The latest building elevations for a Walgreens Pharmacy at the intersection of Ga. Highway 54 and Peachtree Parkway will be unveiled at the Nov. 29 meeting of the Peachtree City Planning Commission. The developer will be razing the existing Ruby Tuesday restaurant to make way for the Walgreens, which will be located immediately next door to the Rite-Aid pharmacy.
The Walgreens will be more than three times the size of the Ruby Tuesday, sparking some concern over the look of the store “dominating” the area. Officials for the development company handling the project have pledged that all landscaping along Ga. Highway 54 and Peachtree Parkway will remain intact during and after construction.
To some that may or may not mitigate the more visible profile of the new Walgreens building, particularly given its location at the most prominent intersection in town. Ironically, several years ago the Peachtree City Council turned down a request to make room for a Walgreens by rezoning land directly across Hwy. 54 from Ruby Tuesday where Christ Our Shepherd Lutheran Church is located.
The commission is expected to vote on the elevations, which will be presented by Walgreens representatives at the 7 p.m. meeting at City Hall Nov. 29.
Planning Commission members have asked for the architecture to be thoughtful so the store doesn’t look like a typical or standard Walgreens.
At a September commission meeting, long-time resident Phyllis Aguayo urged the commission “to use whatever influence you have to make sure we put proper size restrictions and protect the buffers so we have very little change there when Walgreens comes.”
Aguayo said her main concern was about the new Walgreens being three times larger than the existing restaurant.
Covenants from when the property initially was sold required the site to be used for a restaurant, but those covenants expire next year and therefore have opened the door for site redevelopment, officials have said.
Because the site is zoned general commercial, city officials are unable to prevent the redevelopment project.
