Costco’s new Redding store opens to buyers from Shasta to Sacramento

Standing among the throng waiting to get into the new Costco early Tuesday morning, Mary Slosted summed it up for a lot of people.

“I know we’ve waited, and we’ve waited, and we’ve waited. We thought it was going to be here or there. We’re just excited that it’s here. So, our time is now,” the Redding resident said.

More than 300 people were in line when the doors opened at 7:30 am The grand opening was pushed up about 15 minutes due to concerns about vehicle traffic building on South Bonnyview Road and Bechelli Lane in anticipation of the opening.

Marianne Nobmann was in line with Slosted. They arrived about an hour before the store opened.

“I’m so excited that Costco finally pulled it off. They worked so hard to get this store open,” Nobmann said.

Indeed, Tuesday capped a 20-plus-year journey for the big-box warehouse, which first opened in Redding on Dana Drive in the spring of 1990. It was only a few years later that Costco was looking to relocate to a bigger location with a gas station.

The new Costco is 25% percent larger than the former Dana Drive store and it has a 30-pump gas station, which opened Monday and was selling regular unleaded at $3.99 a gallon, more than a dollar less than the average price in greater Redding.

The old Costco on Dana will be repurposed into an At Home superstore.

Costco’s grand opening Tuesday was arguably the biggest retail event in Redding since Macy’s opened in the Mt. Shasta Mall in August 2001.

First in line, popular buys

Daniel Boyd drove from his home in Sacramento and got to Redding at 4:30 pm Monday to be the first in line.

“I’m a Costco member who has shopped at Costco for 15 years,” Boyd said.

Shoppers pour into the new Costco soon after it opens on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022.

He said he was looking for electronics and some bourbon.

Boyd and his friends spent the night in folding chairs.

Once the big rolling door was raised at the front entrance, shoppers clamored for deals as they navigated around the larger store, which has 17 checkout stands and eight self-checkout lanes.

Angie Hoelck had a PlayStation 5 console and a portable hot tub in her cart. She said the PS5 was selling for $550 and the hot tub was $299.

Hoelck lives in Happy Valley and initially wasn’t thrilled when Costco decided to relocate to south Redding because she worried about the traffic.

But she was impressed with the finished product.

“But it looks like they did everything so it wouldn’t be a traffic issue,” she said.

Customers wait to check out inside the new Costco on the morning of opening day, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022. The store has 17 check out lanes and eight self checkout lanes.

Theresa Channell of Cottonwood appreciated the bigger store. She was shopping with her husband, Ted, and granddaughter Madison Alvarez.

“I absolutely loved it,” she said as they loaded items into their SUV. “I thought it was actually organized pretty well. Lots and lots of options as far as the meat, and I like how they had the produce in its own area, in that cold area, like the grapes and that sort of thing, which used to be in the aisle.”

A ‘whiskey town’

Also popular were tequila and bourbon. The display of tequila on sale near the front entrance was buzzing with customers Tuesday.

Adam Spiegel of Sonoma Distilling Company was manning a display inside the new Costco. He said it was his first Costco grand opening.

Scott Wlodarczyk of Woody's Brewing Company works on his display inside the new Costco on opening day, Nov. 22, 2022. The Redding brewery and two out-of-town distilleries had displays inside the store.

“This is a whiskey town, from what I’ve heard. The people love their whiskeys,” Spiegel said.

Spiegel said coming to the Redding Costco opens new marketing opportunities.

“I can put what I do into context and teach people what I do. I’m just trying to evangelize at this point,” he said.

Scott Wlodarczyk, co-owner of Woody’s Brewing in Redding, also had a display in the new Costco.

“This is probably the biggest opening in Redding in I don’t know how long,” he said.

“It’s just going to bring more people here and more jobs.”

Expect extra traffic police patrols

Heavy traffic for Costco

By 9 am Tuesday, the parking lot at the new Costco on Bechelli Lane was packed.

The Redding Police Department said it will do more traffic patrols in the area of ​​Costco at least through the first week of its opening. There’s also talk of stepping up traffic patrols closer to the holidays.

Sgt. Mike DiMatteo, who works in the Redding police traffic division, said people need to be patient and drive slowly through the area.

“We’ll be observing,” he said, adding that police will look for red-light violations and make sure that traffic is flowing safely in the South Bonnyview-Bechelli corridor.

A potential problem Tuesday was vehicles accessing the Costco parking lot via westbound South Bonnyview. Traffic was backing up to the southbound Interstate 5 offramp in the morning.

Traffic appeared to be flowing well in the morning in the roundabout at the South Bonnyview-Bechelli intersection.

And with gas selling for under $4 gallon, there were no lines at the Costco gas pumps, at least around 9 am Tuesday.

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