[Southsider2k12]

So the line about being able to support 3 different Walgreen's was just that... A line.

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=50600.01

Blvd. Walgreens To Close When New One Opens

Laurie Wink
The News-Dispatch

MICHIGAN CITY - Like the transition from the old year to the new, the 18-year-old Walgreens on the city's East Side is closing one night and opening the next morning in a new location several blocks away.

The store at 1905 E. Michigan Blvd. will be shuttered sometime in mid- to-late January, store manager Rita Strickland said, adding employees and customers have known about the closing for several months.

"We'll have better opportunities for customers," Strickland said of the new store at Barker Avenue and Franklin Street.

She acknowledged a lot of neighborhood customers walk to the current store, and some are elderly.

"We've talked about that and will try to work something out to accommodate them," Strickland said.

She mentioned the possibility of sending prescriptions by mail to those who might need that service. But regular customers who drive to the store also will miss the convenience of the store at Woodland Avenue and Michigan Boulevard.

"I'm going to miss it," James Cartwright said while shopping Monday. "I will have to go clear over to the south side of town."

Floyd Walker, who was waiting to use the pharmacy, said, "I come here all the time. I feel bad about it (closing). I've been coming here 18 years."

Walgreens has had a long history in Michigan City. A Walgreens Drug Store was built at 631 Franklin St. in 1929. The store, which later moved to Marquette Mall, was remodeled twice before it closed when a new 24-hour store was built at 101 W. U.S. 20 near Marquette Mall.

When the 13,000 square-foot store opened Jan. 15, 1990, on Michigan Boulevard, it was considered innovative. It featured a food mart, household items, next-day photo service and full-service pharmacy. To meet today's competitive marketplace, Walgreens stores are larger and have drive-up pharmacies and digital photo service, according to Walgreens media relations specialist Carol Hively.

The new store at 1816 Franklin St. will have 1,500 more square feet and employ more than the 17 full-time workers at the older store, Hively said.

Strickland said all 17 employees will transfer to the new store, where they will be trained to use the new photo lab.

Although they'll be working in a sparkling new store, not all the seasoned Walgreens employees are happy about the move. Some told The News-Dispatch they wanted to talk about the move, but were told by the corporate office they were not allowed to comment.

Customers didn't hesitate to express their displeasure at the closing of a place they've come to rely on for more than 18 years for prescriptions, food items and last-minute purchases.

"I'm not happy because it's very convenient," said Josie Porterfield, who lives on Woodland Avenue. "I'm used to running out to get something."



Contact Laurie Wink at lwink@thenewsdispatch.com.

[Roger Kaputnik]

And you can bet that the MC nomenklatura knew about W's plans.

[JHeath]

So, Peggy's is closed. Walgreen's is closing.
Hope K & M weathers the storm over there. Its the last store for that neighborhood.

[Ang]

So, Peggy's is closed. Walgreen's is closing.
Hope K & M weathers the storm over there. Its the last store for that neighborhood.

Oh, but there are all these big plans to improve that neighborhood. What's Willie doing about this?

[Southsider2k12]

Oh, but there are all these big plans to improve that neighborhood. What's Willie doing about this?

An Alderman can only do so much. Ultimately it comes down to profits, and if people aren't making money, they are going to close down. Then again the one guy who is trying to open a place over there (the gas station next to eastgate) is getting fought every step of the way. Ugh. its too bad. You have to take care of your neighborhood if you want it to survive.

[Roger Kaputnik]

Did Walgreen's get a bunch of TIF money? What about that?

[Marram]

I just read this thread, and it is a huge disappointment to someone like myself who lives on the northeast side of town. Another blow to the Boulevard. I guess I should be grateful that they didn't move down by Walmart. Or Portage.

[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...&TM=40326.8

Walgreens
Store Closing Hurts Michigan Boulevard

Editorial

Developing Michigan City's East Side must become a priority for city leaders. Tuesday's announcement that Walgreens will close its store at Woodland Avenue and Michigan Boulevard in January when its new store opens at Barker Avenue and Franklin Street is a huge blow to the East Side.

In recent months, It appeared that things were moving forward with the opening of a handful of new small businesses - a food court, a Subway sandwich shop and a new owner for Bubbles laundry - along the Michigan Boulevard corridor. But the decision by Walgreens will leave a hole that will be difficult to fill.

Years ago, a Hook's drug store operated in Eastgate Plaza, but when that Indiana-owned chain was acquired by national giant CVS, it was closed and the plaza nearly died. Walgreens opened in 1989, helping stabilize the area. Today, the plaza is nearly fully and with Walgreens operating just a couple of blocks away, it appeared a retail resurgence was happening.

Now, that resurgence has fallen a step back. Meanwhile, city officials continue negotiating with the state over ownership of Michigan Boulevard, which many people think is one of the problems with developing the corridor. With its ugly concrete median, it's less than welcoming to visitors, making it nearly impossible to turn left into a business along its entire route.

The state is willing to turn the boulevard, which also is U.S. 35, over to the city, but for now, the city can't afford the repairs. City officials want the state to make the needed upgrades before it assumes control.

In the meantime, retailing is withering on the vine. The closing of Walgreens is strictly a corporate decision. The newer, larger store will employ all 17 people who currently work on Michigan Boulevard, so no one is losing a job. But the neighborhood is losing a friend. Senior citizens are losing the convenience of a nearby pharmacy and the many people who live near Walgreens who don't have a car will be forced to either walk much farther for their needs or find some other form of transportation.

Regardless, people will have to leave their neighborhood to shop and that is the biggest loss of all for the Michigan Boulevard corridor.

Our Opinion
The Issue: The Walgreens store on East Michigan Boulevard will close in January when its new store opens on Franklin Street.

Our Opinion: The closing is a huge blow to the retail corridor that East Michigan Boulevard represents. City officials have a challenge ahead trying to assist in a resurgence of The Boulevard.

[Roger Kaputnik]

What is the over/under on number of months until the Mall is demolished and something else built there? I propose 71.

[JHeath]

What is the over/under on number of months until the Mall is demolished and something else built there? I propose 71.

I'd say it depends on how long Swanson Center stays in the mall office bldg. They occupy two floors there.

Personally, I give it 40 months.



**edited for typos.**

This post has been edited by JHeath: Dec 20 2007, 12:42 PM

[Southsider2k12]

What is the over/under on number of months until the Mall is demolished and something else built there? I propose 71.

The next economic down turn when the mall loses an anchor tenent is when the Marquette Mall is done for.

[Roger Kaputnik]

You want to know who goes? Go to the new Penneys store in Valpo.

[Ang]

You want to know who goes? Go to the new Penneys store in Valpo.

Is that a free standing store or is it in some type of mall?

[JHeath]

Is that a free standing store or is it in some type of mall?

It's a free-standing store, just east of the Hwy 2/49 interchange. I've driven past, but have not yet shopped there.

[Southsider2k12]

Is that a free standing store or is it in some type of mall?

Free standing. It is the other side of 2 and 49 from where they had been building.

[Roger Kaputnik]

It is the anchor of a new development. Big place for flicks is opening, too.

[Ang]

Well, if Penney's is moving away from the mall scene, then I agree with Roger that it is just a matter of time before they leave Marquette.

My vote: 48 months