The Concord Zoning Board last night approved a variance that will allow developers to pursue plans to build a new CVS on the corner of Loudon Road and East Side Drive.
Although a couple of neighbors expressed concerns about the plans, the zoning board was only allowed to consider one issue relating to the placement of a buffer zone. The developers still need approval from the planning board, and concerns such as increased traffic are likely to be brought up again at that point.
"This is only the beginning," said attorney Richard Uchida, who represents Tropic Star Development.
The plans call for taking down the building that is now American Brake Service. The adjacent Burger King would be moved and made smaller. Developers Scott Mitchell and Jeff Gove, of Tropic Star Development, would also buy two residential properties on Burns Avenue. Although those properties would remain residential, the lot lines would change, making more room for the pharmacy.
Last night, Uchida asked the zoning board for permission to move a buffer zone about 25 feet, so it would be along the new lot lines instead of the zoning district boundary.
Uchida argued that the new buffer zone would be an improvement over the old one. It would have 15 feet of landscaping with a solid fence, instead of a 5-foot buffer with a chain link fence.
It would also allow developers to move an existing driveway about 35 feet farther away from the intersection of Loudon Road and East Side Drive. This could help alleviate traffic backups there and would also line up that driveway with the Apple Tree Buffet driveway on the other side of Loudon Road, Uchida said.
Two neighbors spoke in favor of the proposal, saying that the current fence is in bad shape and the structure of the intersection causes traffic backups.
"I wish they could have moved the driveway when they did the intersection," said American Brake Service owner Robert Hall.
Don Seybold, who lives on Burns Avenue, opposed the plan, since it would move the driveway closer to his street. Seybold said his street is shaped like an L and is already used for cut-through traffic between Loudon Road and East Side Drive. "It would increase congestion leaving Burns Avenue," Seybold said. "Now we have traffic from Papa Gino's, then we'll have traffic from both ends."
Meredith Hatfield, who has opposed another CVS that the same developers are proposing on the corner of North State and Penacook streets, said there is a "slippery slope" if commercial development starts encroaching on residential areas.
She said developers could solve the problem by reducing the size of the building.
However, Uchida responded that if the variance is not granted, developers would still be able to go ahead with the project without shrinking the building.
They would just need to leave the driveway in its current configuration. Uchida said the proposed 13,225-square-foot store is the standard prototype that CVS uses for its buildings.
After several questions about building size and city ordinances, the zoning board voted 4-1 to grant the variance. "If anyone has driven through the parking lot, he's made it better for circulation," said board member Robert Harrison.
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I live on Burns Ave and the number of cars from the strip mall and using Burns Ave as a cut through is disturbing. The speed limit is 25 mph and yet I could probably count on one hand the number of vehicles that stay within a few miles of that. The ladies from Curves and Papa Gino's delivery people are the worst offenders going over 45 much of the time. Now they want to widen the street, decrease our lot sizes and use Burns Ave as an egress for the store, NO WAY. I love my home, but I am afraid of additional crime, noise and traffic. Our property taxes are overwhelming and with a CVS in my backyard I will get the heck out of Dodge. Thanks Concord.
For the person who was writing I response to all of the other people's comments. I live on East Side Drive but I work at the mall that is why I am going to the mall almost every day, not because I am going up there on a daily basis to go shopping! Just wanted to clarify this for anonymous.
I DID move to the woods - and now the woods are being replaced by pharmacies!
Can't they move into one of the vacant buildings in town? Why do they need to build obnoxiously huge new buildings?
Go ahead build another chain, we'll reap the additional tax dollars to offset property taxes and we'll take the permit fees too. We need the money. I still won't shop there though. I'll continue to get my prescriptions at the Modern Pharmacy which is where I've been for over 20yrs.
i live on burns ave and i'm mostly concerned about our property value. with the housing market sucking so much right now, i'm afraid this will only make things harder for us.
The Monitors comments boards are so fun:
-One lady lives on Eastside Dr and refuses to shop on Loudon rd....and then complains she needs to find a new route to get to the mall to shop.
-Concord has NO good doctors according to another faithful poster in addition to the healthcare field being rife with incompetence (Yet, she still goes to the same doctors over and over again lol)
-Another complains that Boxstore Rx has NO oversight - yep, just throw some pill in the container and sell 'em ASAP! And mentions tattoo parlors on every corner lol what??
-Anothe complains about losing local jobs....Who do you think will work in these stores? Out of staters? DO you think that it would employ motre locals than ABS Brake does? Think...please. You might find it a nice change.
-Another seemingly prefer businesses that DON'T increase traffic. Now THAT would be a great business plan!! lol
I just want to thank everyone for not being ashamed to look foolish in puiblic. You've made my day.
This is great, another drugstore to make the namby pampy Concord complainers upset. Boo Hoo Hoo
While I did not watch the meeting, it's important to understand the role of the ZBA in the permitting process. The ZBA's only function to do act on requests for:
1. Special Exceptions (uses that are permitted in the ordinance as long as special conditions are met)
2. Variances - A variance is a request to not have to comply with the requirements of the ordinance. There are several points of law that an applicant must meet in order to be granted a variance.
3. Appeals of Administrative Decisions - When the Board acts as an appeals body when a local official makes a determination based on the Zoning Ordinance that an applicant disagrees with.
4. Equitable Waivers of Dimensional Requirements - A statutory power of the Board to grant relief for dimensional standards in limited situations.
That's it folks. The ZBA does not approve the construction of the drugstore. That power lies with the Planning Board through the site plan review process.
