City staff told the Baker City Council on Aug. 12 that Baker lost two retail pharmacy locations—Safeway and Rite Aid—within weeks of each other, leaving the city without an immediate full‑service pharmacy. The city and county are evaluating two tracks: a temporary, emergency pharmacy arrangement the county could enable and a longer path to reopen a permanent retail pharmacy at the Pioneer Building downtown.

The temporary option would require the county to declare an emergency and coordinate with the Oregon Health Authority and county emergency management to bring a short‑term pharmacy capability to Baker, staff said. Council members asked whether the closures qualify as an emergency and encouraged staff to meet soon with county partners to clarify next steps.

For a permanent option, staff reported that a pharmacy operator has applied to locate in the Pioneer Building, a former bank that already has a drive‑through. Current city development code permits drive‑throughs only for banks in the Central Commercial District; allowing a drive‑through pharmacy will require a legislative text amendment to the zoning code. Planning staff said state law requires notice to the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) at least 35 days before the first public hearing on any legislative text amendment. That 35‑day window makes mid‑October the earliest practical date for a first hearing; staff gave October 15 as the target hearing date and September 10 as the DLCD notice deadline.

Tara, a planning staff member, explained the statutory step: “By statute, anytime we do a legislative update to the code, we’re required by law to notify Department of Land and Conservation and Development 35 days prior to a public hearing.” City Manager Murphy (surname used in the meeting) confirmed an application has been received, which would permit staff to schedule pre‑application and hearing steps with the applicant and the planning commission.

Councilors and members of the public noted long pharmacy lines at the remaining provider and public-health concerns about people waiting near symptomatic individuals. Staff said other commercial pharmacy operators have expressed interest but opening a new retail pharmacy could take months because of licensing, build‑out and code amendments. Council members signaled support for pursuing both interim county coordination and expedited local processing for a permanent pharmacy site.

Next steps the council discussed: staff will coordinate with county public‑health and emergency management on whether to request an emergency declaration for a short‑term pharmacy option; planning staff will notify DLCD and place the Pioneer Building text‑amendment request on the planning commission calendar once DLCD timing is met; and staff will schedule a pre‑application meeting with the applicant.