MILL HALL – The Kmart store at Millbrook Plaza along Hogan Boulevard in Bald Eagle Township is closing.

Employees reporting for work Tuesday morning were informed of the pending closure and Howard Riefs, director of corporate communications for Sears Holdings, confirmed the closing to The Express via a written statement Tuesday afternoon.

Riefs said the store will close to the public in mid-June.

The store will begin its liquidation sale on March 30, Riefs said.

“We have been strategically and aggressively evaluating our store space and productivity, and have accelerated the closing of unprofitable stores as previously announced. We often hear from our members who are disappointed when we close a store, but our Shop Your Way membership platform, websites and mobile apps allow us to maintain these valued relationships long after a store closes its doors. As a result, we hope to retain a portion of the sales previously associated with this store by maintaining our relationships with the members who shopped this location. Our members and customers can also shop at our other Kmart locations, which are listed at http://www.kmart.com/stores.html,” Riefs said.

“The number of associates is not publicly available. Those associates that are eligible will receive severance and have the opportunity to apply for open positions at area Sears or Kmart stores. Most of the associates are part time/hourly,” according to Riefs.

Zamagias Properties owns the Millbrook Plaza.

The Kmart store’s current lease expires in June, so that could have something to do with the timing of the announcement.

The building contains 95,800 square feet.

Mike Flanagan, CEO of the Clinton County Economic Partnership, reacted to the news with disappointment.

“We are sorry to learn of this news and the impact on the employees and the regular Kmart shoppers. Unfortunately, it is not that much of a surprise given the fact that dozens of Sears and Kmart stores are closing nationwide,” he said. “We all hope another tenant can go in soon. Zamagias would be open to splitting the space, if need be.”

The news locally likely did not come as a complete surprise as Sears Holdings, which owns the Kmart chain, has been announcing a wave of store closings since early last year.

The chain is among various national big box retailers closing stores as sales drop at its brick-and-mortar locations, while sales over the internet surge.

Early this year, Sears said it would close 150 more Kmart and Sears retail stores by mid-2017.

The local store is among 108 Kmart stores and 42 Sears stores scheduled to close by or during April.

Last week, Sears Holdings released its official fourth-quarter earnings report, saying revenue fell to $6.1 billion from $7.3 billion a year earlier, driven by store closures and a 10.3 percent comp sales decline. However, adjusted earnings per share (EPS) improved to -$1.28 from -$1.70 a year earlier.

Sears’ stock surged this past Friday by 15 percent, closing at $9.23, putting the shares up 21 percent for the week and almost 33 percent in 30 days.

The Millbrook Plaza Kmart store opened in either the late 1980s or early 1990s upon completion of the Millbrook plaza as that plaza’s anchor store after moving from a smaller location in the Clinton Plaza off Walnut Street in Lock Haven.