Kansas City Council tapped the brakes Thursday on a proposal that could turn Costco’s longtime Midtown Linwood warehouse into a Costco Business Center, after a wave of loyal shoppers pleaded with leaders to keep their full-service store intact. The move leaves the future of the decades-old Linwood location hanging and has neighbors worried about losing the pharmacy, bakery and food court they count on.
Ordinance 260661, the item tied to the conversion request, was left untouched on the agenda, according to KSHB. The station reports the measure would clear the way for Costco to add outdoor storage and loading docks. The Business Center model would keep a walk-in cooler with some meat, dairy and produce, while cutting in-store services such as the food court, bakery, pharmacy and eye center.
What A Business Center Would Mean
Planning commissioners previously voted 6-1 to advance the rezoning request to City Council, a step the Kansas City Star notes brings the proposal closer to final approval. The Star reports the plan calls for roughly 22,000 square feet of outdoor storage for about 25 box trucks, a 10-foot fence and what Costco officials framed as a "significant investment" of up to $20 million to support a more delivery-focused operation.
Neighbors Fear A Food Desert
According to the USDA Food Access Research Atlas, census-tract 'low access' designations are used to identify and map local food deserts and could be used to assess whether removing in-store grocery services at Linwood would worsen access for nearby residents (USDA Food Access Research Atlas). Census Bureau data — specifically the American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates — include tract-level vehicle availability and population figures reporters can use to gauge whether Midtown residents are more likely to rely on in-store services rather than delivery (American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, Census.gov). The CDC's 'Vehicle Availability by Tract' layer, based on ACS data, can help determine how many Midtown households lack cars and therefore may depend more on nearby store services like a pharmacy (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) OneMap 'Vehicle Availability by Tract' layer). Reporters can use the American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates — the Census Bureau's recommended source for small-area data — to report tract-level median income and vehicle ownership around the Linwood store (American Community Survey: 5-Year Estimates, Census.gov).
Regulars at the Linwood store told reporters they lean on Costco for fresh produce, prescriptions and other basics. "I'm pretty sure it will probably change things quite a bit for the area," Mack Coleman told KSHB. Jerae Coleman said residents deserved a bigger voice in the decision and warned that a conversion would hit her finances.
How The City Is Handling It
City staff told the planning commission that the rezoning request is narrowly tied to outdoor storage, and that the fence and truck stalls are what triggered the land-use review, according to the Kansas City Star. Commissioners, however, pressed Costco to engage more directly with neighbors and questioned how a business-center model lines up with the hundreds of new apartments planned in Midtown.
Neighbors Organize And What Comes Next
A Midtown Neighborhood Alliance letter filed in city records urges leaders to "retain the current store in substantial form," a clear sign of organized pushback from nearby neighborhood groups. That letter appears in the city’s public docket. Earlier this year, the City Council also passed a resolution directing staff to begin talks with Costco about keeping the Linwood location intact, according to city public records.
For now, council members have put off a final decision, and both neighbors and the company are expected to push for more outreach and clearer details before a new vote is set. Midtown shoppers say they will be watching City Hall and their Linwood warehouse closely to see whether the store keeps serving the community the way it has for years.
