Costco Wholesale Project
Summary
SCH Number
2026020214
Public Agency
City of Lake Forest
Document Title
Costco Wholesale Project
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
2/6/2026
Document Description
The Project site is located within the southwestern portion of the Foothill Ranch Towne Centre and is currently developed with an existing 87,263-square foot commercial building formerly operated as a movie theater, a 126,878-square foot building pad, and a 582,225-square foot surface parking area. The Project proposes to demolish the former movie theater building and existing site improvements (e.g., asphalt and concrete pavement, landscape/shrub islands, utility infrastructure) and construct a new 34-foot tall, 165,068 gross -square foot retail warehouse building with a tire service center located within the northwestern portion of the site. Additional site improvements include parking, landscaping, and utility infrastructure.
Contact Information
Name
Connor Musler, AICP
Agency Name
City of Lake Forest
Job Title
Associate Planner
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Email
Name
Michael Okuma
Agency Name
Costco Wholesale
Job Title
AVP Real Estate Development
Contact Types
Project Applicant / Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Email
Location
Cities
Lake Forest
Counties
Orange
Regions
Southern California
Cross Streets
Towne Centre Drive and Market Place
Zip
92610
Total Acres
16.3
Parcel #
612-093-13
State Highways
SR 241
Other Location Info
26602 Towne Centre Drive, Lake Forest CA 92610
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Statutory Exemption
Type, Section or Code
California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Section 15183
Reasons for Exemption
California Public Resources Code Section 21083.3 and CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 provide that additional environmental review shall not be required for projects that are consistent with the development density established by existing zoning, community plan or general plan policies for which an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was certified, except as might be necessary to examine whether there are project-specific significant effects which are peculiar to the project or its site. An Environmental Checklist has been prepared pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 to determine whether there are project-specific significant effects that are peculiar to the Project or the site and if the proposed project meets the conditions for a streamlined environmental review process. A determination has been made that the proposed Project is consistent with the 2040 Lake Forest General Plan, for which an EIR was prepared and certified, and there are no-site specific or cumulative impacts associated with the proposed Project that have not been fully addressed in a previous environmental document, or that cannot be mitigated to a less than significant level through the application of the uniformly applied development policies and/or standards. This evaluation concludes the proposed Costco Wholesale Project is within the scope of the 2040 Lake Forest General Plan EIR, and that no further CEQA documentation is required.
County Clerk
Orange
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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