By AUBRIE GEORGE
Moorestown Acme shoppers will need to find another place to buy groceries come late February.
Last week, officials from Acme Markets announced that two of its Burlington County locations are scheduled to shut their doors by the end of next month. One of the stores scheduled to close is the Acme located at 350 Young Ave, in the Moorestown Commons shopping center.
The Young Avenue store is the second Acme in the township to close in recent years. In 2006, a location at 123 Chester Ave. shut its doors. The building was purchased by The Moorestown Friends School.
The Acme on Young Avenue is currently the only operating supermarket in Moorestown. Nearby supermarkets in bordering townships, including Wegmans in Mt. Laurel, created a competitive environment for the store.
In a statement released by Acme, officials said that it is occasionally necessary to close stores that are not meeting company goals in today’s competitive and difficult economic environment. Officials said closing a store is a difficult decision, but necessary for the long-term growth and success of the company as a whole.
Deputy Mayor John Button said his immediate reaction to the Moorestown store closing was disappointment.
“There is no question that the economy is taking its toll on Acme closing, not only this location, but also several others,” Button said.
At the same time, Button said construction of a new Virtua health-care facility in the area where the Acme is located will bring jobs into town. The planned 200,000-square-foot health and wellness center is designed to blend health and wellness services and medical-based services in one place. Officials hope construction will break ground in 2011.
“We are very committed, as a Council, to making sure that we make this a business-friendly environment, and we certainly want the Moorestown Commons shopping center to succeed,” Button said. “We want to reduce barriers for entry for good businesses to come in.”
Button said Council’s effort to concentrate on the revenue side of the municipal budget includes making sure that new and existing business in Moorestown are successful.
“I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but we are certainly very conscious of the fact that a large store is leaving. We hope that we can work together to get a news business in there and make it successful,” Button said.
The Young Avenue ACME is scheduled to close by the end of February.
The store’s pharmacy will close on Jan. 19.
Another location in Cinnaminson will shut its doors around the same time, according to the statement.
In total, six ACME stores throughout New Jersey, Philadelphia, and Maryland are scheduled to shut their doors.
Residents can still access nearby Acme locations at 41 W. Main St. and 300 S. Lenola Rd., both in Maple Shade.
