Blue Star Shopping Center at 1701 Route 22 drew about 3.8 million visits a year. That was 40.1 percent more than the year before, according to Placer.ai figures released by the property's manager, Levin Management, and reported by TAPinto in June 2026. The coverage credited "a wave of new restaurants, entertainment venues, and retailers" for the jump.
The tenant list tells a narrower story. On Levin's September 18, 2026 roster, both entertainment concepts named in that coverage, iSmash and Back Nine Golf, are still marked "coming soon." So are two of the new restaurants it named, Raising Cane's and Sakura Teriyaki. The tenants already open are a bigger grocery store, two off-price apparel anchors and a gym, and they account for the visits so far. This fall, the evening plans in Watchung are mostly across the highway, or off it entirely.
Where the 40 Percent Actually Came From
The redevelopment started with groceries. A new 72,000-square-foot ShopRite opened in April 2025. Making room for it took a full reshuffle of the 55-year-old center. As Chain Store Age described it, longtime tenant Marshalls moved into a 27,000-square-foot space in the grocer's old site, next to newcomer Burlington.
Those openings followed one after another through 2026. Five Below announced a grand-opening weekend in February. Honeygrow held its ribbon-cutting on March 20, and NJBIZ listed its hours as 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Burlington opened on May 29. Patch reported an August 27 opening for the relocated Marshalls.
Levin's own leasing team has said which tenant brings people back most often. Sid Singer, Levin's vice president of leasing, told Chain Store Age that the company "brought in a Planet Fitness to drive multiple, per-week visits." A gym membership, a weekly grocery run and two off-price apparel stores create exactly that kind of repeat trip, and a count of annual visits tallies each one.
The Roster, Sorted by What You Can Walk Into Today
This is the center as Levin listed it on September 18, 2026, the latest roster available as of mid-October:
| Business | What it is | Status on the Sept. 18 roster |
|---|---|---|
| ShopRite | 72,000 sq. ft. grocery anchor | Open since April 2025 |
| Kohl's + Sephora | Department store | Open |
| Marshalls | Relocated, 27,000 sq. ft. | Open |
| Burlington | 26,495 sq. ft. | Open |
| Five Below | 10,037 sq. ft. | Open |
| Planet Fitness | 21,850 sq. ft. | Open |
| honeygrow | Stir-fries, salads, honeybars | Open |
| Five Guys, Taco Bell | Quick service | Open |
| KidStrong | Children's training | Open |
| Raising Cane's | About 4,000 sq. ft., drive-through and patio | Coming soon |
| Sakura Teriyaki | 4,000 sq. ft. freestanding, pickup drive-through | Coming soon |
| iSmash | Rage rooms, black-light splatter painting, axe throwing | Coming soon |
| Back Nine Golf | Indoor golf simulators | Coming soon |
| Modern Nails Lounge | 5,800 sq. ft. | Coming soon |
Raising Cane's is the closest to opening. Levin's August 21 update said construction was underway. No opening date has been announced for it or for any other tenant on the coming-soon list.
The coming-soon list is also where accounts differ. Chain Store Age, which ranked Blue Star No. 6 in its 2026 Top 10 Retail Center Experiences, wrote that Back Nine Golf "stays open 24-hours a day." It quoted Singer calling iSmash "doing very well." The same profile said a salon called Nails Spa & Beyond had opened in a 5,800-square-foot space. The landlord's September roster lists that 5,800-square-foot space as Modern Nails Lounge and marks it coming soon. It marks iSmash and Back Nine Golf the same way. Back Nine's own Watchung page also still says "Coming Soon." If you're planning a night of axe throwing or simulator golf, check with the business before you drive over.
The Vacant Units Point to What Comes Next
The same roster lists a lot of open space. Nine units are marked available, from 1,649 square feet up to a 27,000-square-foot box. There's also an 8,200-square-foot restaurant pad site, and the listing notes a liquor license is available with it. The center covers 419,926 square feet in total, and its Route 22 frontage carries 55,197 vehicles on an average day, according to Levin.
Melissa Sievwright, Levin's vice president of marketing, told Chain Store Age the leasing plan comes down to one question: "Does what we've done at Blue Star give people another reason to leave home and come here?" So far, the reasons that have opened are practical ones. The vacant boxes and the licensed restaurant pad are where the leisure side of Blue Star would have to come from.
Across Route 22, the Evening Option Is Already Open
The indoor entertainment Blue Star is still waiting on is already running across the highway. Pickleball Kingdom took over the former Bed Bath & Beyond at Watchung Square Mall, 1511 Route 22. In December 2025, Patch reported a grand-opening ceremony planned for Sunday, January 4. The club's Watchung page now shows it in full operation:
- Courts: 14, all climate-controlled
- For beginners: a free Pickleball 101 session every day
- Ongoing play: open play, round robins, leagues and tournaments
- Extras: coaching and clinics, a pro shop with paddle demos, and event space
- Hours: 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Those weekday hours run an hour past honeygrow's closing time. A Tuesday night out in Watchung right now can be a court reservation at 1511 Route 22, with no need to wait on a coming-soon banner at 1701.
Off the Highway, the Borough's Own Calendar Fills the Next Two Months
Watchung's fall and early-winter calendar comes from the borough, the library and the Watchung Arts Center, and all of it is set before any Blue Star opening date. From the borough calendar and the Arts Center's schedule, here is what follows this Thursday:
- Tuesday, Oct. 27, 4:30 to 5:15 p.m.: A library STEAM session making Pumpkin Puffy Slime.
- Wednesday, Oct. 28, 7 p.m.: Seven Steps Septet at the Watchung Arts Center.
- Friday, Oct. 30, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.: "Spin the Wheel: Halloween Treats" at the Watchung branch library. Costumes are optional.
- Saturday, Oct. 31, 9 a.m.: The Jack Walsh Great Pumpkin 5K Run & Walk.
- Saturday, Oct. 31, noon to 3 p.m.: Watchung's Annual Harvest Festival at Mobus Field, 40 Brookdale Road. The rain date is Sunday, Nov. 1.
- Sunday, Nov. 8, 7 p.m.: The Chris DeVito Trio with Audra Mariel at the Arts Center.
- Saturday, Nov. 14, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.: The Arts Center's holiday art market.
- Saturday, Nov. 21, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.: An adult watercolor workshop. Registration is required and materials are included.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, 3 p.m.: Marty Eigen and Amani.
- Sunday, Dec. 13, 3 p.m.: The Chris DeVito Trio returns, this time with Destiny Autum.
The Arts Center's Thursday acrylic class runs through Dec. 3 and skips Thanksgiving. Schedules can change, so confirm with the organizer before you head out.
Halloween morning is the busiest stretch on the list. The 5K starts at 9 a.m., and the Harvest Festival opens at Mobus Field three hours later. The festival wraps up at 3 p.m., leaving the rest of Saturday for a ShopRite run or an open-play session at Pickleball Kingdom.
The renovation brought Blue Star a bigger grocery store, new storefronts and a more polished look, and the visits followed. That work is the commercial version of what Michelle Pais Group does for a Watchung home before it goes on the market. Our team handles the staging, design and editorial photography that make buyers want to visit. When you're ready to see what that preparation could do for your house, we'd be glad to walk through it with you.
