In the last decade, 2,000 Walgreens pharmacies have closed, including this one at Troost Avenue and Emanuel Cleaver II Boulevard. (Vaughn Wheat/The Beacon)
Less than two years ago, neighbors near Brush Creek Boulevard and Troost Avenue had choices when they needed to pick up a prescription — or a carton of milk.
A CVS pharmacy stood on the northeast corner of their intersection. Its retail rival, Walgreens, was just a block south at Troost and Emanuel Cleaver II Boulevard.
But today, a beauty supply store sits in the old CVS space. The pharmacy closed in April 2023. And the Walgreens, which had moved out five months before, remains empty. Weeds sprout through cracks in the parking lot and graffiti marks the drive-thru window.
Now people in this part of Kansas City, home to some of its poorest neighborhoods, may have to catch a bus just to fill a prescription. Even if the buses are running on time and it only takes 10 minutes at the drugstore, the round trip to the nearest CVS or Walgreens would take nearly two hours.