EAGLE, Idaho — Costco hosted a neighborhood meeting at Eagle Academy High School to outline plans for a 27-acre development at 9755 N. Horseshoe Bend Road, located at the northeast corner of Hill Road and Highway 55.
The project would include a full warehouse, fuel facility, and space for other businesses, with Costco's project team including architects, traffic engineers and site planners on hand to speak with residents one-on-one.
John Shaw, Real Estate Development Director with Costco, opened the meeting by explaining that the project would be built at the former quarry site.
"We are proposing a new Costco at the old quarry site on Hill Road off of Highway 55," Shaw said. "The site's been vacant since 2003. This is the start of the city process. We're not seeking a vote tonight. There'll be many more steps, many more applications, public hearings, other opportunities for you to attend during the approval process."
"The purpose of the meeting tonight is to share our plans with you, give you an opportunity to review them, discuss them with us, ask your questions," Shaw added.
Shaw structured the meeting as an open house rather than a public forum, which drew criticism from residents who wanted a group discussion.
Watch to hear neighbors' mixed reactions to Costco's neighborhood meeting Thursday night —
"It's not one conversation. It's an open house. Feel free to come out and visit the boards," Shaw said.
John Cobbinah, an Eagle resident who lives in the Gray Sky Estate, expressed frustration with the format.
"We didn't come here for this. We came to listen and to get feedback from them, and we didn't get that," Cobbinah said.
Ben Gillenwater, a Boise resident whose neighborhood sits directly across from the proposed site near the cemetery, also criticized the approach.
"I think that I had low expectations, and they were not met," Gillenwater said. "I think, unfortunately, this meeting kind of reflects poorly on Costco."
Shaw acknowledged that traffic safety is residents' primary concern.
"We do recognize from emails that we've received, Facebook comments, that sort of thing, that traffic, traffic safety is a primary concern," Shaw said. "That's the reason we have commissioned a full traffic impact study and why significant traffic improvements are a part of the project."
Kecia Carlson, owner of Madeleine George Garden Design Nursery on the parcel directly east of the Costco project, came prepared with an alternative traffic proposal.
"I'm not opposed to the development at all," Carlson said. "I am extremely concerned about their traffic plan proposal, and I came to this meeting to share an alternative idea."
Her plan would use one-way access and roundabouts to eliminate traffic backups, which she said Costco's traffic engineers liked but would require ITD's approval.
Gillenwater expressed concerns about combining different area uses during busy periods.
"And so if you get a day where you have a soccer game, a funeral procession, and let's say it's a Saturday and everybody's going shopping at Costco, I might be stuck in my house," Gillenwater said. "I might not be able to leave."
"It's just going to turn a potentially quiet area into maybe a less quiet, you know, a little more busy, which there's pros and cons, and I think that's the opportunity that was missed tonight," Gillenwater said.
Christopher Haddon, an Eagle resident since 2016, supports the development based on rapid population growth.
"When I moved here, the population was roughly around 26,000. Now it's up to about 38, and in the last six years, the city council and mayor have approved over 15,000 new homes. That equates to about 40,000 new residents," Hadden said.
"We need something like this in the city of Eagle to help pay for some of the projects that are on the books," Hadden said. "I think Costco is a big win-win for the city, and I just don't see how anyone would not want it, quite frankly."
However, Cobbinah argued that Eagle already has sufficient retail options and worried about preserving community character.
"We have Winco. We have Albertsons, we have all this around. We don't need another Costco. Eagle is supposed to have that neighborly feel. Eagle is not a metropolitan area. We know each other. Everybody knows each other, and we are there for each other," Cobbinah said. "We all came here because we value where we live. We appreciate Eagle as an entity, and we want Eagle to be this way. We don't want somebody coming and taking over."
Shaw told Idaho News 6 that Costco would submit a formal application to the City of Eagle, which would trigger multiple opportunities for public comment during the official review process.
"We're very interested in your feedback. In addition to meeting with you tonight, I'd encourage you to fill out one of the comment cards that we have available tonight. That way, we are able to collect your input, questions, feedback, and incorporate that into our process as we move forward with planning with the city," Shaw said.
The development would require several approvals, including comprehensive plan amendments, rezoning, conditional use permits, and design review for the Costco building, site, and landscaping.
"I hope they listen to the citizens. I hope they will take our thoughts into consideration, and believe me, we will be writing to the city council," Cobbinah said.
