Kelowna Mayor Colin Basran said it’s too early for him to comment on the proposed Costco relocation.
In September, Costco revealed its plans to build a 3.6-acre warehouse with 812 parking stalls and a gas bar near the intersection of Baron Road and Leckie Road, just behind the Real Canadian Superstore.
The plans indicate the store would be about 20 per cent larger than the current Costco Highway 97 location, coming in at over 155,000 square-feet.
In a response to a letter from Ron Ready, who has been very vocal about his disdain for the move and its impact on his neighbourhood, Basran said he’s awaiting the assessment city planners are currently working on.
“I understand your concerns but from my perspective, it is premature for me to address them,” wrote Basran.
“Costco has submitted their development application to staff. Once city planners complete their assessment of the development proposal, they will submit a report to council recommending whether or not the property should be rezoned.
“The application must then be considered by city council. Once it is considered by council, it will go to a public hearing so the public has an opportunity to provide input to council.”
In November, Ready said he was concerned that the already-heavy traffic in the area will become unmanageable if the box store is built.
“We’ve already got more traffic on Leckie than we can handle,” Ready said.
“Putting a new Costco in — it’s going to be larger than the existing one. It’s going to be more people, more vehicles and more traffic congestion.
“There’s no place to widen the roadways or handle the increased traffic.”
As of yet, there is no set date for the application to come before council.
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