The city in 1999 acquired a liquor store that had become a magnet for crime and issued a request for proposals for a mixed-use residential and retail project. The $3-million, 15,000-sf Walgreens will join an 8,000-sf retail strip at 86th Street, and is being built along with a 72-unit multifamily building for senior citizens.
Chicago-based Neighborhood Rejuvenation Partners is developing the Walgreens and rest of the retail center. It has developed nearly $17 million worth of low- and mixed-income housing and retail centers in underserved city neighborhoods.
"The new Walgreens is much more than a new drug store," says 18th Ward Ald. Thomas W. Murphy. "It is a very visible sign that the rebirth of the Auburn-Gresham neighborhood is not only well underway, but growing."
For Walgreens, the project keeps it on track to meet its goal of 450 new outlets around the country, as it strives to have a retail outlet within two miles of the entire U.S. population.
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