In June, Academy Sports + Outdoors broke ground on a new store in Meridian, MS. The project moved along quickly. The store opens on November 11, in time to make the Holiday shopping season.
The 55,000-square-foot space at the Meridian Crossroads shopping center will be the retailer’s ninth store in Mississippi.
The new sporting goods store is adjacent to Hobby Lobby along South Frontage Road and is the second phase of the Meridian Crossroads project, first announced in 2015. The construction of Hobby Lobby, which was completed in December 2019, was the first project phase.
The Meridian City Council approved up to $1.9 million in Tax Increment Financing bonds in February to assist with the project. TIF bonds are one incentive municipalities can use to attract private development.
The funds from TIF bonds are used to pay for the construction of public infrastructure in and around new developments, such as sewer and stormwater systems, sidewalks, and roads. The borrowed money is then repaid from the tax dollars generated by the new construction.
Image courtesy Academy Sports + Outdoors
