By GENE VERNACCHIO
Courier-Post Staff

Pitman merchants want residents from across South Jersey to rediscover the downtown business district.

In an attempt to reinvigorate the dozens of stores, restaurants and specialty shops that line Broadway here, the Pitman Business Association in September started airing cable television ads to homes across South Jersey.

Alice Polocz, owner of Bob's Hobby Shop and a former borough councilwoman, said downtown business owners have struggled to regain some loyal shoppers who were diverted during a four-month streetscape project in 2001. During that project, Broadway was widened by 3 feet and amenities such as brick paved sidewalks, decorative lamp posts and benches were installed.

"The merchants lost a lot of customers," said Russell C. Johnson III, president of the Pitman Business Association and representative of the Edward Jones office along Broadway. "Customers and merchants were frustrated. Customers couldn't get to the stores and parking wasn't good. We're trying to bring the customers back again."

But as merchants try to regain lost sales, Polocz said the streetscape project has made parking and motoring through the once narrow road considerably easier.

"Prior to the streetscape project, that section of Broadway was extremely narrow and we'd always have tie-ups with large trucks or buses," Polocz said.

"It gave the district a little more ambience and make this a more customer-friendly shopping area," she said. "Plus, we just want people to know that we fixed up the area and we want them to come back and visit us."

Pitman merchants are increasingly looking to attract shoppers from outside the borough.

Both Polocz and Johnson say it's too early to tell what effect, if any, the television ad campaign has generated.

Polocz said the recent Christmas selling season was better for many merchants than several previous holiday seasons and things are looking bright.

Lori Poisker, owner of Lori's Loft, a home furnishing store along Broadway, said she enjoys doing business downtown in a quaint community like Pitman rather than a generic strip mall.

"I just love Pitman," Poisker, who has run her store here for three years and lives atop the business. "I think the potential here is just great. This is a very family-oriented town.

"Things are looking up here," she said. "The whole streetscape project has everything looking great. I think we're seeing more and more people coming downtown and less people are going to the malls."

Johnson is convinced that once customers visit downtown Pitman, they'll return again and again.

"We're following very closely what Collingswood is doing. They do a wonderful job in their community and we want to model ourselves after them right now," Johnson said.

He said business leaders now want to add more events to help draw people into the downtown. Also planned are additional fund-raising activities so that the business association can continue and expand marketing efforts.

In addition, Polocz said the shopping district has undergone a large changeover of stores since the 2001 streetscape project.

"After the streetscape project was finished, we had about 10 new stores open that fall … gift shops, cafes, a restaurant. It all brought a different mix of people into town," she said. "These were people who had sort of drifted off to other areas."

Johnson is also hoping to institute uniform operating hours for downtown businesses.

"Right now if you walk through this downtown at 7 p.m. it's a ghost town," Johnson said. "We need to get the business owners together to be open uniform hours so that if someone goes to Gianni's for dinner, they can also go shopping." Polocz said downtown storefront vacancies are declining.

In fact, she said prospects for three of the largest vacant downtown anchors … the former Getz Furniture, Drissel's hardware store and the former First Union bank branch … are looking up.

The bank branch has been renamed a corporate center and will be leased out for professional office space. The hardware store was recently sold and will be subdivided, she said.

And Polocz said a buyer is in the wings for the vacant furniture store. Plans include retail along the front of the store and storage in the rear.

"I think our future here looks good," Polocz said.

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Reach Gene Vernacchio at (856) 845-6532 or gvernacchio@courierpostonline.com