Costco Wholesale store gets final approval near Crossgates
After three years of waiting, the owner of Crossgates finally receives permission to build.
The first Costco Wholesale in Albany cleared its final regulatory hurdle on Wednesday night, when the Guilderland Zoning Board of Appeals granted a special-use permit.
The board voted 4 to 1 in favor of granting the permit requested by Crossgates.
Kevin McDonald and Sharon Cupoli were two of the five members who recused themselves.
Stephen Albert, an alternate member of the board, voted with three other members to achieve the required four votes.
The Albany County Planning Board had recommended that the special use permit be denied for a number of reasons, such as the store being incompatible with the zoning districts and its impact on traffic.
The chair of the zoning board, Elizabeth Lott, said that the board had determined the new shop was in line with the zoning districts and that the site plan had been reviewed thoroughly by the town planning committee.
The board's decision is still subject to legal challenge.
Pyramid Management Group LLC sought approval for this store over three years ago. However, the review process has been delayed due to litigation which ultimately ruled in favor of Crossgates.
The 40 million dollar store and gas station, which will cover approximately 160,000 square feet, will be constructed on 16 acres at the northeastern corner of the intersection between Western Avenue, Johnston Road, and Crossgates Mall Road.
Pyramid has requested an exemption of up to $400,000 on sales taxes, compensating use tax and mortgage tax.