Target will close its Port Richey store

PORT RICHEY - The recession apparently claimed another retail victim as the Target store in the Port Richey area will close in January after 18 years in business, company officials announced.

The store in The Piers shopping center, 6411 Tacoma Drive, opened in July 1991, according to a company news release. The last day will be Jan. 30. Workers have been offered a chance to transfer to other stores in the area. The chain has locations in Trinity and Odessa, as well as two stores in the Spring Hill area.

The Piers also lost its Circuit City store earlier this year. The Richmond, Va.-based electronics chain went into liquidation. Staples, Toys R Us, Game Stop and Kazu's Sushi are the only remaining tenants in the shopping center just north of the Gulf View Square mall.

Plans announced in 2006 to expand the Port Richey Target fell through. The location had a limited grocery selection - primarily drinks, snacks and cleaning and personal hygiene products - compared to the Target store in Trinity and SuperTarget in Odessa.

The Port Richey store "is being closed after careful consideration of the long-term financial viability of this specific location," the company news release reports.

Executive at Target's Minneapolis corporate headquarters have not responded to requests for comment.

The store closing announcement came not long after Target opened 26 stores in October across the country. The chain operates 1,743 stores in 49 states. Target will have 126 stores left in Florida after the Port Richey closing.

The retailer has struggled during the recession. October sales were up 2.8 percent for the month over the previous October. Investors, though, usually concentrate on figures for comparable-store sales, which decreased 0.1 percent in October, the company reported. The first 10 months of the year registered a sales dip of 0.3 percent, but the comparable-store sales were off by 3.9 percent.

In January, Target eliminated jobs for 600 employees and 400 open positions, primarily in the Twin Cities area near its headquarters.

Target also plans to close its Little Rock, Ark., distribution center, which employs 500 people.

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