Some residents in Palm City are keeping up their fight to prevent Costco from opening near their homes.
For the fourth time in more than two years, county leaders are reviewing an application from Costco looking to do business near the intersection of Martin Highway and High Meadow Avenue.
That location is the primary reason thousands of Palm City residents are opposed to the application, according to a Facebook page against a Palm City Costco.
Resident Marsi Walker has been a vocal opponent of the project for years, during the first, second and third applications, all which failed to get county approval.
“How many times do they get?” Walker said.
County leaders were slated to make a decision about the fourth application last month.
Walker says it appeared on the county website Aug. 1 that a decision had been made. She claimed the website for the county listed the Costco application as non-compliant.
“It was a great thing, we were excited,” Walker said.
The next day Walker said that changed. The website still says the decision is pending.
“We’re still in a holding pattern … the staff report is showing pending,” Walker said. “We were told by the county it’s still under review and they’re still processing the findings.”
Now, she’s checking the website daily, knowing at anytime, county leaders could make a decision.
Walker is not opposed to having a Costco in Martin County. But the location Costco has selected has problems, she says.
It is close to environmentally sensitive areas, multiple schools and neighborhoods. She worries about the traffic that could back up.
“Palm city kids that have to cross that street everyday to get to school. It’s a disaster waiting to happen in my opinion,” Walker said.
Traffic is one of the issues that has held up the application process for Costco over the years.
If the traffic issue can be resolved and Costco’s fourth application is approved by the county, Walker says she and other opponents plan to sue the county.
“We are Palm City, Stuart, Martin County residents just looking to preserve our lifestyle,” Walker said. “We’ve been fighting them for 2 and half years, we’re not backing down.”
