Dec. 28—Editor’s note: The Times-Call is counting down the top 10 news stories of the year, as selected by the newspaper’s editors.

After months of anticipation by local shoppers, Costco officially opened for business in Longmont on May 4.

Located at 205 E. Ken Pratt Blvd., the 152,000-square-foot warehouse includes a bakery, a deli, fresh meat and produce sections, an optical department, a pharmacy, a tire center, a hearing aid center, a food court and a beer and wine selection.

The Longmont City Council previously approved $12.5 million in city funding and fee rebates for Costco to secure its opening in the city, as opposed to another nearby community.

Costco currently has 16 warehouses in Colorado and as of Nov. 26, had 129.5 million cardholders worldwide.

Gold star memberships are available for $60 a year and executive gold star memberships for $120 annually.

The city has projected that Costco’s Longmont location will generate more than $4 million annually in sales tax revenue, and that this will increase by 2% annually.

The Longmont warehouse is currently open from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

“We are thrilled to be bringing Costco’s low warehouse prices to the residents of Longmont,” Warehouse Manager Jeff Scheidemantle said in a previous announcement.

“They have been asking us to open here for a long time, and we already have made an impact on the local job market. We look forward to contributing to the community in many ways.”

Costco’s Longmont location is expected to have 220 employees.

——

Top 10

No. 10: A dangerous year on the roads

No. 9: Longmont doused with rain as city experiences wettest year since 1923

No. 8: Two convicted in Longmont postal murder case

No. 7: Proposition HH fails; property valuations rise

No. 6: Former state Rep. Tracey Bernett resigns

No. 5: Dysfunction in Dacono