Wawa Opens In Belleville; COVID Cant Stop 3rd Essex County Store – Belleville, NJ Patch

BELLEVILLE, NJ — It was a unique grand opening for Wawa in Belleville.

The chain’s new location in Belleville opened its doors to the public on Thursday morning. Located at 11 South Franklin Avenue, the Belleville store is Wawa’s third in Essex County. Other nearby stores are located in Maplewood and Fairfield.

According to Wawa spokespeople, the Belleville store will employ about 40 associates.

Belleville Mayor Michael Melham welcomed Wawa to the neighborhood by congratulating the team and building the first ceremonial hoagie. Wawa also got a warm welcome from the Belleville Fire Department and Belleville Police Department after it donated $1,000 contributions to each department’s charity of choice.

Wawa also expressed its gratitude to workers at Clara Maass Medical Center with a “Hoagies for Heroes” lunch and a $1,000 donation.

Thursday’s grand opening, which took place in a county that leads the state in coronavirus cases, included social distancing and face masks, not a usual part of the celebration but one that was welcomed, spokespeople said.

Some COVID-19 safety changes that have taken place at Wawa locations include:

• launch of the Wawa Clean Force, a “sanitizing SWAT team” working at each store every day
• masks and gloves for all associates
• clear plastic safety guards at check out and food-service counters
• wellness temperature checks for associates before each shift
• social distancing markers and hand-sanitizer stations for customers

“We are committed to providing comfort and a sense of normalcy in the safest way possible and will continue to listen to the needs of our customers during this challenging time,” President/CEO Chris Gheysens said.

According to spokespeople, Wawa Inc. began in 1803 as an iron foundry in New Jersey. Toward the end of the 19th century, owner George Wood took an interest in dairy farming and the family began a small processing plant in Wawa, Pennsylvania in 1902. As home delivery of milk declined in the early 1960s, Grahame Wood, George’s grandson, opened the first Wawa Food Market in 1964 as an outlet for dairy products.

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