A group of residents in Matteson is calling the latest move by village officials “disturbing.”
They said the Matteson Village Board never should have approved a liquor license for the Walgreens store at 5640 211th St. near the Glenridge-Cricket Hill subdivision.
The license allows the store to sell beer and wine. Walgreens officials expect the alcohol to take up less than 2 percent of the total shelf space in the store.
Larry McWherter, who lives near the Walgreens, addressed the village board with his concerns last week. He said the store two years ago agreed to operate under two conditions.
“I wanted to bring to the trustees’ attention in case they weren’t aware of it that there was a contract put in place in writing that Walgreens wouldn’t have a 24-hour facility … and they wouldn’t carry liquor,” said McWherter, the former president of the homeowners association in Glenridge-Cricket Hill.
Neither the village nor Walgreens has any record of such an agreement. A Walgreens spokesman said the company is re-introducing alcohol in its stores in response to customer demand. Stores also are prepared to make a smooth transition to selling alcohol.
“We’re going to do this safely and responsibly,” Walgreens spokesman Robert Elfinger said.
The idea still doesn’t sit well with some residents despite promised security measures.
“We’re totally against it. It’s not a good idea to bring (alcohol) in because it’s a residential area,” said Norman Reid, president of the homeowners association.
Mayor Andre Ashmore, who also is the village’s liquor commissioner, said the village is careful about how it hands out liquor licenses. He said the village didn’t see a problem approving one in this case.
“The deciding factor for us is we wouldn’t want to put our Walgreens at a competitive disadvantage,” Ashmore said.
The store on 211th Street is the only Walgreens in Matteson but is just blocks away from stores in neighboring towns. Residents said they fear alcohol sales will draw unwanted company.
“Now it’s going to be crowded around here,” Reid said. “There’s a different type of group that comes around when you sell liquor.”
McWherter said his biggest worry is for kids in the area.
“It’s just like cigarettes. If you put a pack of cigarettes down, a teenager might have an opportunity to give it a try, and I don’t want our teenagers to get that opportunity to try the liquor,” McWherter said.
Walgreens said it will have strict policies in place and will card anyone who looks younger than 40.
Neighbors said they still are disappointed trustees approved the license. Trustees Emmanuel Imoukhuede and Sam Brown were not present for the vote.
Reid said he plans on bringing the issue up at the next homeowners association meeting.
“I think we have enough liquor stores in Matteson,” Reid said.
The liquor license for Walgreens brings the total number of liquor licenses in Matteson to 25. Elfinger said. Wilmette has been the only Chicago suburb to deny Walgreens a liquor license.
Distributed via Chicago Press Release Services