The former Friendly’s restaurant at 981 Route 37. (Credit: Marketing Deck)
A once-bustling Friendly’s restaurant in Toms River would be replaced by an ultra-modern car wash facility under a proposed filed with the township’s planning board.
The application concerns the property at 981 Route 37 in the western portion of the township. The parcel, located diagonally across the highway from the township’s Walmart store, had long been developed with a Friendly’s restaurant which is now shuttered. According to the development application, the restaurant building would be demolished in favor of the automated car wash facility.
The proposed “modern personal-service car wash facility” will consist of an approximately 4,841-square-foot building, the application stated. The building will include an enclosed automatic car wash and an associated office area. The facility also provides several self-service vacuum parking spaces, including one handicapped-accessible space, in addition to new lighting and signage.
The car wash facility is allowed in the underlying zone and does not require a use variance, but does require some bulk variance relief in the form of minimum front yard setback to principal structure, minimum front yard setback to accessory structure, minimum front yard setback to parking and vehicular circulation, maximum number of building mounted signs, location of building mounted signage, location of onsite directional signage, maximum height of onsite directional signage, minimum setback to ground signage, and minimum onsite landscaping.
According to real estate records, the Friendly’s restaurant was built in 1992 on a 1.34-acre parcel. It closed without notice in 2022, creating a stir on social media. The meeting will be held April 15, 2026 at 6 p.m. at the township municipal complex on Washington Street.
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