Walgreens wants to replace the VIP Diner

[bryhove]

There's a Walgreens a few blocks down on the same street (Communipaw & JFK). I'll guess I'll have to get replace pancakes for cortisone cream

[MCA™]

Walgreens makes case to Jersey City community group to replace landmark diner
Published: Sunday, July 18, 2010, 2:39 PM
Updated: Sunday, July 18, 2010, 2:46 PM
Amy Sara Clark/The Jersey Journal

Hoping to replace the VIP Diner at Sip Avenue and Kennedy Boulevard in Jersey City, Walgreens took its case to a local community group last week.

Stephen Reid, a spokesman for the national drug chain, told members of the Sgt. Anthony Park Association on Thursday that a new Walgreens at the site would mean a landscaped parking lot, a new layout for the site that would improve traffic flow, 75 construction jobs and 20 full-time jobs once the store opened.

Owners of the VIP have been in negotiations to sell the landmark diner to Walgreens for over a year. But for the deal to happen, Walgreens wants the city to grant six variances, including lifting a requirement that new structures must be at least four stories. Along with a one-story building, the chain wants to put a 22-car parking lot on the property, an element that's been banned in most of Jersey City since 2001.

"That's what they do in suburbia," city Planning Director Robert Cotter said about the parking lot at a recent meeting. "This is an urban area." The Planning Board is expected to take up the matter again next month.

The roughly two dozen people at the association meeting last week seemed mostly receptive to the idea of a new drugstore at the location. "I would have no objection to it, said Chris Koongie, a resident of Palisade Avenue.

Asked about attracting enough customers given at least three other national drugstores in the area, Reid said students from Hudson County Community College and St. Peter's College would provide plenty of business.

Angel Harrison, who lives on Kennedy Boulevard near the VIP was not on board and said she would fight the Walgreens "vehemently." Sip avenue wouldn't be able to handle the traffic a Walgreens would bring and there are already too many drugstores in the area, she said. Plus, the proposed building is ugly, she said. "Walgreens looks awful, look at that," she said pointing to the rendering given out by Reid. "Does that match the neighborhood?" She said she would prefer to see a park on the site, something she said the Journal Square area desperately needs.

[MCA™]

Walgreens applies to tear down iconic VIP Diner in Jersey City
Published: Saturday, July 10, 2010, 11:49 AM
Updated: Saturday, July 10, 2010, 12:54 PM
Amy Sara Clark/The Jersey Journal

Walgreens has applied to put a drug store at the site of Journal Square's VIP diner.

The national pharmacy chain filed an application with the Jersey City Planning Board in May to tear down Journal Square's only 24-hour diner. But because they're asking for six variances - including putting in a new one-story building with 22 parking spaces instead of a four-story structure that covers the entire lot - it's unclear whether the project will be approved. The board may vote on it as soon as Aug. 17.

Walgreens company has also asked for variances for 210-square feet of illuminated signs on the building and a 100-square-foot, lit-up freestanding sign.

In November, the Jersey City City Council unanimously voted to require all new buildings in the Journal Square area to be at least four stories tall. Parking lots in front of buildings have been banned in most of Jersey City since 2001. "That's what they do in suburbia, this is an urban area," said Jersey City Planning Director Robert Cotter.

A building facade next to the sidewalk instead of a parking lot is more pedestrian friendly, he said, and a four-story building gives the area more density, which supports public transportation and brings in more taxes. However, Cotter said he doesn't know of any developers interested in putting a four-story building on the site.


A rendering of what the Walgreens store would look like.

The project would bring about 75 year-long construction jobs and about 20-full-time employees, said Stephen Reid, a spokesman for Walgreens.

Asked if Walgreens would consider building a four-story building and renting out the top three floors, Reid said, "They're coming in to build a Walgreens. That's what they do, build Walgreens."

VIP manager John Gomez said the restaurant currently has about 20-25 employees. Another manager, who would only give his name as Peter, said the VIP will stay open if the deal falls through.

Walgreens representatives are scheduled to meet with the Sgt. Anthony Park Association on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Sgt. Anthony Park at 90 Palisade Ave. Sgt. Anthony Park Association president Barbara Petrick said she has no problem with a drugstore coming in. "I'll miss the diner, but Walgreens is OK by me."

But Ward C Councilwoman Nidia Lopez said most block association members she's spoken to are against the plan. "Nobody really wants another drugstore in there," she said. Bill Armbruster, who lives a few blocks from the VIP, agreed. "It's the only sit down restaurant within easy walking distance."

There are currently three drug stores in the area: Rite Aid at 981 West Side Ave. and at 2859 John F. Kennedy Blvd., and a Duane Reade in the PATH Station.

[MCA™]

Here are some of the 24 Hour Options for Food in Jersey City, please feel free to add to the list. Anything located in nearby/adjacent cities can be included as well.

All New VIP Diner
175 Sip Ave (@ Kennedy Blvd)
Jersey City, NJ 07306
(201) 792-1400‎
Map it

Via JC Independent:


Proposal to Replace Jersey City’s VIP Diner with Walgreens Enters the Planning Pipeline
By Shane Smith • Jun 4th, 2010

A controversial proposal that seeks to purchase and raze the VIP Diner has been submitted to the Jersey City Planning Division. The plan, which would erect a one-story 10,000-square-foot Walgreens pharmacy in place of the diner, has met with initial resistance from some Journal Square residents, and the Division of Planning has indicated that the site plan it has received does not align with the kind of development the city would like to see in that area.

A manager at the VIP would not confirm or deny details of the purchase when reached by phone last week. (more).

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