Anyone who has traveled to Mahwah has certainly noticed the Sheraton Hotel there. It’s an iconic 22-story building located in Bergen County on more than 100 acres near Routes 17 and 202 and Interstate 287. Now, however, the Sheraton has issued a WARN notice with the state’s Department of Labor & Workforce Development that it plans to lay off 91 employees by Dec. 15.
The notice comes as officials said they are reviewing a proposal to replace the hotel on the 143-acre site with two warehouses totaling 1.7 million square feet. The warehouse project was approved as a concept in December as a collaboration among township officials, the owner and the Fair Share Housing Center. The township’s planning board discussed the future plans for the site at a hearing on Sept. 11.
The news was first reported by NJ.com.
According to the minutes of that meeting, Crossroads Developers Associates LLC, together with Garden Crossroads LLC dba Crossroads Logistics Center, submitted preliminary and final site plan and soil movement permit applications for the phased development of warehouse buildings, with Phase I consisting of Building A at 671,072 square feet and Phase II consisting of Building B at 1.015 million square feet.
And, if there were any concerns about the number of trucks entering and departing two warehouses, those were squashed at the hearing.
Applicant traffic engineer Dan Disario said traffic studies indicate the complex would generate an estimated 950 cars in and out, and 510 trucks in and out, in a 24-hour period. That compares with the estimated 3,000 cars in and out and 1,926 trucks in and out over a 24-hour period if the hotel/office complex was operating at its intended capacity.
It was also said at the meeting that the hotel is not scheduled for demolition until the first warehouse is built, dispelling recent speculation that it will close in December. However, according to the hotel’s website, it is not accepting any reservations past the end of the year.
The next meeting on the application is scheduled for Oct. 9.
