It’s been said Franklin is getting the first Costco in Milwaukee County.
But is it?
The project has been touted as such in the most recent news release from the City of Franklin on May 4 headlined: “Costco prepares to break ground on first location in Milwaukee County.”
However, the 164,000 square foot facility being built at 2710 W. Drexel Ave., which is scheduled to open in November 2026, is actually the second in the county’s history.
A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reader reached out about a possible Costco location in Milwaukee in the late 1980s. Archives from the former Milwaukee Journal and Milwaukee Sentinel indicate a Costco formerly occupied the current Home Depot location at 150 W. Holt Ave. in Milwaukee.
An Oct. 28, 1986 article in the Milwaukee Journal notes Costco Wholesale opened in Milwaukee on Oct. 30 that year.
“Costco is an example of a new breed of deep discounters who cater to small businesses and members of groups such as credit unions, selling everything from appliances and office furniture to candy,” the article said.
The story notes Costco had 22 stores across the country at the time.
About 18 months later, on April 14, 1988, the Milwaukee Sentinel reported Costco would be refunding its members in Milwaukee before the warehouse closed at the end of that month. At the time, Costco members paid between $25 and $30 per year, according to the Sentinel story.
The Milwaukee location, which employed between 60 and 80 people, was closed along with two Costco stores in Minneapolis. The article said the stores were unprofitable at the time.
The Grafton location, which opened in 2007, was Costco’s first new warehouse in Wisconsin since the Milwaukee location’s closure.
“We were not successful,” former Costco CEO Jim Sinegal told the Journal Sentinel in 2009 regarding the former Milwaukee location. “We chose to exit the market.”
The Journal Sentinel has reached out to Costco for comment about its history in the Milwaukee area – and also to City of Franklin officials – but has not heard back.
History of Costco nationally and in Wisconsin
Costco, which first opened in 1976 under the Price Club name, initially only served small businesses, according to the company website. The first Costco warehouse opened in Seattle in 1983, only three years before the company came to Milwaukee. Costco and Price Club merged in 1993 as PriceCostco with 206 locations. The company resumed the Costco name in 1997.
The Journal Sentinel was first to report in May 2025 that Costco could be interested in Franklin when the retailer’s name appeared as part of a traffic impact analysis in city documents.
Today, Costco has Milwaukee-area stores in Grafton, Menomonee Falls, Pewaukee, New Berlin and Pleasant Prairie. In addition to Franklin, the retail giant is working on opening a location in Oconomowoc.
Contact Erik at erik.hanley@jrn.com. Follow his Facebook page, The Redheadliner Erik S. Hanley, and follow him on X @Redheadliner.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Franklin’s getting a Costco, but it’s not Milwaukee County’s first
Reporting by Erik S. Hanley, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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