One of the largest membership-based warehouse retailers in the world is working on its first location in Ocala.
BJ’s Wholesale Club purchased the site at 7030 SW 59th Avenue within the sprawling Winding Oaks master-planned community late last year. Real estate firm Colliers announced the closing of the 12-acre land transaction on Dec. 1, 2025.
The membership warehouse club will anchor the retail portion of the mixed-use development within Winding Oaks, which is located south of SW 66th Street and east of SW 54th Court Road in Ocala.
Jon Thomas of Colliers, who represented Matthew Development in the transaction, worked alongside The Kolter Group and Boyd Real Estate to finalize the deal. The addition of the warehouse club is expected to position Winding Oaks as a “premier mixed-use destination” in Central Florida, according to the announcement.
Based in Marlborough, Massachusetts, BJ’s Wholesale Club currently operates more than 250 membership warehouse clubs across 21 states. The company currently maintains a strong presence in Florida, where it owns over 40 locations.
That includes a club that opened in Lady Lake in 2022. That warehouse, which serves The Villages community, stands as the nearest existing option for Ocala residents.
The Lady Lake facility was also a project of Matthew Development, the same firm now partnering to bring the retailer’s first location to Ocala.
The project sits on the site of the former Winding Oaks Farm, a property with a history tied to late billionaire and Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk. The land was sold in July for nearly $32 million to KL Winding Oaks, LLC, an entity formed by The Kolter Group.
City officials unanimously approved the Winding Oaks Community Development District in 2024, paving the way for a project that city records indicate will include nearly 1,700 single-family homes. The infrastructure costs alone, which cover water, wastewater, roadways, and stormwater systems, are estimated at over $80.1 million.
The development is located in a rapidly growing corridor of southwest Ocala which saw a new elementary school open within the community in August.
A specific opening date for the new BJ’s Wholesale Club has not yet been released.
In recent years, multiple Ocala-News.com readers have written in to share their support for a new BJ’s Wholesale Club. As it stands, the only membership-based warehouse in the city is the Sam’s Club located at 3921 SW College Road.
What are your thoughts on the new retailer? Share them in a comment below or, if you have more to say, write a letter to the editor.