Walgreens - Albany BZA Meeting Tonight


By DIA, Section News
Posted on Wed Mar 22, 2006 at 09:53:47 AM EST

If you have the time I've been told that the Albany Board of Zoning Appeals will be meeting tonight at 5:30 PM and the Walgreen's spot rezoning will be on the agenda. Come one, come all, raise your voices for truth and justice...and be prepared to be ignored by these political appointees.

And....maybe former councilman Mike Brown will show up and try to have the police throw you out for old times sake.

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Walgreens - Albany BZA Meeting Tonight | 5 comments (5 topical, 0 hidden)
Good luck (none / 0) (#1)
by Citizen McLain on Wed Mar 22, 2006 at 10:17:06 AM EST
Best of luck to Cathy, the Concerned Citizens, etc.

In the interest of being "fair and balanced," and specific to the planting of a Walgreen's on Holland Avenue, please see this website: www.walgreens.com/about.  It provides a history (guess what, it started out as a small business in a city neighborhood), talks about careers, provides information about its community programs.  

It's a good idea to research the "enemy," as we move forward. If anyone has any articles that offers critical asseessments of Walgreens' corporate performance, this would be a good forum to discuss them.

Of course, the real enemy in this issue is the process of undermining any semblance of a comrehensive plan.  In this, most of us agree.  As far as Walgreen's as a corporation is concerned, the verdict is still out.

p.s. - Did anyone ever see the South Park episode, "Something WalMart This Way Comes?"  At the very end of the episode, the residents of South Park watch WalMart implode and then begin buying at Jim's Drugs, which of course grows as its profits increase to the point that it becomes a big box store.  At the end, they burn it down.  Very funny episode.  It also addressed consumer addiction to the cheapness of WalMart prices.

Walgreens sucks (none / 0) (#2)
by alfrednewman on Wed Mar 22, 2006 at 10:29:10 AM EST
I once worked for them in the Boston area while a student.  Once my loans came through I decided to get fired.  I became really rotten to customers and management.

They promoted me and made me an assistant manager instead of canning me.

I quit. Obviously there is something wrong with the company.
"What? Me worry? " "whatmeworry.alfred@gmail.com"
[ Parent ]

Sounds like the Sequel to "Office Space" (none / 0) (#3)
by Citizen McLain on Wed Mar 22, 2006 at 10:32:29 AM EST
...or maybe the prequel.

I think that the space would have been a wonderful spot for the new school 18, which kind of looks like a big box over there on Hurlbut.

I miss the old building.

[ Parent ]

Prequel (none / 0) (#4)
by alfrednewman on Wed Mar 22, 2006 at 10:37:06 AM EST
You have to love a drug store chain that also ownes a liquore store and in other states combines the two.
"What? Me worry? " "whatmeworry.alfred@gmail.com"
[ Parent ]
It's not about Walgreen's (none / 0) (#5)
by threequartertime on Thu Mar 23, 2006 at 05:57:09 AM EST
The problem is that although many folks don't care to have a big-box store in the neighborhood, this issue is NOT about Walgreen's or any other company.

It's about spot zoning, which is ILLEGAL in New York State.

The well-meaning people who argue passionately for their community -- and they are much needed and much appreciated -- unfortunately need to stick to issues that will get results. Commercial competition arguments are out of the game. Arguments that something will change the character of the neighborhood without benefitting it are legit.

The NYS Court of Appeals has helpfully defined spot zoning thus:

...the relevant inquiry is not whether the particular zoning under attack consists of areas fixed within larger areas of different use, but whether it was accomplished for the benefit of individual owners rather than pursuant to a comprehensive plan for the general welfare of the community. [Rogers v. Village of Tarrytown]

When no other business in the area is permitted the kind of square footage, drive-thru and parking spaces that this project is requesting, it is clearly spot zoning. The fact that Walgreen's is replicating services already available in the community means that no argument for it being for the general welfare of the community can seriously be made.

Walgreens - Albany BZA Meeting Tonight | 5 comments (5 topical, 0 hidden)
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