GRAFTON, Ohio — The loss of pharmacies has been a bitter pill across the U.S, including in Northeast Ohio. As more drug stores shut down, a Lorain County community is looking for solutions to fill the gap.
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For more than 90 years, Albert's Fresh Market has been more than a grocery store to the village of Grafton.
"Where can you talk to somebody and they know your first name? That's here," owner Ralph Pence said.
Pence’s middle name became the namesake for the longtime market when he took ownership several years ago. In the past two years, he said he’s pumped close to $500,000 into renovations and other improvements.
An empty space between the produce and snacks sections is reserved for something new.
"This is where we were hoping to put the pharmacy is in this area," Pence said. "We want to make sure we're taking care of all our folks for their daily needs. And right now, this is exactly what they need.”
Pence previously spoke to News 5 in 2024, shortly after the village of Grafton awarded the store a $100,000 grant to remodel for a pharmacy. The project was prompted by the closure of a nearby Rite Aid, the village's only drug store.
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Grafton Village Administrator Andrew Lipian said the grant was meant to lay the groundwork.
"This built capacity for him to be able to get that pharmacy to the community and plug it in when it's ready to go. Now we've got to find that pharmacy," Lipian said.
Pence said at least 40 potential pharmacy tenants have since passed on the opportunity.
"Everybody's interested. It's just the wrong timing they keep telling me," Pence said. “It isn’t on our part. It’s simply because they feel now is not the time to open a pharmacy. And I can sympathize with that. But the fact is our community needs a pharmacy. So I’m not quitting.”
News 5 has previously spoken to experts about the challenges facing the pharmacy industry.
They said pharmacies across the country are facing growing costs, shrinking reimbursement rates and tighter profit margins from industry middlemen. Customers are losing their options as a result.
"You have to travel further and shop more," said Fran Weber, who lives in Carlisle Township.
The need in the area has grown more urgent. Residents recently lost another option when Midview Drug shut its doors in Eaton Township. The closure came after the Ohio Attorney General's Office said the owner was indicted for Medicaid fraud connected to billing practices at a different business in Mahoning County.
Grafton residents say they feel the loss and would welcome options closer to home.
"It'd be a lot closer and definitely a lot more convenient for me to come down here… and my husband also," said Albert’s customer Joni McDonough.
Pence said he sees the need and has no plans to abandon the effort.
"I drill until I strike oil. That's just the way that it is and we're not going to quit. Somebody's going to come. We just don't know who that somebody is yet," Pence said.
Catherine Ross is the Lorain County reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @CatherineRossTV, on Facebook CatherineRossTV or email her at Catherine.Ross@wews.com.
