A brand new Bj's Wholesale Club will be built in Schenectady County. A Bj's Wholesale Club exists nearby, but the new store will be bigger and better.

BJ's Wholesale Club has received approval to build a new Rotterdam store. The town's planning commission approved the project at 880 Duanesburg Road/Route 7, saying it's a great spot near Interstate 88 and Thruway Exit 25A.

Over the past year, BJ's and its developer, Goddard Development Partners, made changes to the plans based on feedback from the town. With this approval, they plan to start construction in early 2025 after securing final permits.

According to the Albany Business Review, the new store will be 102,500 square feet, with eight gas pumps and a separate 2,000-square-foot retail space. It's about four miles from BJ's current location on West Campbell Road near ViaPort Rotterdam. The older store, which opened in the 1990s, doesn't have gas pumps due to its location over the Great Flats Aquifer, a key water source for the area.

The new site covers 17 acres and is owned by Flying J. Inc., while Goddard is managing the project. It's unclear what will happen to the old store once the new one opens, as BJ's still has a couple of years left on its lease there.

BJ's Wholesale Club, headquartered in Massachusetts, operates 245 stores and 179 gas stations across 20 states. Locally, they also have locations in Colonie and Wilton. Last year, BJ's reported $20 billion in sales and serves 7 million members nationwide.