ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) – More economic growth is coming to Dougherty County with the addition of a new sporting goods store.

Academy Sports + Outdoors is bringing 300 jobs to the city of Albany, and there’s now a timeline in place for the store’s opening.

Construction is progressing quickly on Dawson Road, with a new structure now standing in front of the Albany Mall.

“We’ll be done in July, at the end of July. But they don’t actually open until October, because it’s a lot of merchandise that they have to set up inside the store,” said Jeff Brackett, Superintendent of TD Farrell Construction.

Brackett says that in addition to the October 1 opening, Academy plans to have a hiring trailer on-site to staff the store.

“They’re planning on hiring 300 people, and some of those are part-time, but mostly full-time,” Brackett added.

One resident expressed excitement about Albany’s ongoing development.

“I feel awesome about it. We need more stores, plain and simple,” said Jermaine Harris, a local truck driver.

Another resident welcomed the growth but had mixed feelings about the new store.

“I feel like there could have been a lot of other stores that could have opened up in Albany. But it’s coming up quick, so we’ll see how it goes,” said Adriana Aboytes, an Albany resident.

This location will be one of the larger Academy Sports + Outdoors stores, spanning 55,000 square feet.

The hiring trailer is expected to be set up in June in the Ollie’s parking lot, though an exact date has not yet been confirmed.

WALB News 10’s Riley Armant gives us an update on the opening of the Academy Sports and Outdoors.

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