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WGNA's Rx for Longs: await study on traffic
Residents concerned about excess noise, parking, and hours
By Michele Leung
Officials from Longs Drug Store on Jan. 12 sought the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association's approval of the chain store's move to Lincoln Avenue, but they will have to do without it for now. The WGNA board made no decision to support or oppose the project, waiting instead for the completion of a traffic analysis.
Longs architect George Ramstad began the meeting by listing some of the general requests to which Longs has agreed. These include:
* a buried electronic wire on the perimeter of the property that causes shopping cart wheels to lock up once they pass the wire;
* limited construction hours, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday;
* left-turn only signs that will be installed at the Longs driveways on Brace Avenue.
Not all residents, however, were convinced that their neighborhood would benefit from the 11,500-square-foot Longs store. Their foremost complaint was the extra traffic customers would bring to an already impacted downtown and its surrounding streets.
But Ramstad doesn't foresee a significant increase. "I believe traffic is an emotional issue," he said. "The amount of increase from Longs is incidental. Is Longs really going to significantly increase the traffic?"
Ramstad's observation that traffic on Lincoln Avenue has recently decreased brought loud guffaws from the audience.
Officials are trying to ease the parking problem by installing 57 spaces in the parking lot, of which fewer than 20 will be used by store employees. Furthermore, they believe the pharmacy's customers will make a purchase and leave, and not linger as they would in a restaurant.
"Patrons are not in for very long. Our key business is a pharmacy. We expect to see a high turnover of customers," said John Machado, vice president of retail properties for Colliers International, Longs' real estate broker. "In addition, a lot of employees, such as baggers, are younger end employees. Many don't drive."
Besides the traffic, neighbors registered other fears. "My concern is the noise based on hours," said resident Bob Leathers. "I would hope Longs would respect our need for a neighborhood community. I like the vitality Longs brings to Lincoln Avenue, but I want to see respectable hours."
Ramstad said that the hours of operation have not been set, but they will not exceed those of other Longs in San Jose. Some Longs stores open as early as 6 a.m. and close as late as 11 p.m.
The next step for residents and the city is to await a traffic report from Longs, which can take several weeks. "Because of the traffic study, since there is great interest in that, there will be no motion made tonight," said WGNA president J. Michael Gonzales.
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Willow Glen, California Since 1992
