The Pathmark in Greenvale’s Wheatley Plaza has been acquired by the Stop & Shop Supermarket Company LLC as part of a 25-store, $146 million deal with parent company Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea.
The transaction was announced shortly after the Montvale, N.J.-based Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea, which owns Pathmark, Waldbaum’s and A&P, among others, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time in five years, reaching purchasing agreements for 120 of its 296 locations worth about $600 million.
Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea would also be closing 25 stores, though officials said its $100 million debtor-in-possession financing agreement would enable the company to continue operating its remaining stores “in the ordinary course of business.”
The Staten Island-based Key Food Stores Co-operative Inc. will reportedly also purchase 17 Waldbaum’s stores in New York and New Jersey, including locations at 1050 Willis Ave. in Albertson and 1-1 Park Plaza in Glen Head.
Paul Hertz, president and chief executive officer of A&P, said in a statement that filing Chapter 11 is “the best way for A&P to preserve as many jobs as possible and maximize value for all stakeholders.”
“The interest from other strategic operators has been robust during the company’s sales process to date, and we have every expectation that will continue in Chapter 11,” he said. “And while the decision to close some stores is always difficult, these actions will enable the company to refocus its efforts to ensure the vast majority of A&P stores continue operating under new owners as a result of the court-supervised process.”
Stop & Shop operates 395 stores throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Rhode Island.
Officials said they expect the deal with Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea to be completed by the second half of 2015 and that the 25 stores would then be converted into Stop & Shop locations.
“We are very happy to have the opportunity to expand our presence in greater New York and serve new customers,” said Don Sussman, Stop & Shop’s New York Metro Division president, in a statement. “We look forward to providing customers with delivering unmatched selection, quality and value that they have come to expect from Stop & Shop.”
