No South Florida JCPenney stores closing

The ax has fallen: J.C. Penney has released the list of 138 stores it plans to close.

The closures are part of the plan the company announced earlier this month.

J.C. Penney announced in late February that it would vacate 130 to 140 stores “over the next few months” as the retailer struggles with growing competition from online retailers.

The store nearest the Upper Ohio Valley on the list slated to close is at the New Towne Mall in New Philadelphia, Ohio.

The Chanute store is among 138 J.C. Penney locations closing in June. Seven locations in MI – including stores in the Upper Peninsula communities of Sault Ste. In 2013, J.C. Penney closed its outlet at the Sawgrass Mills mall in Sunrise. Both outlets are located in the Columbia Mall.

Four Wisconsin stores are on the list of more than 100 JCPenney locations that will close in the summer, the company said.

The move also means more changes for Foxcroft Towne Center, which is the former Martinsburg Mall. Elsewhere in North Carolina, J.C. Penney is closing its stores in Albemarle, Boone, Hendersonville and Roanoke Rapids. The company posted quarterly sales of $3.96 billion, down 0.9 percent from $3.99 billion a year ago. The retailer is closing five other Pennsylvania stores.

Most stores will begin the liquidation process on April 17th. As previously announced, the Abilene store will stay open. Beaver Valley’s Macy’s and Sears locations both vacated within the past year.

JCPenney said the nationwide closings would affect 5,000 employees. They also underscore the deteriorating economics at lower-quality shopping centers, whose risk of failure rises when an anchor tenant exits.