Costco Picks Smithfield for Its First Rhode Island Store: Gubernatorial Candidate Helena Foulkes Announces 200-Plus Jobs Starting in 2028

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Helena Foulkes announced Thursday that Costco has chosen Smithfield as the site of its first store in Rhode Island. Foulkes, who is also a Costco board member, said in a statement to NBC 10: 'Rhode Island is finally getting a Costco! Too many residents are tired of driving to Massachusetts to shop, and soon there will be a store close to home.' The store will bring more than 200 jobs to the 'Ocean State' starting in 2028.
The statement did not disclose the specific parcel, but Smithfield Town Council President John Tassoni said on a WPRO radio program that the store will be located on the Smithfield Peat property at the junction of Routes 116 and 7. Rhode Island has courted the warehouse retailer for years; earlier proposals for several sites in Cranston and a suggestion by Joe Paolino to locate at the Providence Place mall all came to nothing. A Costco that opened last year in Sharon, Massachusetts, drew crowds on its first day.
The store's eventual opening still requires completion of land approvals and construction.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 好市多门店 / A Costco Wholesale store — Jacob Blanck, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- 2026-10-22Costco Picks Smithfield for Its First Rhode Island Store: Gubernatorial Candidate Helena Foulkes Announces 200-Plus Jobs Starting in 2028This story
- 2026-10-23Follow-up: Costco's First Rhode Island Store Becomes Campaign Flashpoint

