The construction under way at 6016 and 6020 Market St. is the first Wilmington location of CarMax, which company officials say is expected to be opening early this fall.

"We are looking forward to providing customers there with our simple and stress-free used car shopping experience. The store will have approximately 200 cars on the lot at opening, and we’re looking to hire 25 associates," said Dietta Slayton of CarMax Public Relations, in an email this week.

The  Wilmington store will be CarMax's 11th in North Carolina when it opens, Slayton said. According to company information, CarMax is the nation’s largest retailer of used cars, currently operating 185 stores in 40 states nationwide.

On Wednesday, the publicly traded company (NYSE: KMX) opened its first store in Maine, according to a news release, marking the 40th state where CarMax stores are located.

CarMax typically invests between $10 and $25 million in each store.

The company purchased the 15 acres at 6016 and 6020 Market in Wilmington for $4.5 million in May 2017.

Also on Market Street, Bordeaux Construction Company Inc. is rebuilding John J. Blair Elementary School, a bond project. The old Blair school on the site, next to the Carolina Coast Harley-Davidson at 6620 Market St., was demolished.

The New Hanover County school system has estimated that the new 574-student school will cost about $17 million, including design, construction and all other associated expenses. The new school could be complete by the end of the first quarter of 2018, and in the meantime, students are attending the new school in Porters Neck.