‘A great fit’

With a snip of an oversized pair of scissors, the SuperFresh food store on Lincoln Boulevard was officially opened to shoppers on Friday, Oct. 20.

The supermarket had been doing business for several hours before Mayor John Madden and store owner Howard Lee teamed up to cut the ribbon, heralding the return of a food store to the site after Price Saver’s ill-fated six-month tenure in 2019.

Several members of the Borough Council and Joint Land Use Board looked on during the brief ceremony, along with food company executives. The initial reaction from shoppers exiting the building was that Middlesex needed a food store, particularly after the 2022 closing of the Acme across town.

Prior to SuperFresh’s opening, Superfood at the Middlesex Plaza stood as the borough’s only full-fledged supermarket. In days gone by, the town had three.

Madden said the SuperFresh will “fulfill the needs” of Middlesex residents who were patrons of the site’s former Pathmark while providing jobs. The store is “actively seeking” local residents for employment, he said.

“That’s huge for me,” the mayor said of the job creation.

“Thank you for selecting Middlesex Borough,” Madden told Lee.

SuperFresh features an expansive produce aisle and a fish market with selections not usually seen in other local food stores.

There was the typical first-day buzz surrounding a just-opened business as shoppers scurried in and out to check out Middlesex’s new food store.

Lee was touted as a successful food store operator by executives attending the ribbon-cutting. His holdings include another SuperFresh in Linden.

SuperFresh’s tenure marks a new era for the Lincoln Boulevard building that first opened in 1968 as ShopRite. in 1984, it flipped over to Pathmark, the brand which held the store until 2015. The store sat vacant for roughly four years, before Price Saver’s brief run.

During that four-year vacancy period, what is now the 200-unit The View high rise next door received Planning Board approval. What were formerly parking spaces used exclusively by ShopRite and later Pathmark in a lot to the west are now used by the apartment complex’s tenants.

SuperFresh’s parking situation was a bit tight on its first morning. A contributing factor was that the store’s front spaces were used for a kids’ bouncy house, DJ and vendor giveaways.

Madden said he does not believe there will be an ongoing parking problem at the new food store and that borough police will monitor the situation.

“I’m excited about this,” Madden said after the ribbon-cutting, noting that Lee had expressed a desire to be part of the community during a past meeting with borough officials.

“You couldn’t ask for a better fit,” Madden said.

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