The Mercer County Sheriff’s Sale of the Lawrence Shopping Center, which was slated for the weekly sheriff’s sale Wednesday, has been postponed until July 31, according to the Mercer County Sheriff’s
By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
The Mercer County Sheriff’s Sale of the Lawrence Shopping Center, which was slated for the weekly sheriff’s sale Wednesday, has been postponed until July 31, according to the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office website.
The Lawrence Shopping Center, which is a landmark on Route 1 in the southern end of the township, was the first major shopping center in Lawrence when it opened in 1960. The Mercer Mall and the Quaker Bridge Mall opened in the 1970s.
The Mercer County Sheriff’s Office’s foreclosure list and published legal notices printed in Trenton newspapers states that “the judgment sought to be satisfied by the sale” of the Lawrence Shopping Center is $39.5 million. The property was included in the July foreclosure lists.
The plaintiff, which is foreclosing on the debt and calling for the sale of the property, is wbcmt 2007-c33 Brunswick Pike LLC and is based in Florida. The shopping center is owned by the Lawrence Center LLC — the defendant — which has offices in Lawrence Township.
At the conclusion of the sheriff’s sale, a property is sold to the highest bidder, according to the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office website. The successful bidder, upon full payment of the bid, will receive a Sheriff’s Deed. That deed does not give clear title to the property. To obtain title to the property, the successful bidder must pay off outstanding liens and encumbrances, which are additional debts.
”The property owner may, at any time prior to the sale, try to save the property by reinstating the delinquent amount owed, pay the judgment in full or obtain another loan,” the website said. “The defendant has a 10-day redemption period after the sale, during which time he may object to the sale through the courts or redeem the property.”
If the property is sold at the sheriff’s sale, the sheriff’s sale deed will be ready about 30 days after the sale. The successful bidder must put down 20 percent of the winning bid immediately, and has 30 days to pay the remainder.
The shopping center sits on about 52 acres of land, bordered by Brunswick Pike/Route 1, Princeton Pike and Texas Avenue. The property is assessed at $12.9 million for property tax purposes, according to the Lawrence Township Tax Assessor’s Office.
The Lawrence Shopping Center consisted of 150,000 square feet and 13 stores. The shopping center was expanded several times between 1966 and 1997.
Among the original stores at the shopping center were W.T. Grant, which was a 5-and-10 store, or forerunner to the dollar stores; the Rexall drug store; Dunham’s department store; the Pantry Pride grocery store and Lawrence Liquors, according to records on file at the Lawrence Township Tax Assessor’s Office.
The shopping center today comprises nearly 354,000 square feet and about 40 storefronts. Many of those storefronts, however, are vacant.
Since the 1990s, the CVS pharmacy, Channel home improvement store, Weinstein’s Deli, Huffman Koos furniture store and the Young Ages clothing stores have closed.
Today, the Lawrence Shopping Center is anchored by the Burlington Coat Factory clothing store and a Staples chain office supply store. There are a few restaurants and clothing stores, plus a women’s fitness center. The Sovereign Bank has a branch in the shopping center.

