The Allen Farms property in Brick Township, Oct. 2018. (Photo: Daniel Nee)
Brick officials have approved the application of a catering company to build a multi-story facility on a Herbertsville Road farm and upgrade existing buildings on the property.
The township’s zoning board approved the application of The Farm at 511, LLC, owned by Merri-Makers Caterers, an Edison-based company, to construct the facility at what was long known as Allen Farms, a country store and fruit and vegetable stand. Though Herbertsville Road is heavily used as a commercial sector, the farm property is located within the Rural Residential Zone, which necessitated a variance to be granted by the board.
The Allen Farms property in Brick Township.
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The Allen Farms property in Brick Township, Oct. 2018. (Photo: Daniel Nee)
The company will construct a new 6,000 square-foot, two-story building with a total gross floor area of 10,974 square feet to be used as a catering facility at property. The existing building from Allen Farms is proposed to be used as a retail store for prepared food items on the first floor and storage on the second floor. The existing residential dwelling is proposed to remain standing.
The board also approved the use of the facility for food preparation and storage for eventual delivery to off-site catering facilities. Merri-Makers operates a number of catering venues across the state popular for weddings and corporate events. Their most well-known property in Ocean County is the Bonnet Island Estate, located on Barnegat Bay across from Long Beach Island.
