The long-awaited Starbucks coffee shop with drive-thru could be weeks away from opening at the revamped Westgate Mall in Bethlehem.
Work is nearing completion on the 2,300-square-foot building at the shopping center along Schoenersville Road. Starbucks could grand open early this month after owners obtain city permits and occupancy paperwork, Marjorie Kaplan, vice president of public relations for Rutherford, New Jersey-based Axiom Communications, told lehighvalleylive.com this week.
Starbucks is known for its specialty beverages, including handcrafted espresso and tea drinks, as well as “refreshers,” which are made with fruit juice and lightly caffeinated with green coffee extract.
Starbucks is already in Lower Nazareth Township; Whitehall; Hanover Township, Lehigh County; Bethlehem, Lehigh County; Bethlehem Township; Upper Saucon Township; Pohatcong Township; and the Allentown area.
Signs went up indicating a temporary closure for upgrades at the Starbucks at Hamilton Crossings in Lower Macungie. The Starbucks at the Madison Farms shopping center in Bethlehem Township temporarily closed for similar work before reopening again in the spring.
A Starbucks with a drive-thru opened in December 2023 next to Jersey’s Mikes in Forks Township. A Hellertown Starbucks opened in late April 2022 at Main Street and Polk Valley Road.
There are plans to build a Starbucks in Bethlehem and in the Slate Belt. Developer Posh Properties is constructing a 2,200-square-foot Starbucks on Sullivan Trail in Plainfield Township, as well as on Easton Avenue, near Clermont Street. Joe Posh, managing partner of Posh Properties, told lehighvalleylive.com Thursday the Bethlehem site is slated for a September opening while the Slate Belt location plans to open in March 2025.
Wind Creek Bethlehem announced this week it plans to open a Starbucks this fall at its mall food court, alongside a new Moe’s Mexican Grill and Auntie Anne’s pretzel shop. Moe’s and Auntie Anne’s, however, won’t open until early 2025.
The Starbucks at Westgate Mall follows the grand opening of the 4,540-square-foot McDonald’s with a drive-thru at the Westgate Mall on April 25. The fast-food giant sits at the mall’s corner near Westgate Drive and in front of the new Weis Market.
A 3,500-square-foot People’s First Federal Credit Union building is expected to open at the corner of Schoenersville and Catasauqua roads, Kaplan said.
The credit union is nearing completion on the site of the former Dempsey’s American Kitchen. The restaurant in the mall’s parking lot previously sat vacant since the diner closed in 2005. It was then demolished to make way for the credit union.
The multi-million-dollar Westgate Mall redevelopment project is being spearheaded by Onyx Equities of Woodbridge, New Jersey.
The 3,500-square-foot People’s First Federal Credit Union is expected to soon open at the corner of Schoenersville and Catasauqua roads. The building is nearing completion on the site of the former Dempsey’s American Kitchen. The restaurant in the mall’s parking lot previously sat vacant after the diner closed in 2005. It was then demolished.Pamela Sroka-Holzmann | For lehighvalleylive.com
Crews continue to work on a new strip mall to the left of the new Weis supermarket.
The fully-leased redevelopment portion includes Qdoba Mexican Eats; Jersey Mike’s; SoFresh; and Tropical Smoothie Cafe. Kaplan previously said those four tenants will host grand openings this fall.
A freestanding Penn Community Bank with drive-through is being constructed next to Weis. The bank is expected to open in the fall, Kaplan had said.
The Westgate Mall site will mark Jersey Mike’s sixth regional location. San Diego, California-based Qdoba Mexican Eats has a sole regional restaurant on MacArthur Road in Whitehall. SoFresh and Tropical Smoothie Cafe will be open their first regional eateries at Westgate.
Tampa, Florida-based SoFresh is known for serving up bowls, salads, quesadillas and wraps while Tropical Smoothie Cafe offers a variety of beverages, as well as sandwiches, bowls, wraps, salads, breakfast items, and sweet treats, according to the chain’s menu.
Crews continue to perform work on what will become a newly-constructed strip mall, to the left of the new Weis space at Westgate Mall. “Coming Soon” signs recently went up at the space set to occupy Qdoba Mexican Eats. Jersey Mike’s; SoFresh; and Tropical Smoothie Cafe will fill the other spaces.Pamela Sroka-Holzmann | For lehighvalleylive.com
Westgate Mall was built in 1973 on Schoenersville Road near Routes 22 and 378.
Onyx Equities around 2021 started a four-phase transformation of the mall’s empty spaces. The 50-year-old mall is getting its second biggest overhaul in nine years.
There was a $5 million facelift in 2015, which added Sky Zone Trampoline Park. Westgate changed hands in October 2018 when it was bought by Onyx. That move came after the mall lost its anchor, The Bon-Ton, earlier that year.
Nicole Vasquez, Onyx Equities’ vice president of asset management, has touted the mall’s redevelopment.
“What was once a strip mall reminiscent of the 80s is evolving into a vibrant center with something for all ages,” she previously told lehighvalleylive.com.
Onyx’s first three phases included: moving Weis Markets in May 2021 from a 33,000-square-foot building at the end of the center to the larger, former Bon-Ton space; the redevelopment of the former Weis space into two portions, which includes Calabasas, California-based Harbor Freight Tools; and the the demolition of about 50,463-square-feet of existing interior mall space. The interior demo work forced at least six existing retailers to relocate.
Oak Street Health in June 2023 opened its 12th statewide clinic in space that previously occupied Rite Aid. The 10,000-square-foot Rite Aid, at the south end of the shopping center, previously sat idle for two years. It shuttered in May 2021.
Fine Wine & Good Spirits, which was operating in a temporary location next to the former Amateur Athlete space, has since moved back to its original mall location. The space — in an exterior section of the shopping mall — was totally gutted and expanded before reopening in September 2023, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board spokesman Shawn Kelly had said.
Just a few empty spaces remain at Westgate Mall. They are mostly around Harbor Freight Tools, ranging from 1,200 to about 13,000 square feet. Signs at the mall indicate the 13,000-square-foot space remains available.
Westgate Mall’s redevelopment project led to the closure of a half dozen existing tenants. The six former Westgate businesses received letters in January 2023 from Onyx telling them they needed to vacate. They included Hawk Music Center; Westgate Jewelers; Holiday Hair; Fashion Nails; Amateur Athlete; and Subway.
The majority have since found other locations.
Hawk Music, an original tenant, earlier this year opened at Mac’s Hobby Hall, 721 Linden St., in Bethlehem. Westgate Jewelers in April 2023 moved into the upper level of the United Steelworkers of America building, off Center Street between Bethlehem City Hall and Nisky Hill Cemetery. Holiday Hair moved to the Pointe North Shopping Center in Hanover Township, Northampton County; and Fashion Nails bought Nail Trix in South Whitehall Township.
Amateur Athlete moved to the Lehigh Shopping Center in West Bethlehem. Subway closed at Westgate for good.
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Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.
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