First major hurdle cleared for construction work to start on Costco superstore in Malaga

The plan to revamp the Malaga Nostrum shopping centre with the construction of a Costco store, on the site currently occupied by the cinemas, has taken a big step towards materialising in the coming years. As SUR last reported on 29 April, head of Costco for Spain and France Diane Tucci spoke with mayor Francisco de la Torre to reaffirm her commitment to the arrival in Malaga of this chain of hypermarkets, which operate as a membership club in which you have to register and pay a fee to be able to shop there.

Following their conversation, the city coouncil's 'gerencia municipal de urbanismo' granted planning permission for the first stage of the project. It means the go-ahead has been given for the refurbishment of the commercial area that used to house a Conforama furniture chain shop to move the existing cinema screens to this building, which will be reduced from 18 to 14 and will occupy the first floor, with a total of 4,462 square metres of floor space.

The ground floor, some 4,500 square metres, is reserved for commercial premises, according to the project drawn up by architect Salvador Moreno Peralta, which will involve an investment of more than two million euros.

The works to fit out the new cinemas will last for a year, and the aim is the screenings will not be interrupted at any time at the Malaga Nostrum. Once the current cinema building has been freed up, it will be demolished, which will cost more than half a million euros and be completed within six months.

If there are no issues, the new cinemas could open next year and the current cinemas will be demolished, and Costco will start building its shopping centre on the plot, designed by architect Antxon Taberna, from the firm Técnicos Consultores.

The owners of this commercial area, the Seville-based Bogaris group, have indicated that, once the cinemas have been demolished, Costco's intention is to start work on its commercial area immediately, with a completion period of nine or ten months. In this case, it would not have to wait for planning permission as it has already been granted. In this way, Costco is expected to open in Malaga in 2026. Although the overall investment of the entire refurbishment of the Malaga Nostrum centre will exceed 60 million euros, the work to be carried out by Costco is valued at 18.3 million.

This new hypermarket, which will have a car park with 640 parking spaces distributed between the basement and ground floor, where there will also be a tyre sales and changing facility, will have a restaurant area, toilets, optical and audiometric areas, as well as offices.

The Bogaris group is confident that before this summer the town planning approval will be granted for another project that goes hand in hand with Costo's arrival. This is the construction of a petrol station also managed by the American chain. It will be built on the site resulting from the demolition of one of the commercial warehouses on the block where Conforama was located. Bogaris' intention is to hand over to Costco next year the plots available for the hypermarket and the petrol station, following the corresponding demolitions.