Residents on Jacksonville’s Westside could soon have a Costco of their own — and a new way to get there.
After years of negotiations among the wholesale retailer, the property owner Harmony Farms of Jacksonville LLC, the city and JTA, the area’s second Costco proposed near Collins Road and Interstate 295.
Building plans show Costco wants to build an almost 155,000-square-foot wholesale club on nearly 44 acres at 7935 Parramore Road.
The land was rezoned for the project in 2014, but the need to reroute a section of Parramore Road and a 50-foot-wide drainage ditch delayed the project as the sides debated who would pay for it.
Ordinance 2017-88 goes to City Council on Tuesday.
If approved, it allows Costco Wholesale Corp. to close Parramore Road, which heads south off Collins Road and dead-ends in the middle of the property. Costco will build a new Parramore Road that will connect Collins Road with Youngerman Circle.
A 50-foot-wide ditch also will be relocated to create a buffer around the shopping center.
Council member Jim Love, who represents District 14 where the Costco will be built, said the existing Parramore Road “isn’t ideal” for drivers trying to reach retailers along Youngerman Circle.
Currently, from Collins Road, drivers get back on Interstate 295, take the Blanding Boulevard exit and then turn onto Youngerman Circle to reach stores like Publix Super Markets and Sam’s Club.
Love said Youngerman Circle isn’t functioning at capacity, “so when this is completed, it will.”
Others say the new Parramore Road will help ease traffic congestion on Collins Road and even I-295.
Bill Lewis, president of the Argyle Area Civic Council acknowledged that some of his members aren’t happy, but said the investment will result in new jobs and increased property taxes.
“I’m looking forward to having Parramore Road connected to Youngerman,” Lewis said.
“It was bound to happen at some point, but I understand their frustration.”
Love said Westside residents have been waiting for another Costco in the area since one near the St. Johns Town Center opened 17 years ago.
That location is about 23 miles from the new store.
“It’s very busy, and sometimes very difficult for us Westsiders to get to during a busy weekend,” Love said. “A second store makes a lot of sense for consumers, and it makes a lot of sense financially for Costco.”
Some residents have concerns.
Sherry Warren, who lives in the Argyle Forest neighborhood directly behind the property, said most of her neighbors aren’t happy to have the increased traffic and noise she said often comes with a new shopping center.
“I understand things are going to change, that’s progress and it’s good for Jacksonville,” said Warren, who also is on the Argyle Area Civic Council board. “Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be the same consideration for the community.”
Warren said the area already has become noisy with neighboring shopping centers on Youngerman Circle and Blanding Boulevard, so much so that her family recently had to install noise-canceling windows.
“I’m pretty aggravated by it all,” she said.
Costco’s 508 warehouse stores nationwide and in Puerto Rico, including the single Jacksonville location, are known for being busy.
Council member Scott Wilson, whose District 4 includes the existing Costco at 4901 Gate Parkway, said the retailer brings an economic boon wherever it lands. Costco predates the St. Johns Town Center by five years and its parking lot seems to be full often, especially on weekends.
“Other retailers know that Costco brings a lot of foot traffic so they’re going to try to be next to it,” Wilson said.
Wilson said the new Costco also will help alleviate congestion in the Town Center area, where two more developments are underway — The Crossing and The Strand at Town Center and the Town Center Promenade.
He said the Costco there is so busy, a traffic signal that was supposed to be temporary became a permanent solution.
An Ikea furniture store also is being built nearby — another retailer with a big fan base.
Love said one of benefits to the Westside will be retail tourism, since the new Costco will attract customers who live outside of the city.
Those who reside as close as Macclenny or as far away as Gainesville “will certainly benefit,” Love said.
The closest Costco locations outside of Jacksonville are 130 miles south in Altamonte Springs near Orlando and 160 miles west in Tallahassee.
“For the folks who don’t necessarily need to go to the Town Center, they’ll now have a second option with this Costco, so they can avoid the traffic and get in and out,” Love said.
The new location is expected to spur more growth on Parramore Road.
Plans for the Costco development also show outparcels nearby, including more retail and restaurant space that is anticipated.
“It’s growing and growing, and now we’re going to have more traffic near our neighborhood,” said Warren. “We’d like to keep our neighborhood a nice community, but I understand you can’t stop progress.”
Love said Costco plans to start construction in the coming months, with an opening date before the end of the year.
He said that wasn’t soon enough for him.
“They’re going to hit the ground running,” he said.