Second State College Rite Aid Store Closing

Another Centre Region Rite Aid store is closing as part of the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing.

The Rite Aid store at 510 Westerly Parkway in State College is among 32 additional locations nationwide listed for closure in a document filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the District of New Jersey. 

The Westerly Parkway Plaza store is the second Centre County Rite Aid location to be identified for closure. The store at 1927 S. Atherton St. in the Hills Plaza was listed among stores to be shuttered in a document filed by Rite Aid on Nov. 16.

Rite Aid operates two other stores in Centre County: 1536 N. Atherton St., State College, and 821 E. Bishop St., Bellefonte.

Since filing for bankruptcy protection in October, the Philadelphia company has identified more than 200 stores for closure amid its restructuring.

The 60-year-old company, which has more than 2,100 stores in 17 states, said in October that the restructuring would “significantly reduce” the its debt, close underperforming stores and “resolve litigation claims in an equitable manner.”

Rite Aid’s ongoing financial challenges include an anticipated net loss of up to $680 million for the current fiscal year. It also faces lawsuits in multiple states related to opioid prescriptions. On Nov. 16, the company filed a complaint in bankruptcy court seeking to stop a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit from proceeding while it is bankrupt.

An initial wave of 154 store closures announced in October included 40 in Pennsylvania. Additional closures have been identified in court filings over the last month.