When Albertson's vacated 2211 E. Madison Street in the early 1970s, many retailers said the area could not support a large supermarket. Planned Parenthood then acquired the site and ran a clinic there from 1974 until February 2000.

The clinic was moved a block away, thanks to a land swap with Rite Aid Pharmacies, which gave Planned Parenthood an additional $1.8 million. Now, the old clinic is scheduled for demolition to make way for a four-to-six level structure that will include a supermarket, underground parking and top-floor residential units.

The site currently is used by students from Morningside Academy, a private school for children with learning disabilities who have been in the building since last spring. Developers, knowing the permitting process for the site would take approximately a year, gave school administrators a lease extension for the 2001-2002 academic year.