Downtown Walgreens in landmark building to shutter soon Josh Green Mon, 03/11/2024 - 08:18 A downtown Walgreens considered an economic bright spot and crucial resource for downtown dwellers will permanently close in a matter of weeks.
The Walgreens store that’s operated for seven years in the remade, historic Olympia Building at 25 Peachtree Street will shutter April 9, according to signage posted on the business’ doors.
That signage indicates customers will be able to get prescriptions filled at any other Walgreens location, as WSB-TV reports, but the closure will leave a void for downtown residents and workers who’ve come to rely on the store for other necessities.
We’ve reached out to Walgreens corporate staff for information on the logic behind the closure, and this story will be updated with any additional details that come.
Walgreens announced plans in 2019 to close some 200 stores across the U.S., shrinking its 10,000-store footprint as customers increasingly shop online. Under new leadership last year, Walgreens vowed to cut $1 billion in costs and close stores and clinics, with some in Atlanta likely among them.
The Olympia Building's remade Art Deco facade on Woodruff Park. Google Maps
When rumors swirled last year that Walgreens’ closure was imminent downtown, an online petition was launched that gathered nearly 800 signatures in hopes of persuading the business to stay. That Change.org petition painted the Walgreens as an important asset for Georgia State University’s thousands of students and downtown residents overall, adding: “Everyone that lives in the community understands how convenient and crucial this store is.”
“I live downtown, and with no grocery store, this store is crucial,” wrote one signee. “Closing this would be a step [in] the wrong direction for the type of downtown residents want.”
“As a GSU student,” wrote another, “we need this.”
Topped with an iconic, circular Coca-Cola sign, Walgreens’ two-story Olympia Building underwent a total renovation, finished in 2016, that restored its Art Deco appeal and marked a considerable investment by Walgreens.
The complex project cleaved out the building’s full interior, leaving only the stone walls, braced by steel beams. It revealed clues that while the façade dates to the 1930s, the building’s bones are actually much older, dating to the 1800s.
Prior to Walgreens’ makeover, the building had been largely vacant for years, a retail sore spot at the edge of Woodruff Park. What should go there now?
The iconic, illuminated Coca-Cola sign overlooking Woodruff Park from atop the Walgreens was also rehabbed a few years ago. Google Maps
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The iconic, illuminated Coca-Cola sign overlooking Woodruff Park from atop the Walgreens was also rehabbed a few years ago. Google Maps
The Olympia Building's remade Art Deco facade on Woodruff Park. Google Maps
Subtitle Petition to save Peachtree Street retailer called it a crucial downtown resource
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