Mayor Kevin Davis says construction of a long-awaited Costco in Brantford should begin by summer.
The mayor made the announcement at this week’s city council meeting after councilors approved a bylaw removing a “holding provision,” giving conditional approval to the site plan and building permit filed to the city by Costco for 84 Lynden Rd., the site of the proposed new home for the big-box retailer.
The mayor said it means an agreement has been reached by all parties, conditional on certain items, including closing of the real estate deal, some financing and “a few other minor matters.”
While removing the holding provision isn’t the final step in the entire process, Davis said it is the final step for the city in the years-long process to bring Costco to Brantford.
“What this represents is a very significant step towards the construction and the establishment of a Costco in our community,” he said. “I think we can look forward to seeing the construction beginning next summer.
“This also really represents the end of what it is the city has needed to do to make this transaction possible. It has come about as a result of a lot of hard work, dedicated work, by our staff and various partner agencies.”
Plans are to build a store with a maximum floor area of just over 15,000 square meters and a gas bar on land between the Lynden Park Mall property and Highway 403.
count. Richard Carpenter said residents inquiring about when a Costco would be coming to the city has “probably been the biggest question that we’ve been getting asked for many years.”
“This is the third successive council that has been working on getting Costco here,” he said. “This is a good news story for those who are Costco shoppers and good for employment.”
count. John Sless said he has his fingers crossed the deal soon will be finalized.
“We’ve been on the cusp so many times and then been yanked back from the edge. I certainly hope this is the final thing and next summer there will be construction.”
Sless said his understanding is that “when Costco builds something, they build it in very, very short order.
“If it’s starting in summer, by next fall people will be shopping there.”
But Davis cautioned there is still a lot of work to be done at the Costco site, which sits at the southwest point of the mall property and is essentially vacant land that requires grading, drainage, sewer work, roads, water and electrical hookups.
There are two major road changes to be made.
The Ministry of Transportation confirmed earlier this year that it plans to improve the off-ramp from Highway 403 at Wayne Gretzky Parkway so it provides two lanes turning north toward the mall.
Another road will be created to enter the mall property, near the tourism center building, allowing direct access to the Costco store and gas bar. That road will allow entry only from northbound traffic.
The current mall entrance at Edmondson Street will be improved after it was deemed insufficient to accommodate an increase in traffic. The mall has three other entrances, including one off Woodyatt Drive.
Costco has previously said it will not confirm any store until planning issues are finalized.
There have been discussions about Costco coming to Brantford since 2011.
In 2014, the store was linked to a 6.7-hectare property at Morton Avenue and Wayne Gretzky Parkway purchased by a property developer.
Despite a site plan and extensive negotiations, plans were scuttled when the Ministry of Transportation raised concerns about increased traffic from Costco backing up traffic on the nearby Highway 403 interchange. The property was eventually put back on the market.