As far as the number of drugstores or the mix of businesses along Loudon Road....look at what current zoning permits for uses. As long as a business is a permitted use, and complies with the City's ordinances and regulations (or variances from the ZBA if granted), there is not a lot a Planning Board can do to stop a project.
If you want different uses to be allowed, the place to do that is through the Master Plan process and the rezoning process.
IT NOW SEEMS THAT THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO FORM A RESISTANCE TO OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS WHO DO NOT HAVE THE PUBLIC'S BEST INTEREST AT HAND. SEEMS THEY GO AGAINST EVERYTHING WE DO NOT WANT. WE WANT A RESISTANCE AND WE WANT CONTROL BACK OF OUR CITY.!! TO ALL OF YOU ELECTED PEOPLE WHO RUN OUR CITY, WE WANT YOU ALL TO PUT OUR INTERESTS FIRST, NOT YOURS, YOU ARE NOT THAT SMART, IF YOU DON'T BELEIVE THAT JUST WATCH YOURSELVES ON TV AND YOU WILL AGREE,,, STOP THE INSANITY!!!!!!!!!!
Drug Dealers....it's called the changing landscape of America. As the Baby boomers get older they want less fast food and more drug stores...its all economics. They are the one's marketers target as they make up the largest % of the population. In about 20 years or so those Drug Stores will come down and be filled with then next thing...retirement homes or whatever. Its the way business works...if you don't like it move to the woods.
CVS Main St, CVS Hall St, Rite Aid South St, Rite Aid N State St, Modern Pharmacy, Prescription Center, The Medicine Store, Walgreens, Walmart, Hannaford, Shaws X2, Target, Brooks have I missed any??????????
Remember there was a time when communities fought against drug dealers on street corners?!! These new, legal drug dealers are rolling you, folks, taking your hard earned dollars and pushing up the cost of your health insurance. Drug companies are making huge profits from every ailment, real or concocted. Do we really need a drug for everything? More sadly they are costing lives as reported in the August 17 issue of the Concord Monitor: NH Drug Deaths Soaring. And I quote, "Last year, 129 people died in traffic accidents on New Hampshire roads. What may be a surprise is this statistic: More people - 168 - died from drug overdoses. And that was up from 2006, when 142 people overdosed on drugs and died, according to state officials." These are deaths from legal, prescription drugs. Though I must disagree with AG Kelly Ayotte and her Orwellian proposal. Government monitoring of electronic medical records is not the answer to this. People need to take a stand and refuse to hand over their hard earned money to wealthy drug companies. Fight the construction of this drug dealership and do not shop at any of the others around town. It's all about money, folks. So fight them where it hurts...right in the wallet.
How many more stores do we need that generate traffic on Loudon Road. Isn't that intersection dangerous enough already, especially with little kids walking to school?
This is ridiculous. Just what Concord needs - another drug store. Whose pockets are being lined because this was allowed? WE DO NOT NEED ANOTHER DRUGSTORE IN CONCORD! I REFUSE TO SHOP IN ANY OF THESE NATIONAL CHAINS. THEY TAKE BUSINESS AWAY FROM LOCAL CONCORD PEOPLE TRYING TO MAKE A LIVING.
We don't need any more PSEUDO-pharmacies. I'll stick with the real pharmacies (Prescription Center, Modern Pharmacy and Medicine Store) where prescriptions and health care is their business, not a mini-walley world. The quality stays because their pharmacists stay. I dealt with one of these pseudo-pharmacies once, but the pharacists changed so frequently that they screwed up the prescriptions every month. There's no quality control.
Ditto -- Loudon Rd has become South WIllow Street Manchester, where the businesses change almost as often as you change your underwear! Loudon Rd is a blight on our city and I totally avoid it. Soon it will be a Tatoo Parlor on every block. Can we please make the Heights their own town, with the line for Concord west of the Merrimack?
Why not make Pizza Hut into a Rite-Aid while we're at it.
Why does there have to be a CVS directly across from Walgreens? Does Concord really need a pharmacy on every corner?
Let's count the number of drug stores on Loudon Road - Shaw's, Hannafords and Brooks on Ft. Eddy, Walgreens, Apothecary Express (not a big box, but you get the idea), Target, Walmart, Shaws on Loudon Road. We do not need another big box on Loudon Road. I love that the Zoning Board thinks that this is a good idea - of course, as long as it's not in their backyard.
There are NO good doctors in this town. There is limited mental health resources. Incompetence runs wild in the health care field, yet there must be a pharmacy for every 1 out of 3 people in this town. Who is taking all these meds? The doctors, the nurses, the people running the zoning board that keep saying yes? Enough already!
How many drug stores does Concord need? Before you know it they will all be empty buildings falling apart and ugly because they couldn't keep their heads above water with so many of them around.
Do we really need another drugstore in Concord, especially another CVS? I live on East Side Drive and this intersection is already a nightmare and I don't like the way they are now encroaching into residential neighborhoods. The other part of this is all the construction that will be on this area while they are tearing down the houses and ABS and Burger King and then rebuilding a CVS in it's place. I use this route to get to the mall almost everyday and apparently I will have to start looking for an alternate route that will bring me out of my way. Isn't it bad enough that Loudon Road is a mini South Willow Street? I personally will not shop there because it bothers me that everywhere a pharmacy is built a CVS feels the need to go right across the street. Walgreens has only been there 2 months and CVS already feels that they need to compete with them? I refuse to shop at either one of these places but I would be really upset if the board lets them build there. I think when you stop to think about all of the pharmacy's in Concord you really need to say enough is enough already!