Dense Aurora neighborhood becoming a “pharmacy desert” as one closes after 35 years

An Aurora neighborhood has lost a vital business and is quickly becoming a “pharmacy desert.” There are a couple of big pharmacies and grocery stores within a four-mile radius of the intersection of East Mississippi Avenue and South Peoria Street, but this is a densely populated area, and neighbors say that just isn’t enough.

Standing outside of his neighborhood Safeway in Aurora, which will soon close permanently, a man named Lloyd says it’s going to be a big change for the neighborhood.

“I’ve shopped here for 35 years. It’s unfortunate. I’ve always liked this store,” he said.

That means he and his neighbors might have to drive further for groceries and to get their prescriptions filled, especially since the Walgreens, which was right across the street, closed back in February.

Lloyd didn’t use either Safeway or Walgreens to fill his prescriptions, but his neighbors sure did.

“That’s how we actually knew, because we have customers coming in telling us that,” said Maria Desta. “Did you know Safeway is closing?”

But there is a closer option still available for people in the Village East, Aurora Hills, Utah Park, Rangeview, and Expo Park neighborhoods.

“It is a highly condensed area here. We stay busy,” Desta said.

Desta owns Apex Pharmacy. It’s just like any other pharmacy; they fill prescriptions, sell over-the-counter medicine, and give vaccines. They also have a free delivery service and accept all major insurance, but Desta says she has one thing they don’t.

“We provide personalized care versus just putting your prescriptions in a bottle,” she said.

She almost opened in an area with a higher tax bracket, but she says her heart led her to Aurora, where she says the community really needs the kind of care she provides. She says the community has really embraced her, and now that the Safeway is closing, she knows for sure she made the right decision.

“The initial area where I intended to open was a very affluent area,” she said. “I probably would have done, you know- grown much faster, but I could not. So, I looked into this area and I am glad I’m here.”