POLAND Walgreens is a done deal -- or is it?

The property owners have been given two variances.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
POLAND -- Village zoning board of appeals members say a controversial proposed Walgreens store has the go-ahead to build after a second zoning variance was approved Monday, but some residents see the matter differently.
Board member John Stone said a variance reducing required parking spaces from 75 to 55 was issued to the store. The vote was 4-0 with board member Bob Limmer absent.
The appeals board in May granted Walgreens a variance permitting the store to be built at just over 14,000 square feet. The area along U.S. Route 224 where the store may be built is zoned village center commercial with a 4,000-square-foot maximum for retail businesses.
Stone said Walgreens wanted the parking variance in order to allow more room on the property for additional green space -- a decision he called "commendable."
"I really don't see anything else we can do," Stone said. "There are no more hearings before the board. As far as the board is concerned this is a done deal."
Residents' concerns
But to many residents in the village the Walgreens issue is not a done deal. Petitions have been circulated to place the first variance issued by the board of appeals on the ballot in November. Clerk Linda Srnec said 114 signatures were needed to place the issue on the ballot, and 201 were collected.
Stone said the board, in conjunction with Walgreens representatives, conducted a survey that shows 55 parking spaces at the proposed store is more than enough. He said an adjacent property owner to the west of the potential Walgreens site has agreed to allow Walgreens customers to use his parking lot if the 55 spaces at the store are all being used.
Not all nearby property owners are planning to be that accommodating to the potential Walgreens store. Some are saying the store will have a bad impact on their business.
Edward Conrad, who lists a McKinley Way address, has filed a lawsuit in common pleas court against the village, village council, the board of zoning appeals, and Gary Susko and David Untch as current property owners of the proposed site.
In the suit, Conrad says the store will deprive him of his rights by interfering with the operation of his business and reducing the value of his business. He owns an office building nearby. He is asking the court to find the granting of the size variance contrary to law.
jgoodwin@vindy.com