Costco Wholesale has withdrawn from plans to set up shop in Fayetteville’s Military Business Park, according to a local developer.
Earlier this year, preliminary site plans for a Costco store were posted on the Cumberland County Development Review Finder website.
It would have been the first Fayetteville location for the international retailer that has warehouse club stores in eight countries.
A Costco spokesman was not available to comment for this story. The retailer says on its website that it does not have a public relations or media department.
Fayetteville developer and landowner Dohn Broadwell said Friday that the company had “definitely canceled our negotiations. I don’t think they had any other site identified.”
“We’re very disappointed,” Broadwell said. “I think it would have been a great addition to the retail sector in the community.”
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Broadwell said he first learned that Costco decided not to open a store here — at least in the 230-acre Military Business Park — about six months ago.
Costco had been considering plans for about 30 acres in the park.
“We were close to a final agreement, but they notified us the contract had not been approved by their board,” said Broadwell, who is the president of the business park.
The company had had some surveying and soil testing done to determine the suitability of the site, according to Broadwell.
“Due-diligence research,” he called it. “It was more preliminary.”
Asked whether he will pursue another potential tenant for the park, Broadwell said: “Not many 30-acre projects around here.”
Broadwell said he never spoke directly with a Costco representative and that the discussions were between brokers and an attorney. Broadwell speculated that Costco backed out of a Fayetteville location because of a combination of factors: the state of the local retail market and the higher cost of construction.
Plans for a Costco in the Military Business Park were presented to the Technical Review Committee of the city’s Development Services Department on Aug. 1, according to city officials.
The Fayetteville location — which plans said would be 151,000 square feet over 21.39 acres — would have been near the convergence of Interstate 295 Bypass, Bragg Boulevard/N.C. 24 and the All American Freeway, according to the online plans.
Currently, the nearest Costco stores are in Raleigh, Apex and Garner.
Costco, which is based in Seattle, is a membership warehouse club that says it offers discount prices on brand-name merchandise. It is similar to BJ’s Wholesale Club and Sam’s Club, which both have stores in Fayetteville.
Broadwell did note of Costco: "They have a lot of fans."
Michael Futch covers Fayetteville and education for CityView. He can be reached at mfutch@cityviewnc.com.
