Costco is officially circling Clayton. The membership retail giant has filed plans for a 166,000-square-foot warehouse and a 24-pump fuel center on an 87-acre tract just outside town, a move that would plant its first flag in Johnston County. The site sits inside the emerging West Edge retail corridor that developers have been pitching to major anchors, hinting at a significant new wave of big-box retail southeast of Raleigh. The project is still in its early stages, with filings submitted but no construction schedule and several layers of approvals still ahead.
What the proposal includes
According to documents filed with local officials and reported by The News & Observer, the plans call for a 166,000-square-foot warehouse paired with a 24-pump fueling station on an 87-acre parcel at 12649 Clayton Boulevard. The Triangle Business Journal first detailed the proposal and pegged the overall project value near $100 million. Local reporting notes that the land was sold by developer Casto as part of the larger West Edge master plan that has been quietly taking shape in recent years.
Why retailers are betting on Clayton
Clayton is not exactly a sleepy small town anymore. U.S. Census data show the town’s population jumping from about 26,300 residents in 2020 to an estimated 32,633 by mid-2025. The community also skews relatively young with a strong share of working-age residents, a combination that tends to make national retailers perk up.
Town planning calendars and local coverage indicate that Casto has been carving out anchor-ready pads in West Edge and quietly courting big-name tenants. Target’s land purchase inside the same West Edge footprint has already signaled that major chains see long-term potential here. With population growth, open land and highway access all lining up, it is not hard to see why a warehouse club operator would want in.
What it could mean for shoppers and neighbors
If the project moves forward, Clayton shoppers could gain a major new option along the Highway 70 and Clayton Boulevard corridor, where Lowe’s Foods, Walmart and Food Lion already serve residents inside town limits. It would also add another big reason for drivers to funnel into an area that already feels busy at peak times, something neighbors are likely to bring up once public meetings begin.
The News & Observer notes that the closest existing Costco is on Fayetteville Road in Raleigh, which means Johnston County members currently make a decent trek for bulk runs and gas fill-ups. A spokesperson for Casto told the outlet that the company is not “able to provide a comment beyond what is publicly available.” For now, the next big milestones will be familiar planning items: traffic studies, stormwater designs and a schedule of public hearings as the application moves through review.
What’s next
For all the excitement, this is still just a proposal until municipal and county reviews are complete and permits are in hand. Neither Casto nor Costco has announced a construction start date or opening timeline. The Triangle Business Journal first reported the filing on July 6, noting that the store is folded into a roughly $100 million West Edge development that could reshape the highway corridor over time.
Local officials have not yet posted formal hearing dates, and key site-plan documents are still working their way through the system. We will update this story as those materials become public. For now, the filing alone is enough to put Clayton firmly on the radar of regional retail developers who are clearly treating Johnston County as the next big growth frontier.
