Costco has cleared a major hurdle in its effort to develop a store and apartments off Western Avenue in Guilderland.

A State Appellate court ruled the Guilderland Planning Board did its proper diligence on the potential environmental impacts of the project.

For more than a year, Save the Pine Bush has challenged the project, which would include a store, more than a dozen gas pumps and an apartment building near the Pine Bush Preserve.

Save the Pine Bush volunteer Lynne Jackson said the town is "allowing the developers to eat away at the Pine Bush ecosystem dozens of acres at a time."

A Costco spokesperson called the court ruling an important step, but said there was still work to be done before construction could start.