Laserfiche WebLink
<br />To: Arden Hills City Council and <br />Arden Hills Planning Commission <br /> <br />Fr: George and Judy Murakami <br />5621 Heather Ridge Court <br />Shoreview, MN 55126 <br /> <br />Subj: Arden Plaza Redevelopment and Arden Plaza Pharmacy <br /> <br />Date: Sept. 17, 2007 <br /> <br />We are writing you to voice our objections to any plans that result in replacing the Arden <br />Plaza Pharmacy with a Walgreen's Drugstore. <br /> <br />For more than 40 years, we have been residents of Shoreview, residing for many years on <br />Harriet Avenue (just south of County Road E and Lexington) and now in a town home <br />north of County Road I and Hwy. 49. During all of that time we have "crossed the <br />border" into Arden Hills and patronized businesses in Arden Plaza, especially the Arden <br />Plaza Pharmacy. <br /> <br />As the north suburban area has expanded and developed, we, along with many of our <br />friends and neighbors continue to trust and rely on the friendly service and expert advice <br />that we have received from Chuck Erickson, Arden Plaza Pharmacy's pharmacist and <br />manager, and his staff. After all of these years, it is one of the few businesses we can go <br />into and have the employees know us by name. Over the past few years, the Pharmacy <br />has expanded its inventory to include a wider variety of gifts, and the postal service is a <br />major convenience that sets the store apart from the nearby Cub, Target, and Walgreen's <br />in the area. <br /> <br />Does the Arden Plaza Shopping Center need a facelift? Perhaps, but at the same time, we <br />assume that any revamping also means higher rental rates for the small businesses that <br />are then forced to pass along the increase in higher prices for their customers. <br /> <br />For us, the qualities that motivate us to continue to drive nearly six miles to support an <br />Arden Hills business like the Pharmacy have less to do with paint and more to do with <br />the quality and service provided. We hope you will find other solutions that retain the <br />best of what you already have in the Arden Hills shopping complex. <br /> <br />Thank you for your consideration. <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br />George and Judy Murakami <br />