Central Point, Ore. — “They have a pretty strict timeline,” Community Development Director Tom Humphrey said.
Crews broke ground last week for the new Costco location in Central Point.
“They typically figure 110 days from the time they start construction until it’s open,” Humphrey said.
Central Point community development director Tom Humphrey says Costco is still waiting on a building permit. It’s expected by the end of the week but for now, crews have been grading.
“Grading is a process of going through and excavating some of the soils that uh they don’t need, they can’t use, and then trucking it off the site,” Humphrey said.
With the current Costco building about 25 years old, the store wanted to move to a more accessible and energy efficient location. Humphrey says the site was also chosen because Jackson County was awarded a grant to make improvements to Table Rock Road.
“Starting in the spring of 2018 we’re going to be rebuilding Table Rock Road to a five-lane facility through this area,” Jackson County Director of Road John Vial said.
According to Jackson County director of roads John Vial, Costco is required to make temporary improvements to Table Rock Road like facilitating left turns.
But the Oregon Department of Transportation has been planning to add two northbound lanes, two southbound lanes and a center turn lane in the following year.
“Table Rock Road is a narrow road today. And it’s really not designed to accommodate a Costco superstore,” Vial said.
Vial expects a lot of congestion on the road in the coming years but says the end result will be worth it.
Either way, Humphrey says Costco shoppers will not lose a day without the store as it moves to Central Point.
The newly constructed Costco is expecting to open by the holidays.
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