Retail giant Costco files relocation proposal in Kelowna; traffic among concerns

Costco’s intention to move to a bigger location in the Central Okanagan has long been speculated, but it became official on Monday as a relocation proposal came before city council.

“The application that came before council was for a rezoning application to accommodate Costco’s wishes to move in the city,” said city councillor Mohini Singh.

The Kelowna Costco has been a fixture at the corner of Highways 97 and 33 in Kelowna for many years, but the retail giant is hoping to move to a six-hectare parcel of land on Baron Road, behind the Real Canadian Superstore, about a kilometre away from its current location.

The proposal, however, is a controversial one, as many area residents are raising concerns about the traffic impact on an area that’s already quite congested.

“The traffic is going to be horrendous,” said area resident Maria Teixeira. “It is already anyway.”

“We’re so busy here all day long, a lot of people going to work, coming back,” said another area resident, Nola Welliber. “I just think it’s a big mistake.”

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Singh said she’s looking forward to hearing from both citizens and their concerns, as well as from Costco, at an upcoming public hearing.

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“We have to hear from the applicant what the traffic plans are, what they envision, how they will have to move traffic along, and the public needs to know as well,” Singh told Global News.

Global News contacted Costco, but our inquiries were not answered.

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According to the city, the retail giant has committed to spending upwards of $2 million for intersection improvements in the area to address traffic flow issues.

The site that Costco wants to build on is not in the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) as some have speculated, but it would have to be rezoned from A1 Agriculture to C-4, which is an urban centre commercial zone, to allow construction of the large-scale retail store.

“We have to go into this with an open mind,” Singh said.

“It is certainly a very big project and do we don’t just want to hear from staff, but the applicant and members of our community as to what they would like to see done. This is very important.”

The public hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 8.