Community leaders to speak out ahead of Chatham Walgreens store closure next month

CHICAGO (WLS) -- City leaders are expected to share thoughts Monday on the latest Walgreens store to close on the Chicago's South Side.

Community leaders said the expected closing of Walgreens one piece of a larger corporate abandonment issue on the South Side.

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The Chatham Walgreens store on 86th Street and Cottage Grove is set to close in one month on June 4.

Community leaders say that the closure threatens to leave thousands of people, particularly seniors and individuals managing chronic health conditions, without proper access to a pharmacy.

These closures come just over a year after Walgreens closed five locations in the Bronzeville, Little Village, South Shore, and South Chicago neighborhoods with another specialty pharmacy closing on 71st Street in just a couple of weeks.

Sixth Ward Alderman Will Hall released a statement saying, "They extract profit and walk away, knowing full well what it costs this community. When you shut down a pharmacy here, you are cutting off access to medication for seniors and vulnerable residents. This is a life-or-death decision."

ABC7 has reached out to Walgreens for a statement. Alderman Hall and other community leaders will hold a press conference at 10 a.m.