Despite rumors to the contrary, Peebles department store is not
closing at the end of the year.

Store manager Beth Bridge said Tuesday that as far as she was
aware, the store was not set to close or relocate in any way.

“Not that I’m aware of, so that means probably not,” Bridge said
when asked about a possible closing.

The clothing/department store is located in the Bradford Mall on
East Main Street in Foster Brook. Peebles headquarters is located
in South Hill, Va., although the store is actually owned by The
Stage of Houston, Texas, Bridge said.

There are also 170 Peebles stores in 21 states; those in
Pennsylvania located in Bradford, Carbondale, Erie, Gettysburg,
Huntingdon, Kennett Square and Meadville.

Rumors of the store closing come on the heels of numerous
changes among the businesses in Foster Brook – at the Bradford
Mall, at the Wal-Mart Supercenter-anchored shopping center across
the street, and in the nearby vicinity.

Peebles is one of three shops left at the Bradford Mall, where a
Big Kmart stood until November of last year, closing its doors for
good after 25 years of business at that location. The Dollar Tree
and Big Lots department store are also located in the mall.

Rumors that Big Lots would close cropped up in October, when
other Big Lots stores across the nation started to close, but store
officials said at the time the local store would remain open.

The Bradford Mall itself is currently for sale. Owned by
Bradford Properties LLC out of Mentor, Ohio, the mall’s sale is
being orchestrated by CentroWatt Realty, formerly Kramont Realty.
The majority of the mall has been vacant for at least two
years.

Local contractors reportedly received letters from Bradford
Properties LLC in April asking for bids for the demolition of the
mall. Foster Township Zoning Enforcement Officer Ralph Skaggs said
in September that he was contacted by mail in March by an
out-of-the-area company regarding the possibility of purchase of
the mall, and that Lowe’s may be involved. That prospect seems to
have fallen by the wayside, however, as Skaggs said he was never
contacted a second time and was “unsure if the company was still
looking to purchase it (the mall),” he said.

The mall is presently listed as “for sale” on CentroWatt’s Web
site. Laurie Kelly, a representative with CentroWatt, said in
September there was nothing to report on the sale at that time. She
was not immediately available for comment Tuesday.

Across the street, officials announced in August the Shops at
Foster Brook – also owned by Bradford Properties LLC – were up for
sale. Tony G. Chammas of ASC Development Inc., the entity that had
been handling movement at the Wal-Mart Supercenter and adjacent
plaza, said at that time that “the market was good,” and it was the
right time to sell the plaza.

Chammas said there were already several prospective buyers for
the Shops at Foster Brook, and that the sale would be conducted
through Fameco Real Estate out of Conshohocken. The realtor in
charge of Fameco’s account on the shops, Dan Shabel, was not
immediately available for further information Tuesday night.

Stores renting space at the Shops at Foster Brook currently
include Tina’s Hallmark, Subway, Fashion Bug, Advance Cash America,
Radio Shack, Movie Gallery and The Shoe Department, among
others.

Also on that side of East Main Street, Bradford businessman John
Kohler purchased the former Evans Rollerdrome – situated directly
across the street from the Bradford Mall – in July and demolished
the building there to make room for a 14,000 square foot strip
mall. Kohler said in July the shopping center would be called
Blaink Plaza, and would house a Rent-A-Center and a second unnamed
local business that planned to relocate there.

Kohler told The Era Tuesday night that he and his crews are
shooting for after Christmas, but before Jan. 1 as an opening date
for some of the stores opening at Blaink Plaza.

Rent-A-Center is still coming in as planned, and the Bradford
business relocating there is The Beachhouse, previously located at
the Shops at Foster Brook, Kohler said.

Also, a Chinese buffet restaurant will open at Blaink Plaza soon
after, leaving about 4,000 square feet of space for rent there, he
added. The restaurant’s owners also have locations in Wellsville,
N.Y., and Cuba, N.Y., Kohler said.