June 1, 2023 3:40 a.m.
In the KQEN Business Spotlight:
The downtown Roseburg Rite Aid store will close on June 6th.
A statement from company spokesperson Alicja Wojczyk said, “Like all retail businesses, we regularly review each of our locations to ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers, communities and overall business. A decision to close a store is one we take very seriously and is based on a variety of factors including business strategy, lease and rent considerations, local business conditions and viability and store performance”. The statement continued saying, “We review every neighborhood to ensure our customers will have access to health services, be it at Rite Aid or a nearby pharmacy, and we will work to seamlessly transfer these prescriptions so there is no disruption of services”. The statement said the company strives to transfer associates to other Rite Aid locations where possible.
The property at 444 Southeast Stephens Street, is leased by Rite Aid and has been listed as being for sale since September of 2020. The 17,272 square foot building on a nearly 1.5-acre parcel is listed at $5.945 million dollars by Colliers Brokers in Irvine, California.
Nationally, over 1,900 Rite Aid stores were acquired by competitor Walgreens in 2018. The closure leaves one Rite Aid location on Northwest Garden Valley Boulevard open, with two Walgreens stores in Roseburg as well. One is at the corner of Northeast Stephens Street and Northeast Garden Valley Boulevard while the second is at the intersection of Northwest Garden Valley Boulevard and Northwest Stewart Parkway.
The move leaves downtown Roseburg without a pharmacy or related store for the first time in many decades. Customers in that area will have to drive to other parts of town get their prescriptions. Genoa Healthcare’s pharmacy is inside the Adapt building on West Madrone Street and is about a half mile from the downtown Rite Aid. A Walgreens location and Hometown Drugs are each about a mile and a half away.
A check inside the downtown Rite Aid on Wednesday found that some items are on sale at between 50 and 75 percent off while most items remain at their regular price.
News Radio 93-9 FM and 1240 KQEN is seeking more information on the situation.