FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP - Freehold Raceway Mall will have to find a different anchor tenant to replace Sears after the department store closes its doors later this month.

The township Planning Board on Thursday night rejected a proposal that would have allowed Round1 Bowling & Amusement to move into the first floor of the Sears building.

It would have brought in an entertainment tenant that offers bowling, an arcade, billiards, and sports activities such as table tennis, tennis courts and basketball. Plans also called for a bar and food area.

But the township Planning Board backed a determination made by the township zoning officer about 18 months ago that the amusement center was not allowed in the township's regional mall zone. It also denied a variance, or exemption, to the rules.

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The proposal is "too intensive for the proposed location," Planning Board Chairman A. Richard Gatto said. It also deviates from the definition of an anchor store in the mall's general development plan, including hours of operation and other factors, he added.

Hours at Round1 were proposed to be 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week.

The general development plan, approved years ago by the board, guides development at Freehold Raceway Mall.

In a statement, a mall official said they were "really disappointed with tonight's outcome."

"We have enjoyed a history of working with our township to deliver on a vision of success for Freehold," said Frank Lucia, senior property manager at Freehold Raceway Mall. "We look forward to this continuing as we identify creative new and non-traditional uses to bring to the center."

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Now the mall faces the prospect of Sears leaving without a tenant lined up to replace it. Sears, which at one time occupied two floors the anchor store, consolidated several years ago to about 72,700 square feet on the first floor. Primark leases space on the second floor.

Sears is now nearing the end of its liquidation sales and is expected to close in the middle of the month.

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Mall owners are turning to entertainment companies, like Round1 and Dave & Busters, a popular arcade and bar destination, to provide an attraction when large retailers leave. Retailers, like Sears and its sister company Kmart, are shrinking as customers turn to online shopping.

"General brick-and-mortar retail is under some duress," said Cliff Quay, a planner in Mount Laurel who represented mall owner Macerich at the hearing. "Certainly keeping the mall as a vibrant and vital place for people to go is an important component of sustaining that important facility within your community."

In October 2018, the township's zoning official informed Round1 that an "amusement/entertainment type venue … is not specifically permitted" within the regional mall zone, which encompasses Freehold Raceway Mall.

Watch the video at the top of this story to see more about Round1's proposal and what other shopping centers have done.

"As such, the proposed use must be denied," the letter states. While some uses such as bowling are allowed, other attractions that would be offered by Round1, including billiards and games of chance are not.

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At the hearing, the Planning Board refused the appeal by Macerich and Round1 to overturn the determination. "This is a stretch" under the township's current zoning ordinance, Planning Board member John Bazzurro said.

In its application for a variance, Round1 said that while "not very specifically listed" under the ordinance, "all of the activities offered by Round1 Bowling & Amusement are solely intended for public recreation."

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Based in Brea, California, Round1 is building a location at Deptford Mall in Gloucester County.

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At Freehold Raceway Mall, Round1's plans, which covered 66,030 square feet, included an arcade, bowling lanes, party rooms with karaoke, and an area for a bar, food and seating.

The proposal also would have brought Round1's Sports Challenge attractions, including batting cages, basketball courts, table tennis, tennis courts, an archery range, billiards, a roller skating rink, a Segway track, trampoline, a mechanical bull, a play area for kids and courts for sports such as volleyball and badminton.

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