Costco is quietly bulking up in north Columbus, snapping up roughly 2.1 acres next to its Polaris warehouse in a move that could reshape one of the city’s busiest shopping zones. The newly acquired land sits in the retail cluster around Exit 121 on Interstate 71 and could eventually support more fueling, extra parking or an outparcel building.
On March 25, 2026, Columbus Business First reported that Costco bought the roughly 2.1-acre parcel immediately adjacent to its existing Polaris warehouse as part of an expansion push at the site. The outlet described the deal as a concrete step in the retailer’s long-running interest in deepening its presence in the Polaris trade area.
City zoning records show that the 1500 Gemini Place parcel, located at the northwest corner of Gemini Place and Lyra Drive, has been tied to Costco’s Polaris ambitions for years. A 2005 rezoning cleared the way for retail fuel sales there, and a “Costco Wholesale Preliminary Site Plan” is on file with the City of Columbus zoning records. Those older approvals help explain why fueling has been baked into long-term thinking for the site…