With the news yesterday that Mayor Adams is in talks with a developer to bring a Costco store to the central city, it’s become clearer than ever that a big box store could very likely be in Portland’s future. Let’s remember that back in September, Adams was actively courting Target to locate in the Galleria mall downtown.
Judging from your comments yesterday, most of you think an inner-city Costco isn’t such a bad idea. With a Mayor who is pro urban big box (as long as it’s done thoughtfully of course), and a public seemingly intrigued and mostly supportive of the idea, I think it’s safe to say this is something that could sooner than we might think.
I realize this is more of an economic development issue, but depending on where our urban big box store is located, the impact on transportation could be very significant — and since Costco tends to attract people driving cars, that impact is even greater for people outside of them.
With that in mind, I asked some transportation experts up in Vancouver BC for their perspective. Downtown Vancouver is considered one of the most successful, dense, and livable cities in North America. They also have a Costco store in the downtown core (and a Home Depot too, for that matter).
Arno Shortinghuis, President of the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition, says their Costco happens to be sited in “arguably the the most pedestrian unfriendly spots in the entire city.” (check the Google streetview here).
The Vancouver Costco is located on the edge of the downtown core, under a SkyTrain (elevated rail) stop and the main entrance fronts a busy street that Arno calls “a very pedestrian and cycling unfriendly environment.” A dense residential area is adjacent to the store, but Arno says he’s not even sure how someone would approach it on foot.
Gavin Davidson, a former bike planner for TransLink (Vancouver’s bike/transit authority), echoes Arno’s assessment. Gavin says traffic in that location was bad before Costco go there, and that the store’s presence has “… definitely exacerbated the situation, since a lot of traffic now crosses the bike lane to access the Costco parking lot.”
So, it seems that, in Vancouver at least, the Costco isn’t exactly a dream destination for all modes and it has made the biking and walking environment worse. When/if one comes to Portland, hopefully the location and the developer takes non-automobile customers into consideration. (And yes, I realize Costco items are large/heavy/bulky, but that doesn’t mean you can’t carry them with a hand-truck or a cargo bike!).