TOWN OF AMSTERDAM — Chipotle will open today in the new Veeders Mill plaza on Route 30 after construction crews raced to finish the entrance and exit in time at the lighted intersection onto the state road.
The planned opening of the new Chipotle Mexican Grill was confirmed on Tuesday by Sally Evans, a company spokesperson. Even as that possibility seemed in doubt.
Construction of the main access point to the Veeders Mill plaza at the existing traffic signal on Route 30 at the Sanford Farms Shopping Plaza was required before any businesses would be allowed to open, according to Thomas DiCaprio, building inspector for the town of Amsterdam.
“There are 25,000 cars that go up Route 30 everyday so it’s kind of important that they get the in and out right,” DiCaprio said.
A permit to build the entrance and exit on Route 30 was previously issued by the state Department of Transportation and work was ongoing, but as of Tuesday morning it seemed unlikely to DiCaprio that it would be finished and ready to open to traffic within 24 hours.
In an afternoon update, DOT spokesperson Guy Hulbert reported that the intersection and traffic light were expected to be operational by the end of the day.
By Tuesday night, the light was working and workers were inside the store.
The Chipotle featuring a drive-thru lane and daily hours from 10:45 a.m. to 10 p.m. will be the first business in the new plaza to open its doors when it begins serving customers today. The first 50 guests will receive free Chipotle Goods merchandise to celebrate.
The plaza will also house a WellNow Urgent Care and a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.
Official opening dates for the other businesses have not yet been announced, but each of the new sites were originally expected to open by early May.
The last minute completion of the required entrance and exit was the final barrier that remained before the site could be opened to the public.
The plaza’s construction had been briefly halted in April when the town issued a stop work order due to the failure of project developers to install a retention pond to provide stormwater management that was included in the approved plans.
The order was withdrawn after about a week when the developers reworked plans with the town’s approval to instead construct a swale capable of carrying stormwater to an existing retention pond, according to DiCaprio.
“They rectified the situation pretty quickly,” DiCaprio said.
Plans for the commercial plaza on Route 30 between St. Mary’s Memorial Campus and Amsterdam Commons were originally developed and approved by the town last spring while the property was owned by Lanzi Brothers of Amsterdam Inc.
The property was subsequently sold to Veeders Mill Amsterdam LLC for $1.5 million in September, according to property records filed with the Montgomery County Clerk’s Office.
The Rochester based mailing address listed in property records for the limited liability corporation is for Caliber Commercial Brokerage.
Under the new ownership, construction of the plaza progressed according to the originally approved plans. J. Luke Construction built the project.
A call to Caliber Commercial Brokerage seeking comment for this story was not immediately returned on Tuesday.
Reach Ashley Onyon at [email protected] or @AshleyOnyon on Twitter.
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