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Monday, April 30, 2007

Walgreens & Roberts corner of Carrollton & Claiborne

In March of 2006, Walgreens was planning to put a suburban style store in the middle of the block and fronting Claiborne. Many neighborhoods in the area were concerned about this. What the neighborhoods really wanted was a grocery store. The original plan violated the zoning laws for Carrollton Avenue and would have placed the Roberts grocery store effectively “behind” the Walgreens. This plan would have also caused increased truck traffic through the neighborhood. The plan also did not respect the historic character of our neighborhood and the fact that the development is at the end of the historic street car line. Many people thought our determination to have Walgreens follow the zoning laws was more than a little misplaced.

But as a result of the NorthWest Carrollton group’s insistence and with the support of many neighbors throughout the Carrollton Area and the rest of the city, by August 2006, Walgreens changed their plan so that the store is on the corner of Carrollton and Claiborne (following the zoning ordinance). Roberts will be set back from the Claiborne at the corner of Nelson & Dublin and readily visible from Claiborne. The delivery truck traffic will be concentrated to the center of the parking lot and along Nelson Street. The delivery times for Roberts must be approved by the NorthWest Carrollton Civic Association. The 2 stores will have a similar look and share a tree shaded parking lot. The style of the buildings should look like the “Old Bubble Gum Factory" (Hopkins Imports) at the corner of Fig & Dante, off Earhart. The Bubble Gum Factory is on the National Historic Register as a historic building. The Walgreens and Roberts stores are to open up at about the same time in August or September (date subject to change).

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