Construction is moving quickly at the future home of Academy Sports in Meridian with the outer shell of the building already in place.

In a Council of Governments meeting Monday, Community Development Director Craig Hitt said the project is moving along very quickly. Initially, he said, he was skeptical when the developer set a goal to have the store open by Christmas, but the speed at which work is progressing could very well make that Christmas deadline possible.

The new sporting goods store, which is being built next to Hobby Lobby along South Frontage Road, 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 in February approved up to $1.9 million in Tax Increment Financing bonds 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, roads and more. The borrowed money is then repaid from the tax dollars generated by the new construction.