentation was technically followed by a public hearing on the property, no one from the public spoke—though a Victory Refrigeration executive raised concerns about the company's short-term future at the property.

Eileen Kuriskin noted the company's lease doesn't expire at 110 Woodcrest until the end of next year, with another three-month extension due beyond that, and 133 employees currently work there.

“I wouldn't want us to be forced out,” she said.

Planning Director Paul Stridick said it's tough to predict exactly how long the process would take to designate the property for redevelopment, but said it isn't an overnight decision.

“We're really at the beginning stages,” he said. “It's sometimes very complex...to put a timeline on it is impossible.”

Board members were sympathetic, though, and several added the caveat of working with Victory Refrigeration to ensure they could stay as long as possible as part of their approval of the plan.

A second redevelopment study, on a 10-acre parcel originally set aside for an off-track betting facility at the old Garden State Racetrack property, has yet to come back to the planning board for a presentation, and there wasn't a specific timeline on when that study might be finished.

Township officials have said the redevelopment studies are aimed at keeping a company like Subaru in the township, but aren’t necessarily exclusive to the Japanese automaker.

“I envision transforming the Victory site into an economically viable and thriving world-class corporate campus fit for the 21st century,” Mayor Chuck Cahn said when the council initially recommended the site for a redevelopment study. “This is an opportunity to grow the township’s commercial ratable base, solidify our thriving local economy and set a precedent for future growth.”

Subaru said earlier this year it has outgrown its North American headquarters on Route 70 near the Cooper River, and has been courted both by local officials and representatives from Philadelphia's Navy Yard as the company considers its options for a new home.