Officials for Sears, the city of Charleston and the Charleston Town Center mall have confirmed that Sears is closing its retail store and auto center at the Town Center.
"We can confirm that we are making the difficult, but necessary decision to close the Sears store and Sears Auto Center at Town Center Mall in Charleston," said Howard Riefs, communications director for Sears Holdings. "The store will close to the public in mid-April. Until then, the store will remain open for customers."
Riefs said the liquidation sale at the store -- one of the original four anchor stores at the mall -- will begin Jan. 6, 2017. While most of the employees at the store are part-time, hourly workers, Riefs said eligible employees will be given severance packages and opportunities to apply for work at other area Sears and Kmart stores.
Sears Holdings also recently announced the closing of a retail store and auto center in Paducah, Kentucky.
"We have been strategically and aggressively evaluating our store space and productivity, and will be accelerating the closing of unprofitable stores as we have previously announced," Riefs said.
Sears has maintained a retail store in Charleston throughout the 20th century.
"It's been here all my life," said Charleston Mayor Danny Jones, 65. "It was on Summers Street the year I was born."
Sears also was once located on Kanawha Boulevard on a site currently occupied by CASCI, and was one of the original anchor stores when the Town Center opened in 1983.
Officials for Forest City Realty, which owns the Town Center, were trying to be upbeat about the closure.
"While the closure will be unfortunate for those directly affected, we believe it will create opportunity for Charleston Town Center through creative re-purposing of the store space, and will enable us to welcome new retailers and other potential tenants who could not previously be accommodated given space limitations at the center," said Jeff Linton, Forest City vice-president for corporate communications and community relations. "While there are no specific plans to announce at this time, we will keep the market updated as appropriate.
"Charleston Town Center remains a vibrant retail destination for West Virginians and visitors, and a vital asset for the Charleston community," Linton said.
A Five Guys restaurant recently closed at the Town Center, and a Subway restaurant on the third-floor food court is closing Jan. 1. Some mall tenants have been quietly grumbling that rents at the facility are too high.
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