Stuart said she was hopeful that city planners would help the warehouse retailer find a more appropriate site, and she specifically mentioned U.S. 77 and West Denton Road, home to the Lincoln Race Course and an area once considered by Wal-Mart.

But Brian Whelan, whose company helps Costco with site selection, said it has been looking at potential sites in Lincoln for a decade and has not found anything suitable. Most are either too small or, like the U.S. 77 site, are on the fringes of the city, far from the population center.

Another bone of contention at Wednesday's hearing: Costco is proposing two traffic lights on Pine Lake Road, at 16th Street and at Hazel Scott Drive. It's something most neighbors, including businesses in the commercial area to the south, support. But city officials do not want that many traffic lights in such a short distance.

Costco also challenged the city's requirements that it provide more screening around the property than what would normally be required and a requirement that it add brick to its building. Whalen and Ted Johnson, Costco's director of development for Midwest projects, said those requirements will drive up the cost and make the project less economically feasible.