Rants and raves for Costco

I’m a father of a family of five, and we do a big shop at Costco two or three times a month. The amount of grocery items and produce has really improved and increased over the last few years, and it’s great value to feed a family. I would be less likely to go if it was on the Westside. More likely to do some bigger-volume shops at Superstore. I try to cross the bridge as little as possible.

Has there been any thought to the traffic this will cause on and around the bridge? Highway 97 is bad enough. It seems we will now extend this traffic to the bridge and across. If anything, we should be looking for a Costco location away from the highway. 

Pete Guarasci

I come from the north side of town. We’re pretty big Costco shoppers, but I won’t go across the bridge to shop there as often as there’s too much traffic. It will lose 90 perc ent of our business.

Kim Arnold

Big mistake! The majority of people in Kelowna and north of Kelowna avoid using the bridge unless absolutely necessary. It will certainly cause many to lessen their visits and deter those from the northern end of our valley, merely adding to our traffic woes already being experienced. The city certainly blew it big time in turning Costco away.

Eric Rentiers

I believe closing the store to open one across the bridge will only increase traffic in West Kelowna. I live in Rutland and drive past Costco each day, and the traffic is always busier near the mall and Costco. In a few more years, they will realize they need a second Costco on this side of the bridge and will have to replace the one that already exists. I recommend leaving the one that exists now and build a second Costco in West Kelowna!

S. Steele

The City of Kelowna dropped the ball on this one. There is no good reason why the store was not allowed to be built by the airport. The fact that it didn’t fit into their plan does not make sense – it would look better than the current pile of dirt and sand that was to have been terminated many years ago. This mayor and council need to shake their heads.

Roger Tellier

Costco will do what it feels is best for the store financially, and that is that. As a Costco member who lives in Vernon, I am disappointed they are moving. I am not likely to fight heavy traffic through downtown Kelowna and then the bridge bottleneck just to go to Costco. People in the South Okanagan will benefit, but Costco will lose many customers from the north end of the valley. Ideally, Costco would consider another outlet in the North Okanagan, but that is their decision.

Berk Shaw

Slack reporting without any “official” proof.  I had to call my husband who works there and ask if any word came down officially, and he said no, it’s fake news. Maybe your reporter did find some sleazeball who gave him the inside scoop, but it’s irresponsible to try to do so without Costco or WFN’s official word. Every Costco employee is waiting to hear. Personally, I hope they do not move. The bridge traffic is already bad.

Ellen Cardinal

I am in favour of Costco moving. It will alleviate the traffic issues off Banks Road. It will also alleviate traffic issues getting on and off of Highway 97. I am really hoping it will move.

Harold Bert

I don’t think I will be as steady a Costco shopper as I am right now. Perhaps somebody should suggest to them to survey their shoppers, particularly those who already travel an hour plus to shop at Costco from Vernon, Salmon Arm, etc.

Joe Ferreiro

If they want to open a second store, then the Westside one would make sense. When a new store is opened and there is no second store, moving to the Westside will have a major impact on people having to cross the bridge.  It seems there are enough problems with the one bridge that Kelowna has, and to add even more traffic on it with the possibility of even more accidents, it just does not make sense. 

Brett Russell

I think it's long overdue and makes way more sense considering that the Westside is closer to the South Okanagan and more central. Many residents there cross the border to get groceries, as it's closer to them. Don't we want to keep the money in Canada? I’m really hoping that if one is built here, they implement an express lane. It could really help with traffic in Kelowna.

Maureen Bailey

I don’t no why they couldn’t have two stores. There are enough people to support them. I don’t think we will be joining the new one  it will be too far away, and crossing the bridge doesn’t work. I think it is a big mistake. I’m sure it will be busy, but they could have double that

Janis Bartels

Surprising that Kelowna council isn’t bending over backwards to get Costco to stay in Kelowna. We know folks in Revelstoke, Salmon Arm, Sicamous, and Vernon who will now go to Kamloops Costco rather than travel through town and across the bridge. The site out by the airport is a great location for it. What about the land next to the Baptist church across the street from the funeral parlour?

Stephen Horton