Tag Archives: pharmacy

Map: Walgreens, Rite Aid stores abound in Kitsap

News broke Tuesday that Walgreens has reached an agreement to buy Rite Aid, in a deal that would spawn a new pharmacy juggernaut.

The deal won’t close until the second half of 2016, so it’s too early to know what changes Walgreens has planned.

FILE- In this June 20, 2011, file photo, a woman exits a Rite Aid store, in Philadelphia. The Wall Street Journal said Walgreens Boots Alliance is in advanced talks to buy Rite Aid. Walgreens declined to comment Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015, when contacted by The Associated Press. The deal would combine the largest and third-largest U.S. drugstore chains, based on store counts. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File) — AP photo

The company has already alluded to a “harmonized portfolio of stores and infrastructure,” a line that probably sounds nice to investors and ominous to employees.

With a merger on the horizon, it’s worth taking a look at where Walgreens and Rite Aid pharmacies are located in Kitsap, and where stores may be in direct competition.

The two chains have a combined 10 stores in Kitsap, as far as I can gather, with another Walgreens under construction on Bainbridge Island. The map embedded below shows the locations, with Rite Aids in blue and Walgreens in red.

Some of these stores are spaced so tightly you’ll have to zoom in to see them clearly:

As you can see, Rite Aid and Walgreens stores are close neighbors in West Bremerton, Port Orchard and Silverdale. The stores on Bainbridge Island will also be intimately situated once the Walgreens there is completed.

The green pin on the map represents the CVS pharmacy in Poulsbo, which opened a year ago.

Its presence is worth noting because CVS will be the only major standalone pharmacy chain left to compete with Walgreens/Rite Aid once the merger is approved.

CVS is a newcomer to Washington State, but nationally the chain commands a 58 percent market share based on revenue, according to USA Today. Walgreens has a 31 percent share and Rite Aid trails with 10 percent.

CVS recently bought all of Target’s in-store pharmacies and plans to begin operating them.

Restaurant, coffee shop proposed next to Poulsbo CVS

Tad Sooter

A restaurant and coffee shop could soon join CVS on Highway 305 in Poulsbo.

Two buildings are proposed for a parcel just north of the pharmacy: A 3,500-square-foot restaurant and 1,700-square-foot drive thru coffee shop (click image to enlarge plans). Thirty-five parking stalls would be provided.

CVS owns the property and recently listed it for sale. The applicant is Marty Jouflas of Seattle. A pre-application meeting for the new site plan is set for Aug. 18, according to a city notice.

A restaurant with drive thru was previously approved for the site. The reconfigured site plan requires a new application.

Poulsbo CVS selling adjacent parcel

Tad Sooter

When a CVS was first approved in Poulsbo, plans called for both a pharmacy and a fast food restaurant.

The drug store opened in February. The restaurant never materialized.

Now CVS is selling the leftover parcel on Highway 305. Colliers International listed the 1.07-acre property for $1.25 million.

The assessed value of the lot is about $285,000.

The CVS property is located on the northeast corner of Highway 305 and Hostmark Street. A large retail building was torn down to make way for the development.

You can view the listing here.

Bainbridge Walgreens building approved

Tad Sooter

Planners have approved the first major building in the Visconsi shopping center on Bainbridge Island.

The city issued a commercial building permit March 30 for a 14,475-square-foot Walgreens building. The drug store will be an anchor tenant for the 8-acre development, located on the northeast corner of High School Road and Highway 305.

Visconsi also applied for a permit for a 3,228-square-foot Key Bank branch.

Key Bank plans to relocate to the development from its existing location on the south side of High School Road. The permit application is under review.

Looking at the site plan, the Key Bank building is the small building shown at the southwest corner of the property (nearest the intersection), the drug store is the next building to the north.

Those are the only two building permit applications Visconsi has submitted thus far, according to the city’s online permit records.

The Ohio-base developer plans to eventually build seven buildings on the site, with space for medical offices, stores and restaurants.

The Visconsi project drew heavy criticism from some islanders, who protested the clearing of trees and what they saw as unnecessary urban sprawl. The company posted this letter in response (PDF).

Poulsbo CVS opens Sunday

Tad Sooter

The CVS pharmacy on Highway 305 in Poulsbo will open its doors Sunday.

Under construction since early summer, the pharmacy is the third in Washington for CVS, which recently opened a location in Burien. A fast food restaurant was also approved for the Poulsbo site, but has yet to be announced.

The store replaced a building that was long home to the perpetually-liquidating Northwest Design Center, and, more recently, a Bad Blanche outlet.

CVS shoppers will find a full-service pharmacy with drive thru, health and beauty products, personal care items, general merchandise, food and a digital photo lab.

One thing customers won’t find is cigarettes. CVS discontinued tobacco sales earlier this year.

Store hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. Pharmacy hours are 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. The store is located at the corner of Highway 305 and Hostmark Street.

Poulsbo building razed to make way for pharmacy

Tad Sooter

blog.design center A prominent Poulsbo corner is being transformed this week as crews tear down the former Bad Blanche Outlet building to make way for a pharmacy and fast food restaurant.

The 38,000-square-foot building, formerly Northwest Design Center, has long anchored the corner of Hostmark Street and Highway 305.

A CVS pharmacy and to-be-announced fast food restaurant were recently approved for the site.

Velmeir Companies of Michigan is developing the property.

Safeway opening Poulsbo store June 27; hiring 120

Tad Sooter

A grand opening for Poulsbo’s Safeway store and gas station is now set for June 27.

Safeway spokeswoman Sara Osborne said the 59,000-square-foot store at Lincoln Road and 10th Avenue will have about 160 employees. Of those, 120 will be new hires. The company refers job seekers to its website for application information.

Osborne said the store will have all the accustomed Safeway departments, including produce, natural and organic foods, a bakery, floral kiosk, videos, and pharmacy. The deli will feature sushi, sandwiches, a China Express, an olive bar and a soup bar.

Seating for the deli is situated by windows with views to the west and south, alongside an indoor fireplace. Outdoor seating will be available at the front of the store.

A Starbucks coffee shop and US Bank branch are integrated into the building. The gas station has 10 pumps.

Safeway was a featured sponsor of Poulsbo’s Viking Fest last weekend and is sponsoring the Third of July celebration, Osborne said.

Construction began on the store in early 2013 with an opening originally planned for December, and later projected for May.

Your next closest 24-hour pharmacy

Tad Sooter

An upcoming change in hours at the Walgreens in Silverdale will result in the loss of the only 24-hour pharmacy west of Puget Sound.

This is a concern for some urgent care and emergency departments, which often refer patients to the Silverdale Walgreens after hours.

Walgreens is making the change because of low demand for late-night pharmaceutical services. But though their numbers may be small, the customers who need those services tend to really need them.

Dr. Bill Morris at Harrison Medical Center offered this as a typical scenario:

Someone arrives at Harrison late in the evening after suffering a broken ankle in a fall. They’re treated and discharged at 10 p.m. with a prescription for pain killers.

Typically, the patient’s next stop would be the Silverdale Walgreens to get the meds they’d need to not suffer through the night. That option will be gone March 8.

The next closest 24-hour pharmacies, as best as I can tell, are in Lakewood and Ballard (see map) a long haul for someone in pain. Morris said gone are the days when a physician could send a patient home with an extra “pill in their pocket” to tide them over until morning.

Harrison is working on a way of providing prescriptions to their patients after hours. They’ll let us know when a plan is in place.