Quick Chek: Rent Was Too High

Final update 6:58 p.m. Most of the remnants of Quick Chek were gone by 6:30 p.m. The sign—green and designed much like the one that preceded it—read "QuickStop." It appeared Quick Chek either sold or gave the rest of its stock to QuickStop. The change is official.

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Updated 4:03 p.m. Quick Chek Vice President of Sales and Marketing John Schaninger said the convience store chain decided to close its Hopatchung Road location last week when it couldn't make a deal with The Heller Group, which owns the Hopatcong Plaza, on rent.

Schaninger said The Heller Group raised Quick Chek's rent when its lease ended last month. But the increase was too high, Schaninger said.

"The landloard increased the rent as normally landlords do," he said. "However, this time the increase was so large it no longer made the store profitable to run.

"As much as we love the town and we'd love to have both of the stores, we can't run a store that's not profitable."

Schaniger also confirmed the employees of the Hopatchung Road location would be offered positions at other stores.

A representative from The Heller Group wasn't immediately available Tuesday.

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Updated 2:32 p.m. A worker was seen removing the Quick Chek marker on the Hopatcong Plaza sign. Its replacement read "QuickStop."

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The Quick Chek on Hopatchung Road in Hopatcong will make its last sale at 6 p.m. Tuesday, an employee said.

The employee, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the employee wasn't authorized to speak to media, said the store could be under new management, and with a new name, as early as Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.

Quick Chek Vice President of Sales and Marketing John Schaninger wasn't immediately available Tuesday. Schaninger recently told Patch that when Quick Chek closes a store, it offers employees opportunities to work at other locations.

Rumors of the store's closing had swirled around Hopatcong for weeks. The borough has a second, bigger Quick Chek, built within the last few years on Lakeside Boulevard, that offers gas. The location closing Tuesday has operated for more than 30 years.

, Schaninger said it wasn't unusual for Quick Chek to have mulitple locations in a single municipality. He said there are three Quick Cheks in Hackettstown. "When we're established in towns and there's a need, then we'll certainly look at having more than one Quick Chek in a specific town," he said.

Hopatcong residents Alissa Koegler and Mike Smith visited the Quick Chek Tuesday afternoon. Koegler said she had been going to the location for years.

"I don't like it," said Koegler, 18, who also said her mother used to work at the store. "I love this place."

Said 18-year-old Smith: "I'd get breakfast here every morning."

Tom Semiz has lived in Hopatcong for 22 years. Semiz said closing the store won't bother him too much. "It's a bit more convienent than the other one for me," he said. Semiz said he visits the Lakeside Boulevard location when he needs gas or when he's traveling to his East Hanover office.

How do you feel about the Quick Check on Hopatchung Road closing? Tell us in the comments.