A Costco warehouse is one step closer to opening in Port St. Lucie after the City Council approved a zoning amendment allowing uses beyond traditional retail at the proposed site in Southern Grove.
The amendment adds member-based wholesale warehouse stores of at least 100,000 square feet as a permitted use within the Legacy Park North master-planned development. It also allows features commonly associated with Costco locations, including outdoor seasonal merchandise displays, a tire center, liquor sales and a fuel station.
The proposed store would total about 158,000 square feet and be built on roughly 22.8 acres near the intersection of Southwest Village Parkway and Marshall Parkway, across from Costco's distribution depot, which is under construction. The land is part of a purchase agreement between Costco and the Port St. Lucie Governmental Finance Corporation.
Bridget King of the city's Planning and Zoning Department said the zoning amendment is intended to accommodate the warehouse retailer's operations.
"Unlike our regular retail use, this will allow for outdoor sales and storage for temporary and seasonal retail goods. This also will provide for automotive service facility for a tire change and repair as well as liquor sales and a fuel facility as well," she said.
Plans for the fuel station include capacity designed to handle a large volume of vehicles without spilling into the surrounding road network, according to the project's traffic engineer.
Ryan Cunningham, a planner with Kittelson & Associates, said the fueling area will include 16 double-sided pumps.
"So 32 vehicles at the site fueling at the same time. We can fit approximately 37 more queued behind those pumps for 69 total just within the gas area before they get out into the internal circulation network," he said.
The zoning amendment also updates parking standards, increases the maximum allowable height for outdoor lighting in portions of the development from 35 feet to 40 feet, and revises driveway locations to align with proposed site plans.
The Planning and Zoning Department determined the request is consistent with the city's Comprehensive Plan, and the Site Plan Review Committee previously recommended approval.
While additional approvals are still needed before construction can begin, Costco's representative said the company is targeting a 2027 opening.
Brad Wester, a planner representing Costco, said construction is expected to take between 10 and 12 months once all approvals are secured and the property sale is finalized.
"They have about a 10 to 12 month built construction cycle once it's fully approved, but we have to close on this parcel still. We'll do that once we get all of our approvals, which is per the course, but it'll be 2027. So even if it's a year from now, summer, late fall-ish, but we're anticipating 2027 for the opening," he said.
The project first advanced in March when the Port St. Lucie Governmental Finance Corporation agreed to sell the property to Costco for $6 million.