Sears, Roebuck and Company Retail Department Store-Camden

The Sears, Roebuck and Company Retail Department Store Building in Camden, Camden County, New Jersey, United States, was built in 1927 and housed a Sears department store until 1971, when the store relocated to Moorestown Mall. It was South Jersey's first free-standing department store.[3] It was also among the first department stores to be built with its own parking lot, a precursor to the modern shopping mall.[4] It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 27, 2000.

Sears, Roebuck and Company Retail Department Store-Camden
Location1300 Admiral Wilson Boulevard, Camden, New Jersey
Coordinates39°56′37″N 75°6′37″W
Area3.5 acres (1.4 ha)
Built1927
ArchitectCarr, George Wallace; Nimmons, George C.
Architectural styleClassical Revival
DemolishedJune 5, 2013 – August 23, 2013
NRHP reference No.00000795[1]
NJRHP No.8[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJuly 27, 2000
Designated NJRHPMay 22, 2000

After Sears relocated, the building was home at different times to a nightclub, a car dealership, a day care center, and a housing authority office, before becoming vacant for several years. In 2007, it was purchased by Ilan Zaken, owner of the hip-hop clothing company Miskeen Originals, for $2.7 million. Zaken spent more than $1 million on a plan to transform it into his company's headquarters as well as a culinary school and restaurant supply mall, but the project was not completed.[4]

In February 2011, a New Jersey Superior Court judge ruled that the city could acquire the building through eminent domain.[5]

On June 11, 2012, Campbell Soup Company, whose corporate headquarters is nearby, purchased the building for about $3.5 million, with plans to demolish it. Campbell contended that uncertainty surrounding the building impeded its development of an adjacent office park. The purchase effectively ended the ongoing legal battle to preserve the building.[4]

Demolition of the building began on June 5, 2013.[3][6] It was completed on August 23, 2013.[7]

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Camden County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office. April 1, 2010. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 4, 2011. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
  3. "Razing of Sears Building to start; Redevelopment planned at site of city landmark", Courier-Post, June 5, 2013.
  4. "Campbell Soup buys 85-year-old Camden building for $3.5M, ending legal battle", Courier-Post, June 11, 2012. Accessed May 27, 2013.
  5. "Judge Says Former Sears Bldg. in Camden Can Be Razed", David Madden, KYW Newsradio 1060, February 8, 2011. Accessed May 28, 2013.
  6. Boyer, Barbara (June 6, 2013). "Demolition begins at Camden's Sears building". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  7. "Sears building demolition completed", Courier-Post, August 24, 2013.
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