Walgreens Developers Work to Please Neighbors

Early in the development of the new York Road Walgreens, Towson Park Community Association president Nancy Pivec didn't have high hopes.

But now, as the new store at the Fairmount Avenue intersection nears completion, she said she and her neighbors are "very pleased" with steps the store's developer has taken to minimize its impact on the community.

The Walgreens, constructed by Towson-based DMS Development, should open in early 2012. The store will be open 24 hours and include a drive-thru pharmacy.

In an interview, Pivec praised DMS president David M. Schlachman, crediting him with going above and beyond the call of duty with improvements to the site and changes to the design.

"His people just bent over backwards for us," she said.

The improvements include a new, metal neighborhood sign, a restored memorial plaque honoring a former resident and a repaved alley. The "T" logo seen on the York Road and Dulaney Valley Road bridges on the Baltimore Beltway make an appearance on the store's fencing. The green space near the corner (where the wooden Towson Park sign once stood) is now landscaped.

In addition, the alley behind the store has been repaved and—at the community's request—the store was built as a one-story building with storage in the basement, unlike most Walgreens stores, which are two stories tall.

"I think that we were very lucky to get so much, to have so much input and have them really cater to Towson Park as a neighborhood," Pivec said.

Schlachman was not available for comment.

Pivec, a Radcliffe Road resident, formed the Towson Park Community Association in 2009, amid the opening of a somewhat controversial new Burger King and an influx of rental housing.

Since then, the Burger King ownership has worked with Pivec, and she said she thinks having a community association helped get a better deal for residents this time around.

She is not as concerned about the increased traffic the store may bring, and thinks that the store will provide a new option beyond the nearby  and Safeway stores.

"I think it'll probably bring prices down at CVS, and a little bit of competition never hurts anyone," Pivec said.