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Walgreens Doesn't Care About Windsor Terrace People And Their Beloved Key Food
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 2, 2012
Modified Jul 2, 2012
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 2, 2012
Modified Jul 2, 2012
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The Key Food in Windsor Terrace closed last month when the supermarket's 80-year-old majority owner retired, and the neighborhood is kind of screwed without it. Borough President Marty Markowitz says the owner told him he just wanted to sell the establishment for the most money, and Walgreens was the highest bidder. Local residents are up in arms about it, because Walgreens has thus far ignored their pleas to add a grocery store, or at least lease part of the store to a grocer. Here's video from last week's sad/angry rally at the site of the old Key Food:
Lauren Elvers Collins, co-founder of the Windsor Terrace Alliance, tells Windsor Terrace-Kensington Patch, "We said [to Walgreens], 'Can you just explore the things that we have asked for?' Elvers said. "Walgreens said 'We'll bring it up to corporate, and we'll get back to you.' This is not acceptable." The nearest supermarket is over a mile away in Park Slope, which is inconvenient and a long haul for the neighborhood's elderly residents.
Some residents are calling for a boycott of Walgreens, pointing out that Windsor Terrace hardly needs another pharmacy—and especially not a chain. In the meantime, Councilmember Lander has organized a carpool for locals who need a ride to the supermarket, and the Fairway in Red Hook has promised to offer a free shuttle service between the neighborhoods.
Tagged
brooklyn
key food
walgreens
windsor terrace
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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