By Sym Posey | The Birmingham Times
Eric Guster, a real estate developer and founding attorney of Guster Law Firm, calls it his “pride and joy.” And what makes it even more special is that the project is located in the area where he grew up.
After millions of dollars in renovations, Guster’s roughly 6,000-square-foot retail center in the heart of the city’s Five Points West community was completed when CVS opened a freestanding pharmacy in October at 2250 Bessemer Road, situated on a prominent corner across from the CrossPlex at the intersection of Bessemer Road and Avenue W.
The arrival of CVS brings much-needed pharmaceutical and health services to residents, many of whom previously had to travel significant distances for basic medical supplies. For Five Points West, this is more than just a new storefront; it’s a symbol of progress and hope, said the developer/attorney.
“I’m just so proud to be able to bring not just medical tenants, but national medical tenants to the area,” Guster told the Birmingham Times. “I was committed to making that happen because that community deserves high quality buildings and great tenants and we delivered it.”
CVS Pharmacy joins MyEyeDr., a provider of eye health services, and VIPCare, a clinic that specializes in primary care for seniors, on the property that Guster acquired from the city of Birmingham for $100,000 in September 2020.
“Since the purchase of the former Regions Bank property, my desires were to always attract medical tenants,” said Guster. “The Five Points West building is my pride and joy, being fully leased with 100 percent national medical tenants, it’s exciting. To have three national medical tenants in that community is nothing short of amazing.”
Guster credits Robert Pless at ServisFirst Bank for seeing the vision and helping with financing for the Five Points West project.
With the location Guster returns home. He is a product of the former Ensley High School and remembers shopping at the former Parisian department store in 5 Points West Shopping City and having a bank account at a local branch in the area.
The new health care facilities in the retail center will be on the corner right across from the Birmingham CrossPlex making it convenient for many older residents in the area “who deserve high quality health care, and don’t have to go all the way downtown … they can go right down the street,” Guster has said.
Leasing the retail space is more than a business move — it’s a response to a critical need in the community, said Guster.
“Just like the majority of heavily Black populated communities experience food deserts, there are medical deserts,” Guster said. His words highlight the ongoing challenge faced by neighborhoods where access to pharmacies, clinics, and fresh, healthy food options remains limited.
A “medical desert” refers to a geographic area where residents have limited or no access to essential health care services, including primary care, hospitals, pharmacies, and specialists. These deserts are often found in both rural and urban settings, disproportionately affecting communities of color, especially majority Black neighborhoods. The presence of medical deserts contributes to significant disparities in health outcomes and overall well-being.
By attracting a nationally recognized pharmacy chain, Guster hopes to inspire other investors and business owners to prioritize communities often overlooked by major retailers.
The city-owned property sat vacant for way too long, “but fortunately, [Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin] and his administration saw the vision and allowed me to buy it and to redevelop it,” Guster said.
The planned center is important because “new, high-quality developments can jumpstart” a neighborhood, he said.
“When businesses, for example, see that we’re building a $2 million building on this corner, and it’s successful, then others who can make those types of things happen that’s why it’s so necessary to build it … and make the development successful,” the developer said.
The timing of the investment couldn’t be better with the new Food Giant also in Five Points West up and running and the planned Family Fun Center for the CrossPlex that Woodfin has said will receive renewed attention and come online.
“When you have those types of investments, then other people tend to come. Investors want to spend money where they are comfortable that they will be able to make a profit. That’s the whole purpose of an investment … and when others go somewhere to invest, and they make money, it creates a level of confidence for others who can do the same thing,” Guster said.
