In second bid, CVS tries new tactic

CVS again is trying to convince city officials that a proposed drugstore at Sligh and Nebraska avenues is a good fit for the neighborhood.

This time, though, there might not be a public hearing before Tampa City Council, which last month rejected the project.

That is because a new application, filed Feb. 24, requests a drive-through window permit but does not seek to rezone the nearly 3-acre property nor ask for any waivers.

Waivers generally are sought when a developer needs special approval for unusual building setbacks, trash bin placement, parking spaces, tree removal and such proposals.

City planners approve or reject a developer's application after a 30-day review. A public hearing is required only if the planners determine a proposed project requires waivers or if an application is rejected by city land-use staff and the developer appeals that decision to the city council.

CVS and Armstrong Development Properties have proposed a 13,000-square-foot drugstore with a drive-through window on land occupied by a used car lot, a four-unit apartment and an electric supply company.

At a public hearing last month, arguments centered largely on where the drugstore might be built on the site. City land-use planners and some residents wanted CVS to bring the building up to the sidewalk on Nebraska and put parking at the rear of the parcel.

The matter is central to a proposed land-use change and zoning codes that are part of a two-year pilot project to encourage pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use development during the next 20 years in Old Seminole Heights, Southeast Seminole Heights and South Seminole Heights.

Hillsborough County's Planning Commission and Tampa officials have approved land-use changes that are under state review. The zoning codes are not in force but should be ready for the city council's review by the end of the year.

CVS representatives agreed to come within 60 feet of Nebraska and to reduce the number of parking spaces in the front. They maintain moving any closer to Nebraska would require some customers to walk past drive-through window traffic.

"It's not a very customer friendly drive-through," said Gregg Webb of Armstrong Development. "That's why we can't bring it up to the corner."

CVS knows what works for them to create a "great store, not a good one" for profitability, he said. "In this economy, all their sites have to be home runs."

The new application reinstates a double row of parking spaces in front and moves the building farther away from the road. The new plan also shows a CVS "cookie cutter" building rather than a modified structure with a 1940s architectural style offered by drugstore representatives in the plan rejected by the city council.

Webb said CVS would meet with residents to discuss the project, including building design, but wanted to wait until the city's planning staff reached its decision.