Walgreens the latest retailer to close in north Minneapolis

A week after Aldi announced it would close its store in north Minneapolis, another major retailer says it will also leave the community.

The Walgreens at W. Broadway and N. Lyndale Avenue will close Feb. 22. Pharmacy files will be automatically transferred to the nearest Walgreens about 4 miles away in Robbinsdale, according to the Deerfield, Ill.-based pharmacy chain.

It's another blow to the community, said Kristel Porter, executive director of the West Broadway Business and Area Coalition.

"I think it's going to have a very negative impact on all of the businesses," Porter said. "We are in a situation that we are losing businesses that we depend on. We were already living in a desert when it came to goods and services."

In 2019, Walgreens announced it would shutter 200 stores across the country to cut costs. In the fall, Walgreens reportedly closed several pharmacies nationwide, including in central New York, Boston and Lexington, Ky.

"As we expand as a leader in healthcare, we are focused on best meeting the needs of patients and customers in communities we serve by creating the right network of stores in the right locations," Walgreens said in a statement to the Star Tribune.

"When faced with the difficult decision to close a particular location, several factors are taken into account, including our existing footprint of stores and dynamics of the local market, and changes in the buying habits of our patients and customers."

Patients receive notice about pharmacy changes through the mail and "other means," Walgreens said.

The closing removes one of only two pharmacies in north Minneapolis, Porter said, with Cub across the street being the other.

"How long is the wait going to be to get their pharmaceuticals? How long is the wait going to be when they stand in line?" Porter said.

The Walgreens location was also a critical resource for residents of a nearby senior housing development who used the store not just for medicine but also household essentials.

"That is their outing for the day and when you take that away that defeats the entire purpose of the entire shopping service," Porter said.