Latest news with #Pop'sBagelShop
CBS News
4 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
I-80 in Wharton, N.J. set to reopen two westbound lanes tonight
Slowly but surely, progress is being made to reopen I-80 in Wharton, New Jersey. Two westbound lanes are set to return Friday night. The major highway in Morris County has been shut down ever since a sinkhole opened up back in February. It followed another massive sinkhole last December. Drivers in the Wharton area have grown all too familiar with the daily gridlock after thousands of cars and trucks were diverted off the interstate, flooding local roadways. "Crazy, I'm telling you," said Wharton resident Carlos Ramseyer. "You've got to change up your schedule, go to the supermarket at 1 o'clock in the morning. I mean, it's been a headache." Nearly four months after the shutdown, locals still aren't used to all the extra traffic. "Pretty much every day of the week, your local trips to the grocery store, the coffee shop, have become a traffic jam," Randolph resident Anthony Rotolo said. "I'll be cleaning the soot off my house on Sussex Turnpike when this is all over." I-80 in N.J. scheduled to fully reopen next month Last week, there was finally some relief as two eastbound lanes reopened -- easing traffic along some of the detours. Business at Pop's Bagel Shop on North Main Street took a major hit for months as many customers were unwilling to brave the traffic and steered clear. But now, business is back. "There's customers that we haven't seen in four months. And they're like, 'Hey Yaz. What's going on? We miss you.' So it's good to see everybody starting to come back," worker Yazan Muheisen said Friday. Drivers say they're glad to hear the two westbound lanes are also reopening, but they remain cautiously optimistic. "We have to see it first," said Ramseyer. "They've promised that for the last month, or so, but they keep extending it." Crews will continue working around the clock, with the hope of having all lanes reopen in both directions by the end of June.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NJ businesses around I-80 sinkhole get creative to get customers in
MINE HILL TOWNSHIP, N.J. (PIX11) – It's not Nick Crupi's normal bagel spot, but after hearing what Pop's Bagel Shop and so many other businesses in Wharton are going through, he drove over from Randolph to support them. 'Just trying to help the guy out,' said Crupi. 'There's no business because of the traffic.' More Local News It's that kind of help that goes a long way for Pop's, but what would help even more is having a slice of millions of dollars in relief grants and loans. 'Our profit margins are real thin at this point,' said Yazan Muheisen, owner of Pop's Bagel Shop. Muheisen got word Friday morning of a plan for the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to enact a $5 million relief grant program for impacted businesses like his. The EDA board will be voting on whether to approve the plan at its monthly meeting on Wednesday. More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State 'The $5 million allocation is not subject to this upcoming budget cycle that I'm actually in the process of deliberating over,' said Assemblywoman Aura Dunn (R-NJ 25th District), who, along with other lawmakers, is continuing to push forward the Road to Relief act bills that aim to offer businesses both tax and transportation cost relief. It's all part of the response to the I-80 sinkhole mess, which officials say will continue into May and June. 'We didn't take our foot off the gas for this,' said Dunn, 'and I won't.' These efforts are on top of a $2 million loan program from the U.S. Small Business Administration announced on Friday. In nearby Mine Hill Township, along an often-jammed Route 46, Esposito's L&L Deli is hurting. 'We're like a mom and pop store, we have a little bit of everything,' said owner Scott Esposito. '[Drivers] don't want to leave and get out of line because they can't get back in. So that's how it's impacting us.' To help incentivize their customers to come in, L&L is leaning into the sinkhole chaos by offering an 80-cent coffee and a sandwich sinkhole special. Mine Hill Mayor Sam Morris encourages people to support places like this in a charitable way. 'It may be inconvenient, but they need them to be here when June comes around,' said Morris. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What NJ lawmakers are doing to help businesses affected by I-80 sinkholes
WHARTON, N.J. (PIX11) — Tensions are high in this part of Morris County, with the chokehold of sinkholes and subsequent Interstate closures in the area proven to be merciless. The sinkholes have upended the lives of many small business owners in Wharton, some of which are running out of runway to survive. More Local News 'I have no income for my family,' said Arledy Arroyade, owner of Colossal Mexican restaurant in Wharton. 'This is my income for my family right now. I put all my effort and my savings into this business.' Arroyade opened Colossal, which sits at the foot of I-80 in Wharton, just 7 months ago. 'You try to have hope but at this point it's just like, you know, how are you going to pay?' 'Everybody's suffering, whether you're a big box store or a small mom and pop, the sales are not the same,' said YAzan Muheisen, owner of nearby Pop's Bagel Shop. Republican State lawmakers, Senator Anthony Bucco and Assemblywoman Aura Dunn, have just introduced a package of bills aimed at bringing relief to these small businesses. 'Time is of the essence here,' said Bucco (R-NJ 25th District). 'We recognized that, that's why we moved quickly.' One bill would create a $1 million grant program through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to address the increased costs of transportation. Another bill would give tax credits for small businesses that lost revenue and workers who lost wages. 'We're going to do everything we can to get these folks the relief they desperately need,' said Bucco. 'We need to address it as an emergency measure,' said Dunn (R-NJ 25th District). Dunn says the bills will have to advance through committees before they end up on the floor for a vote, let alone the Governor's desk. While unable to give a timeline, she says she's confident Democrats will support the legislation and get it on a fast track. 'I think the will is there to get this done,' said Dunn, 'and if I could encourage others, no matter what district you're from, you call your representative and say, 'we support this bill.'' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
