Costco to Open in April
By EMILY RAMSEY
Managing Editor
THE WAIT IS ALMOST OVER: On April 21, the first Costco location in Oklahoma is planned to open at 10220 S. Memorial Dr. Since the 150,000-square-foot store is located within Tulsa’s city limits, Tulsa will receive the store’s sales tax revenue; however, Bixby city officials expect the store to also bring long-term benefits to the city of Bixby.
EMILY RAMSEY for GTR Newspapers
On April 21, both Bixby and Tulsa will welcome membership warehouse Costco to the region, the first Oklahoma location for the retailer. While Tulsa will happily welcome the sales tax revenue, the city of Bixby must be satisfied with the residual benefits, which could be quite large.
There is no question that Bixby will feel the effects of the mammoth retailer; how much effect the city will experience, though, is yet to be seen.
“It’s hard to say for sure what the impact that Costco will have on Bixby, but we are hopeful,” says Bixby City Manager Jared Cottle.
“Many of our area businesses are excited about the extra people Costco will drive into their stores and restaurants,” notes Bixby Chamber of Commerce President Krystal Crockett. “We know that Costco’s entrance into the area will bring about more investment in the future from others.”
The 150,000-square-foot store will open at 10220 S. Memorial Dr., on the west side of Memorial Drive.
Current traffic counts around the 101st Street and Memorial Drive corridor register at a little over 38,000 cars per day, with that number, of course, expected to increase once Costco opens.
The 101st and Memorial intersection was the chosen location for another chain’s entrance into the region. Sprouts Farmers Market opened its first greater Tulsa location in Bixby in 2012, causing a considerable bump in traffic that continued for months before additional Sprouts locations opened.
“We saw people coming from all over the region,” says Cottle.
The entrance of a second Costco anywhere near the Tulsa region, however, is not at risk of occurring any time soon. The closest location to follow would, most likely, be in Oklahoma City, where rumor has it that the retail giant is eyeing next.
“With Costco, we will have traffic coming to Bixby that wouldn’t otherwise come to this area,” says Cottle. “That brings more exposure for our city and makes us a regional draw.”
With visitors on the increase in Bixby, the city has been conducting a traffic and signalization study in partnership with the City of Tulsa and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. The study focused on traffic needs from the Creek Nation Turnpike to the north to 171st Street.
The study highlighted Bixby’s greatest need to be the widening of Memorial Drive, starting at 111th Street and moving south. Also addressed in the study were traffic control efficiencies and strategies to keep traffic moving well and optimal stoplight signalization practices.
Updated 03-29-2016
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