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Walgreens a 'no' for Lynbrook

Board denies closure, sale of road for drug store lot; Developer says location is no longer being pursued

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With dozens of Lynbrook and Malverne residents on hand to protest, the Lynbrook Village Board voted unanimously to reject a developer’s proposal to discontinue and sell a portion of a road to serve as an entrance and exit for a Walgreens’ parking lot.

The decision came at a special public hearing on Tuesday, which was a continuation from a June 3 meeting. Infill Development LLC, based in Tarrytown, was seeking to build the Walgreens where Five Corners Fitness — formerly Gold’s Gym — is now, at the corner of Hempstead and Lakeview avenues.

Following the decision, the project’s developer Al Callegari, vice president of development for DLC Management Corporation, of which Infill is an affiliate, told the Herald that he was no longer pursuing to bring a Walgreens to the location.

Infill attorney Anthony Guardino said during the meeting that discontinuing Central Avenue made sense for the property, which is why it was pursued, but it wasn’t needed. The development group could still apply for a special permit to have the parking lot off-site on the south side of Central Avenue, but after mulling it over Callegari said that will not be pursued.

“We’ve given it some thought, consulted with our client and it’s not something that we want to do at this point in time,” Callegari said of the special permit.

According to Guardino, Infill had agreed to purchase the gym and three adjacent properties south of Central Avenue — the site of a nail salon and a collectibles store, which are both out of business, and a florist — which would be turned into a 44-space parking lot.

Guardino initially presented the plan to the Lynbrook village board on June 3, and requested that a section of Central Avenue, between Hempstead and Grace avenues, be closed and sold to Infill, for use as an entrance and exit to the lot off Hempstead Avenue. The remaining section of Central Avenue, where there are three homes, would become a two-way, dead-end street.

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