Empty for two years, the large Deptford “Bed, Bath and Beyond” shopping center will soon have new life with SEVEN new national tenants already signed on for a full redevelopment of the center, which will also include two new front “pad” sites.
And 42Freeway has the Architect’s building front facade rendering.
The official Deptford Township Facebook page made the amazing announcement, listing the seven tenants that are already signed on (Facebook):
And if you can believe this… three of the tenants are expected to be open this winter; Aldi, Tractor Supply and Blinds-To-Go!
Honestly any one of these tenants is a big story in the 42Freeway universe, let alone seven!
Then when you factor in where we are in today’s retail world with a significant amount of consumer dollars going towards online shopping… well simply a development project like this in 2025 is not only incredible… its somewhat unheard of.
Deptford and the surrounding communities absolutely have a reason to be excited as this is clearly one of the best outcomes we all could have expected for the large shopping center which has been unused for two years.
Deptford Town Center
Located in the heart of Deptford’s thriving retail corridor, the Deptford Town Center is located directly across from the Deptford Mall… and is positioned on Deptford Center Road which connects on each end to two major South Jersey freeways; Routes 42 and 55.
It was originally developed to house all of the Bed, Bath and Beyond brands, with four large stores in the center. BBB and the spin-off Christmas Trees Shops closed in bankruptcy, leaving the center empty.
But the Deptford shopping center was still an incredibly attractive facility, with the location providing incredibly easy access for all of South Jersey and even Philadelphia. It’s a somewhat well-known fact that many Philadelphia residents will head over to “Jersey” to shop at our more extensive assortment of stores.
Deptford is an especially attractive shopping destination being anchored by the popular Deptford Mall, and surrounded by eight power-centers offering an unequalled array of National (and local) retailers all within a 2-mile square area.
This exciting new project is being developed by MSP Development, who are based out of the Pittsburgh area.
Taking on the project is MSP Development, whose owner Mitchol Pappan is a third generation developer who under his guidance the firm now has real estate holdings for single-tenant commercial buildings and multi tenant strip centers in SIX states.
Another key player in bringing this project to fruition is Jason Bock of MSC Realty, who through his years of experience in the commercial real estate industry was able to bring all 7 tenants together… and finalize the deal with MSP Development to acquire the property and lead the redevelopment effort.
Deptford Mayor Paul Medany and the Economic Development lead Don Banks have been working with MSP and MSC for months to help bring the project to settlement.. and development. I chatted briefly with Mayor Medany who said the town is beyond excited for the project, and to have MSP Development leading the effort.
Deptford: Seven National Tenants
I think any of us locals would’ve been happy to see just one new tenant sign on “it’s a start”. Rumors of Aldi Grocery being part of the project had been circulating for most of 2025, and that alone would have been an exciting win for the community.
But I don’t think anyone expected the entire center to have tenants lined up! Seven, to be exact.
I had actually caught wind of this project several weeks ago and found myself chatting with Jason recently. I had independently learned details of the tenants and the effort that was about to be announced, but I agreed to hold off until the final property sale was completed.
Jason was kind enough to provide the building rendering that I share with readers, as well as a few other details of the project.
So as mentioned there are 7 tenants signed on for the redevelopment effort and they will not only fill the existing large multi tenant building, this project will also include two smaller pad sites which will be developed at a later date.
Six of the seven tenants are completely new to the Deptford marketplace. Blinds-To-Go has a store in Deptford on Route 41, but it would appear this new store location is larger and offers better customer access.
From left to right in the main building are Blinds To Go, Nordstrom Rack, First Watch Restaurant, ALDI Grocery and taking over the largest portion of the building (on the right side) will be a a new Tractor Supply.
This project will also feature aspects of new buildings with two new “pad” sites being developed at the front of the parking lot closer to the roadway. Those buildings will be home to a new Chase Bank and an Aspen Dental. It is expected that they head to the Deptford Planning Board for a hearing (and approval) over the summer.
The existing large building is just over 100,000 square feet, and when the two pad site buildings are completed the project will total 108,000sf.
The entire building is only about a dozen years old so the development effort will reuse as much of the existing already developed builing as possible.
And by doing so more than half of the building is expected to be reopened for this winter’s holiday season! Aldi, Tractor Supply and Blinds-To-Go.
With Nordstrom Rack and First Watch also signed on for the main building, they will likely soon follow after.
This is breaking news and I’ll have more updates shortly
Links and Location
Deptford Town Center1450 Clements Bridge RoadDeptford New Jersey