Costco Plans To Open Its First Capital Region Warehouse in Guilderland

Will Waldron/Times Union

Doors at the Capital Region’s first Costco warehouse open at 10 a.m. on Thursday, August 6, 2026, in Guilderland. The store sits along the Western Avenue corridor next to Crossgates Mall, giving Costco a foothold in one of the busiest retail nodes in the Albany metro.

The building is roughly 163,000 square feet, in line with the chain’s newer prototypes elsewhere in the country and larger than either Sam’s Club or BJ’s Wholesale Club in the same trade area. Site plans include an 18-pump members-only gas station and more than 770 parking spaces. Costco has said the store will employ about 150 people at opening.

Hours will follow the chain’s standard cadence: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Costco has been signing up Capital Region members ahead of opening from a temporary Recruitment and Membership storefront on the upper level of Crossgates Mall, near Macy’s. The temporary office was set up specifically to build a member base in advance of Day 1 — a playbook Costco uses in most new markets and one worth watching for what it says about how much pent-up demand the chain sees here.

What Does This Mean for Locals?

A single big-box opening does not usually move a regional market. This one might, for three reasons.

First, it is the first Costco in the Capital Region, which means the trade area is essentially untested. Sam’s Club and BJ’s have long-standing operations in the metro, and both will see share loss during the ramp period; the size of that shift will tell competitors and landlords a lot about consumer preference in the market.

Second, it lands in a moment when new retail construction nationally is at a 20-year low, per CBRE’s first-quarter national retail report. A 163,000-square-foot ground-up warehouse in an established Northeast metro is unusual right now, and the site work at Guilderland will be a reference point for other single-tenant retail projects that have stalled or been shelved.

Third, it stacks with other big-box arrivals across the region. Trader Joe’s set to open a third Capital Region store in Glenmont on October 28, an Aldi still working through approvals in Latham, and continued small-format grocery activity from Stewart’s Shops and others. The Capital Region has quietly become one of the more active grocery-and-club expansion markets in the state.

What to watch after opening

• Traffic patterns along Western Avenue and the Crossgates ring road, particularly during the first two weekends. Costco frequently uses temporary detours to manage its early rush.
• The gas station, which typically becomes one of the lowest-priced fuel points in a given metro and often shifts commuter routing meaningfully.
• Any co-tenancy adjustments at Crossgates itself. Adding a Costco next door reshapes the mall’s own traffic profile and can create new demand for adjacent small-shop space.
• The Sam’s Club and BJ’s response — pricing, membership promotions, or format tweaks.

Sources

• “Costco opens membership office at Crossgates ahead of Capital Region debut” — CBS6 Albany / WRGB
• “Costco Sets Opening Date for First Albany Region Costco Location” — Costco97
• “When is the Capital Region Costco Opening?” — WGNA
• “Costco Memberships Now Available at Crossgates” — Capital Region Chamber