Vallejo Costco Set to Move to Larger Site Near Interstate 80 With Rare Items for Opening

A Costco warehouse in Vallejo is preparing to move into a bigger, upgraded building, and the retailer plans to mark the occasion with specialty goods that shoppers rarely see on its shelves.

The store now at 198 Plaza Drive, which opened almost 37 years ago, will relocate to 860 Admiral Callaghan Lane. The new site is less than a mile away, along Interstate 80. The grand opening is set for Friday, Nov. 6.

The new warehouse will cover about 152,000 square feet, roughly 20,000 square feet more than the existing store. Its fuel station will also grow, from 16 pumps to 30. Electric vehicle charging stations will be included as well, a feature found only at some of Costco's newer warehouses, such as the one in Pleasanton.

Familiar services will carry over, including a food court, a pharmacy, an optical department, a hearing aid center and tire services.

To celebrate, Costco intends to offer limited specialty products. "We will get all the spice items during the opening, items we don't normally carry," Maegan Galang, Costco Warehouse Bay Area Regional Marketing Manager, told KTVU. Galang said she has not been told which items will be offered. She pointed to earlier openings that featured very limited high-end goods, such as designer products from Burberry and Louis Vuitton. She added that past openings have drawn long lines of members hoping to buy rare bourbons and whiskeys.

The warehouse will anchor Fairview Plaza, a new mixed-use development. The city approved the project in June 2020, but construction was temporarily delayed after Safeway, which has a nearby store, tried to block it with a lawsuit. A settlement was later reached. The developer, Lewis Retail Centers, said on its website that "Costco is one of the strongest traffic generators in retail," noting that members visit often for groceries, fuel and household essentials, creating steady trips that benefit neighboring shops.

According to Wayne Williams, the company's vice president of retail marketing, the retail portion will also include a Wells Fargo and a Raising Cane's. An adjacent residential neighborhood will include approximately 20 acres of single-family homes.

Vallejo officials are hopeful about the effect on the city. Public Information Officer Robert Briseño said in an email that the site offers "a larger store footprint, expanded fueling capacity, and increased visibility for motorists traveling along the highway 80 corridor." He added that a larger and more accessible retail location could attract more customers and visitors, which "may generate increased sales tax revenue that supports municipal services." Briseño also said the facility is expected to provide an enhanced shopping experience with expanded amenities and greater convenience for residents and travelers.

City leaders are expected to attend the celebration. Customers are invited to the ribbon-cutting and grand opening ceremony at 7:30 a.m. on Nov. 6, ahead of the official opening at 8 a.m.