FORT WASHINGTON, Penn., April 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Pennsylvania Real Estate
Investment Trust (NYSE: PEI) announced today plans to open a 200,000 square
foot Boscov's department store at Palmer Park Mall in Easton, Pennsylvania.
    Opened in 1972 and located at the intersection of Nazareth Pike and Park
Avenue, Palmer Park Mall consists of 350,000 rentable square feet leased to
50 specialty stores, of which 95,000 square feet is currently leased to anchor
retailer Bon Ton.  Boscov will be located in a 90,000 square foot space
formerly occupied by a Clover discount department store and will build an
additional 110,000 square feet.  Construction of the Boscov's store is
scheduled to begin in May 1998, with an opening targeted for late 1998.
    "Introducing a strong, high-profile tenant like Boscov to the Lehigh
Valley market should greatly enhance the visibility of the entire Palmer Park
Mall," said Ronald Rubin, Chief Executive Officer of PREIT.  "We are confident
that Boscov will be a tremendous draw for the center, and we expect that the
store's presence will drive sales volume and provide significant upside
potential for both rental revenues and overall tenant mix."
    Mr. Rubin continued, "PREIT has a very strong presence in the Lehigh
Valley retail market, and our strategy here -- and elsewhere -- is to maintain
our dominant position by updating, remerchandising and enhancing the shopping
centers in the portfolio.  Our success in applying this strategy can be seen
in the improved performance of Lehigh Valley Mall, the redevelopment of which
was completed several years ago, and Whitehall Mall, which is in the midst of
a redevelopment and conversion to a power center.  Both are excellent examples
of our ability to reposition and optimize real estate assets by attracting a
high grade of national and regional retailers."
    Palmer Park Mall is owned by a 50:50 joint venture between PREIT and Crown
American Realty Trust (NYSE: CWW).  PREIT-RUBIN, Inc., PREIT's real estate
management affiliate, will assume management and leasing responsibilities of
the center when the current property manager's contract expires in a few
months.  Mr. Rubin noted that this is in keeping with PREIT's intention going
forward to assume control of the management and leasing of all of its
properties.
    Palmer Park Mall will be Boscov's first store in the Lehigh Valley. It
will be the 32nd store in Boscov's rapidly growing chain of full-service,
full-time stores and their 23rd store in Pennsylvania.  The largest privately-
owned independent department store chain in the nation, Boscov's also operates
stores in New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
    Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, founded in 1960 and one of the
first equity REITs in the U.S., has a primary investment focus on shopping
centers (6.4 million square feet) and apartment communities (7,236 units)
located primarily in the eastern United States.  PREIT's portfolio currently
consists of 46 properties in 10 states. PREIT-RUBIN, Inc. manages and leases
more than 20 million square feet of retail, multi-family and office building
properties in 21 states.  PREIT is headquartered in Fort Washington,
Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia.
    Based in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Crown American Realty Trust, through
various affiliates and subsidiaries, owns, acquires, operates and develops
regional shopping malls in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia,
New Jersey, Tennessee and Georgia.  The current portfolio includes 26 regional
shopping malls.
    With the exception of the historical information contained in the release,
the matters described herein contain forward-looking statements that are made
pursuant to the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995.  Such statements involve various risks and may cause
actual results to differ materially.  These risks include, but are not limited
to, the ability of the Trust to grow internally or by acquisition, and to
integrate acquired businesses, changing industry and competitive conditions,
and other risks outside the control of the company.

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