The San Jose City Council has approved Costco’s much-debated plans to build a new warehouse store at the Westgate West shopping center with dozens of new conditions to address traffic and safety concerns voiced by thousands of residents.
Despite the project’s numerous economic benefits, Vice Mayor Rosemary Kamei, who represents the area, led the charge to balance the tradeoffs by asking the wholesale retail giant to step up and lessen the potential impacts to neighboring homes and schools beyond what the city initially requested.
“My office and I have held continuous talks with community members and representatives of Costco to improve the project and mitigate its impacts,” Kamei said. “Beyond standard conditions of approval, Costco has voluntarily agreed to a large array of additional improvements, recognizing the need to be a good neighbor.”
Costco’s vision includes investing an estimated $60 million in the project at 5287 Prospect Road. It will knock down three existing single-story buildings at the struggling mall and replace them with a 40-foot-tall, 165,148-square-foot store with rooftop parking.
Before Tuesday’s approval of the new West San Jose location, Costco operated four warehouse stores and one business center throughout the city.
The Westgate West project, which sits on the border of San Jose and Saratoga, has split the community for years since Costco announced its intentions.
City officials and business leaders viewed the proposed West San Jose Costco as an economic boon. In addition to adding 250-300 jobs at an hourly rate of $29 per hour, San Jose expects to receive $2 million in annual sales tax revenue on top of other taxes that could benefit the city, county and nearby schools.
“Costco has shown to be a partner over three years of conversation, design changes and contributing $2.5 million to additional traffic needs,” San Jose Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Leah Toeniskoetter said in support of the project. “They are showing to show up. If existing shopping centers like Westgate West cannot add new retail to remain competitive, it does pose a significant economic challenge for us in San Jose.”
Costco’s arrival is also expected to strengthen the mall, which has seen numerous tenants cycle in and out of the property over the last few years. Several existing tenants voiced support for Costco’s project.
“We believe that having any empty spaces in a business district is not good for the city,” said Robyn Morrow, a business owner in the Westgate West mall. “It’s not good for the community and its residents. It creates all sorts of hazards and potential crime, and just having a thriving business community where it’s a safe place for families to come and to shop and to spend time and to dine will only, I think, add more value to the area.”
Many residents, however, did not view Costco’s value in the same way and accused the city of favoring big business over the welfare of its residents.
Along with abutting a residential neighborhood and being close to Prospect High and Country Lane Elementary schools, Costco will impact the major arterials of Lawrence Expressway, Prospect Road, and Saratoga Avenue, prompting concerns about noise and public safety impacts from an estimated 11,000 daily additional trips.
“We recognize that all projects are about compromise, but there are some compromises that you just don’t make,” Prospect High PTSA President Julie Reynolds-Grabbe said. “Voting yes on this project sends a clear message that San Jose’s future belongs more to developers than to its own people (and) the tax dollars outweigh the safety of our students and the well-being of residents.”
While he acknowledged the validity of several of the concerns raised, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan disputed the notion that the city was making decisions solely based on money.
“I do not find it at all convincing or compelling to be accused of making decisions because of the money or because of some support for big business,” Mahan said. “That is not what has motivated any of us. I want to be clear about that. When we take up land use issues, they actually tend to be the hardest decision to make as a council because we all run by knocking on your doors to represent the community and do what’s best for the community.”
Among the conditions approved Tuesday, Costco has committed to limiting traffic on Graves Avenue and relocating loading docks away from homes. The company has also agreed to increase its contribution for intersection improvements from $1 million to $2.5 million, which will improve bicycle and pedestrian safety.
Saratoga representatives, however, have scoffed at Costco’s belief that it had mitigated all traffic and safety impacts, including on and around Saratoga Avenue and Cox Avenue.
On Monday afternoon, Saratoga Vice Mayor Belal Aftab told Costco’s representatives that he would hold them personally responsible for any injuries related to increased traffic.
“Costco is doing the bare minimum to assuage the City of San Jose because legally they don’t have to care about the impacts on Saratoga beyond Prospect and Lawrence,” Aftab wrote in an email to Costco’s representatives. “That, to me, is not corporate responsibility. That’s valuing (return on investment) over the safety of a community. That Costco, a company with $390 billion+ in market cap and billions of dollars in annual profit, cannot find even an extra $100k to help surrounding neighborhoods beyond the bare minimum is an embarrassment.”