No one among the store’s owner, its parent company, and onsite closeout teams responded to requests for comment.
By Matt Skoufalos | January 17, 2023
Workers clear out the Oaklyn 7-11 store at 416 White Horse Pike. Credit: Matt Skoufalos.
After years of operation, the 7-Eleven franchise at 416 White Horse Pike in Oaklyn shut its doors permanently Wednesday.
Closeout crews from the corporate parent of the store worked throughout the day to clear out its inventory, dismantle signage, paper over the windows, and duct-tape a handwritten “Closed” sign to its front door.
A source familiar with the property said the lease on the storefront simply had expired; however, no one — not the franchisee, onsite crews, nor the parent company — responded to requests for comment to confirm any details.
Perhaps more confusingly, Oaklyn Borough Administrator Bonnie Taft said the borough government has had to aggressively dispel rumors that the municipality was moving to acquire the property to create an overflow parking lot.
“The borough has no interest in a parking lot,” Taft said. “We don’t have enough ratables as it is.”
When the story reached borough officials, Taft said they worked to connect the franchise owner with the property owner to clear up any confusion.
“We don’t know what’s happened since,” she said.
According to property records, the parcel is owned by the William G. Rohrer Charitable Foundation of Southland, Texas, to which it was sold by William G. Rohrer, Inc. for $1 in January 2000.
Its assessed value is $447,000, against which some $22,000 in taxes are levied annually.
Rohrer was a well-known local figure in Haddon Township, where he established First Peoples Bank of New Jersey, and served as its mayor for 36 years.
