Costco Wholesale Corporation has won approval from Vermont’s highest court to build a gas station at its Colchester store.

On Friday the Vermont Supreme Court rejected an appeal from nearby gas station owners, R.L. Vallee, Inc. (“Vallee”), owner and operator of nearby Maplefields Convenience Store & gasoline station, and Timberlake Associates, LLP (“Timberlake”), owner and operator of the nearby Shell/Cumberland Farms Convenience Store & gasoline station.

In 2007, Costco presented a plan to add gasoline facilities to its Colchester store. Costco also wanted to reconfigure a portion of its parking lots and realign and expand its stormwater treatment structures.

After receiving appeals from Vallee and Timberlake, Costco revised its proposed plans and permit applications to only include the building and parking lot expansion and stormwater treatment upgrades.

After Vallee and Timberlake appealed permit approvals from the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) and other state and local permit approvals, Costco revised its proposed plans in 2011 and 2012. That revised proposal included gas pumps.

At issue was the Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources’ 2013 reclassification of nearby wetlands. The reclassification made the wetlands more valuable and development more difficult. The reclassification prevented building within 50 feet of the wetlands without a permit.

Court ruling approved Costco’s Act 250 appeal, wetlands reclassification appeal, wetland permit appeal, stormwater discharge appeal, and final plat and site plan amendment appeal.

The Vermont Supreme Court heard both sides of the case in March of 2016 and made their decision on August 5.