Neighbors Continue Fight Against Proposed CVS On Cherry Street

Thursday, folks who live near 15th and Utica went to the Tulsa City Council, again, to fight a CVS Pharmacy that wants to build there.

Right now, the plan shows the drug store taking up the whole corner at 15th and Utica. And while the design is much different than your typical CVS, residents say it still doesn't fit into the neighborhood.

"It's been an uphill battle from day one; we've been fighting this for more than six months. It's been a real eye opening experience to me," neighbor Terry Meier said.

Meier and several homeowners from the Terrace Drive neighborhood sat in on the city council meeting Thursday afternoon as councilors took another look at revised plans for a CVS at 15th and Utica.

4/14/2016 Related Story: Decision To Allow Pharmacy On Tulsa's Cherry Street Yet To Be Made

Constituents in the area are pushing for the plans to be in line with the small area plan.

“This is to be a two-story building, this is to have an entrance facing onto 15th or Utica, and it's to be mixed use. You know, again, the urban feel is part of what is promised in that plan," Meier said.

The newly revised plan shows a smaller parking lot and a more urban façade, but in terms of the building itself, neighbors say it does not meet those requirements.

Residents say a chain store taking over the corner just doesn't cut it.

”This is probably the angriest issue I've seen in my district since the QT at 11th and Utica," Councilor Blake Ewing said.

Ewing said he’s trying to work with residents to better determine what they want out of the plan but hasn't gotten a clear message.

On the corner, right now, are several old abandoned buildings and a small gas station.

While Meier said neighbors don't mind losing the gas station, they still aren’t convinced the CVS is the best idea.

"I'm not going to be sorry to see it go, but in terms of sales tax revenue, I think we're probably making more money with that gas station than we're going to with this CVS," Meier said.

The plan still has to go before the full city council for a vote.