Give Us a Drugstore and We’ll Give You a Park

By Mary Damiano

Retail giant Walgreens has proposed a deal to Logger’s Run, a subdivision of homes in Boca Raton: If Logger’s Run allows Walgreens to build a new pharmacy on an undeveloped plot of South Florida real estate, Walgreens will build an 8 acre park for the residents of the area.

Walgreens would lease the property for 75 years. The rent would start at $250,000 a year and build to $350,000 a year. The rent money would help Logger’s Run maintain other parks in the area.

The decision as to whether the deal will go through is in the hands of the residents of the community. Two-thirds of the residents must support the measure to lease their free space to Walgreens.

The Logger’s Run subdivision encompasses more than a dozen different communities of Palm Beach County homes in Boca Raton, including Timberwalk, Country Landings, Winding Lakes, and Island Lakes. Residences in these communities are typically single-family homes with attached garages and substantial square footage. Many have swimming pools and a host of community amenities.

If the deal goes through, Walgreens will build their store at the corner of 441 and Palmetto Park Road. The drugstore would be hidden from the community by trees and landscaping. Another pharmacy giant, CVS, competed with Walgreens to build on the land, but Walgreens offered more money and offered to help build the new park.