BJ’s Wholesale Club announced plans April 30 for a membership club in St. Johns County that would open later this year.
The proposed St. Johns County store is east of Florida 210 in the master-planned Beachwalk community and north of a Cantina Louie Mexican restaurant.
The county issued a building permit May 16. Its application calls for 12 gas pumps, totaling 24 positions.
In 2019, the Prosser Inc. civil engineering firm asked JEA about the availability of electric, water, sewer and reuse services to serve the BJ’s Wholesale Club at Beachwalk.
It matches what representatives say is the proposed site.
It would be its 41st location in Florida, according to a news release.
“Our real estate pipeline is the strongest it’s been in 20 years, and we look forward to helping even more families save up to 25% off grocery store prices as we add clubs to both new and existing markets,” Bill Werner, BJ’s Wholesale Club executive vice president of strategy and development, said in the release.
In addition to a Florida expansion that includes a location in Brookesville, BJ’s announced plans for six new clubs across the Southeast and Midwest, and in Kentucky in early 2025.
According to its website, “BJ’s Wholesale Club is a leading warehouse club operator on the East Coast of the United States. We deliver significant value to our members, consistently offering 25% or more savings on a representative basket of manufacturer-branded groceries compared to traditional supermarket competitors.”
Annual memberships at BJ’s start at $20.
BJ’s Wholesale Club, founded in 1984, is headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts. It operates 244 clubs nationwide.
It has four locations in Northeast Florida: River City Marketplace in North Jacksonville; Atlantic Boulevard in East Arlington; Philips Highway near Baymeadows; and Blanding Boulevard in Orange Park.
It has a distribution center in West Jacksonville.