Moorestown Township residents can vote on bringing games of chance to mall

Carol Comegno, Cherry Hill Courier-Post
·3 min read

MOORESTOWN − Moorestown Mall has launched a petition drive to build support for a voter referendum to bring games of chance to the shopping center.

If voters approve, Moorestown Mall's proposal calls for a family entertainment center in the former Lord + Taylor department store. Discounter Turn 7 is currently occupying the 121,000-square-foot space on a lease that ends this year, according to PREIT.

If enough signatures of registered Moorestown voters are collected, the gaming question would be voted on in the November municipal election. The signatures of at least 1,350 valid voters are required to place it on the ballot, according to Moorestown officials.

Games of chance involve the award of prizes or issuance of redemption tickets not unlike those at venues like Dave & Buster’s, Main Event and Round 1 located in New Jersey and elsewhere.

"The proposed venue, unlike any other in the region, promises to bring a variety of activeamusement opportunities," mall owner PREIT said in a statement.

It said the business would include bowling, roller skating, laser tag, go-karts, virtual reality games, and escape rooms.

The venue also would offer food and beverage options, including a bar for adult customers.

PREIT has not identified a potential tenant.

But the firm recently added Tilted 10, a business that meets that description, to its Willow Grove Park Mall in suburban Philadelphia.

"Tilted 10 is a major milestone in our mission to transform PREIT’s portfolio into vibrant, community hubs,” Joseph Coradino, PREIT's chairman and CEO said in March, when the business opened its first phase at Willow Grove.

Tilted 10 includes arcade games, bowling, miniature golf, party rooms and dining.

The discounter Turn 7 occupies the former Lord & Taylor department store at Moorestown Mall, but games of chance may come to that space if a gaming referendum is placed on the ballot in the November election in Moorestown and passes.
The discounter Turn 7 occupies the former Lord & Taylor department store at Moorestown Mall, but games of chance may come to that space if a gaming referendum is placed on the ballot in the November election in Moorestown and passes.

Petitions can be signed both at the Moorestown and Cherry Hill malls through earlySeptember, while canvassers are expected to solicit signatures at the homes of Moorestown residents.

Township voters rejected games of chance in a 1959 referendum.

What new development is underway at Moorestown Mall

PREIT last fall revealed it intended to seek a ballot question in 2023 as part of its redevelopment of the mall.

Soon the mall will offer major health services with construction of a 165,000-square-foot Cooper University Health Care center inside a former Sears store facing Route 38.

Cooper University Health Care outpatient center's entrance facade nears completion at Moorestown Mall on Aug 4, 2023.
Cooper University Health Care outpatient center's entrance facade nears completion at Moorestown Mall on Aug 4, 2023.

Construction of the first housing at the mall also is in early stages on the parking lot behind Boscov's department store, the mall's only remaining anchor.

More: The U.S. Navy called a Moorestown affordable housing project a security threat? Here's why

PREIT announced last year that 375 apartments and a future hotel also would be part of the first phase of its major redevelopment plan.

Developer Bel Canto's contractors are excavating the site and building the foundation of a parking garage that will become part of the future apartment complex to be named The Pearl. It will include about 75 affordable housing units to be interspersed within the apartment buildings.

An apartment complex with 375 units and including an affordable housing component is in a very early construction stage at Moorestown Mall. Shown are the first sections of the parking garage foundation amidst site-wide earth excavation.
An apartment complex with 375 units and including an affordable housing component is in a very early construction stage at Moorestown Mall. Shown are the first sections of the parking garage foundation amidst site-wide earth excavation.

In another mall adjustment, Moorestown's planning board recently granted subdivisions that will allow PREIT to sell property along its perimeter.

One of the lots is earmarked for a hotel in a back corner of the mall along Lenola Road.

Hospital for pets opens at the mall

Meanwhile, Banfield Pet Hospital, part of a national chain, has opened in a free-standing building along Route 38 at Nixon Drive. Additionally, interior renovation has begun on a previously announced liquor store coming to the former Sears tire and auto shop.:

PREIT also announced it expects these six more smaller businesses to open within the coming months:

  • Vixen Couture, which is expanding from a cart to a store space for women's fashion and accessories.

  • Natures Gift Shoppe, specializing in herbal supplements, candles, baskets and balloon gifts.

  • Design for You Event & Decor Planning, offering cut flowers and floral arrangements

  • Curvaceous Fashionista, specializing in plus-size women’s fashion and accessories.

  • Avon Cosmetics and DD's Beauty and Accessories, including Mary Kay products.

Carol Comegno loves telling stories about South Jersey life, history and military veterans for the Courier Post, Burlington County Times and The Daily Journal. If you have a story to share, call her at 856-486-2473 or email  ccomegno@gannettnj.com.

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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Voter referendum could bring games of chance to Moorestown Mall