Camarillo's Costco Opens October 30 as the First Piece of an Older Plan

Since May, members have been filling up at a 32-pump gas station on West Ventura Boulevard. The warehouse behind it has stayed closed. That changes on Friday, October 30, when Costco opens its Camarillo store south of Highway 101 near Springville Drive. Costco Director of Real Estate Development Michael Okuma confirmed the date to the Camarillo Acorn.

That's 18 days from now, one day before Halloween. Coverage has mostly treated the opening as the end of a long fight. According to the city's planning documents, the warehouse covers only part of a site Camarillo approved for a much larger shopping center years ago. The field next to it is still approved for that larger center, and the city's analysis projects fewer daily miles driven under the Costco plan than under the original one.

The Field Was Zoned for Shopping Long Before Costco Arrived

The property near Springville has been waiting for a long time. According to the Camarillo Acorn, it was approved for a shopping center in 2007, but none of the earlier versions got built. Costco's part of the story took about four years:

1. 2022: Costco applied to change the existing approved plans so it could build a 163,177-square-foot warehouse and a separate fuel station.
2. December 2023: The Camarillo Planning Commission approved the project 4-1. Some residents had raised concerns about traffic, air quality and wildlife, including burrowing owls.
3. February 2024: The City Council upheld the approval.
4. After that: A citizens' group sued under the California Environmental Quality Act. The group argued the city should have required a full environmental impact report instead of a narrower review. A Ventura County Superior Court judge ruled for the city, and the group appealed.
5. February 2, 2026: The California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Six, filed its opinion upholding the decision against the challengers. The Ventura County Star reported the ruling three days later. The group did not take the case to the California Supreme Court.

The challenge rested on whether the city's environmental review went far enough. Camarillo used a document called a Second Subsequent Mitigated Negative Declaration, completed in December 2023. That review was based on the shopping center already approved for the site. It is the most useful document for understanding what opens on October 30 and what comes after.

Why the City Expects Shorter Trips, Not More Traffic

Opponents warned that the warehouse and a high-volume gas station would make traffic worse around Ventura Boulevard and Springville Drive. That concern was still part of the Acorn's coverage in September. The city's review measured the project a different way.

The review compares the new plan with what was already approved for the land. In its detailed table, the Costco plus the rest of the approved shopping center would generate 4,591 fewer vehicle miles traveled per day than the original Amara Shopping Center plan. The same document projects 5,963 primary trip ends, so the store will clearly draw cars. The difference is trip length. Camarillo members already drive to Costco. Until now they have gone to warehouses in Oxnard, Simi Valley or Westlake Village. The Oxnard store is less than five miles from the new site.

The Acorn also reports a tax difference between the two cities. Purchases at the Oxnard store are subject to Oxnard's 9.25% sales tax rate, compared with 7.25% in Camarillo. City officials have said they want more of that retail spending, and the sales tax that comes with it, to stay in Camarillo.

The site layout explains how cars will get in and out. The approved plan has two driveways on Ventura Boulevard plus a connection to Overland Road at the northeast corner of the property. The review also requires bus stops with shelters along the Ventura Boulevard frontage. The number of stops will be set with Camarillo Area Transit. The document lists this as a duty of the Amara Shopping Center developer, not as a stop inside the Costco lot.

"This is an important achievement for the Camarillo community. The new warehouse will offer greater convenience for local shoppers, support economic activity in Camarillo and create meaningful job opportunities. It represents a significant moment for our city."

City Manager Greg Ramirez gave that statement to the Ventura County Star in September, after Costco posted the opening date.

What Is Still Coming at Springville

The Costco does not use the whole site. The city's review says the project leaves the western 24.84 acres unchanged. That land keeps its approval for the second phase of the Amara Shopping Center, with 335,823 square feet of building area.

So the October 30 opening is not the final shape of this corner. The warehouse is about 160,000 square feet by the Acorn's count. The space still approved next door is more than twice that size. None of the sources reviewed for this post give a timeline, tenant list or builder for the second phase. For now, the field west of the Costco is approved but empty.

The approved design helps show what a finished corner could look like. Camarillo's Heritage Zone Design Guidelines shaped the Costco building. It has a Mission and Early California style with entry arches, a sloped entry roof, hipped towers, clay tile, textured walls and earth-tone colors. The design is meant to look more like Old Town than a typical big-box store, and any future phase on the same site would be reviewed under the same city framework.

What Opens on October 30

The Acorn lists a bakery, pharmacy, optical and hearing aid centers, a tire center, a food court and more than 877 parking spaces. It also says the store is expected to offer freshly prepared sushi, which older Costco locations don't have. The address is 431 W. Ventura Blvd. The gas station has its own address next door at 437. The Springville Drive exit off the 101 is the closest approach.

October 30 is still a scheduled date. Costco has changed opening dates at other stores before, so Costco's Camarillo warehouse page is the place to check opening-week details.

Two Weeks of Change Along One Boulevard

The Costco isn't the only change on Ventura Boulevard this month. Texas Roadhouse is scheduled to open Monday, October 19, at 650 E. Ventura Blvd. That's in the Promenade at Camarillo Premium Outlets, near Finney's Crafthouse. It will be the chain's first Ventura County location and will employ 220 people, according to the Ventura County Star.

Between the two openings sits the biggest public project the boulevard has had in years. Here is how the three line up from west to east:

Dizdar Park works on a different time scale from the two openings around it. To expand the park, the city removed a vacant office building and a former fire station. It then added a new stage and moved the statue of city founder Adolfo Camarillo to a more visible spot, as the Camarillo Acorn reported in March. The city's project page says the renovation was finished when the park opened on March 21. Mayor David Tennessen called the project "a lasting legacy investment" that "brightens our future while honoring the past." The city held its first public workshops on the park in 2019.

Dizdar Park and the Promenade have no announced construction ahead. At Springville, the approved plan for the Springville corner still has the 24.84-acre second phase, the developer's bus-stop shelters along Ventura Boulevard and 335,823 square feet of building area left to build.

If you're wondering how the Springville corner and its unbuilt second phase might affect property values or your plans on Camarillo's west side, The Agents can walk you through what has been approved and how projects like this usually move from approval to construction. Talk with a Local Expert.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.