Angie Harmon is working hard to convert an abandoned mall in Charlotte, NC, where she resides, into a movie production studio. Charlotte bought the mall for $13.2 million in 2012.

“I chose to raise my family here because of the city of Charlotte, because of how wonderful it is,” Harmon said, according to The Charlotte Observer. “It just seems like it’s a no-brainer for me. The studio is, you know, eight sound stages. That’s an amazing project — the arts magnet school that would be there.”

Harmon commutes to Los Angeles for filming, and is firmly behind plans to turn a vacated shopping mall site into a maze of sound stages, a film school, restaurants and shops. It could be a major benefit to the local economy.

“I mean when you think of the millions and millions put into a production, the production value would then now be in Charlotte. That goes all the way down from dry cleaning, to restaurants, hotels,” Harmon said, the Observer reported.

“When we told her what our plans are, for making this all about jobs, jobs, and more jobs, and making this an educational center, then she said ‘I’m on board,'”said Studio Charlotte Senior VP Barbara McKay, according to the Observer.

Studio Charlotte Development has asked the city for the 80-acre Eastland site for free as well as city and county incentives worth $24.7 million. The incentives and the land would be worth about $38 million.

Under the proposal, the city and county would give Studio Charlotte Development property tax rebates for a 10-year period based on new tax revenue the project would generate. One problem, however, is that the developer needs more money for upfront costs than the project will initially generate in tax revenue.

“Even with county participation in the tax increment grant … (it) appears to be insufficient to cover required infrastructure costs,” a city memo said.

The city’s economic development director, Brad Richardson, said Thursday that the city is still working with the group, trying to get more details on its financing and needs.

“They have not refined their construction costs so we can’t do any due diligence,” Richardson said.

The committee is expected to hear more about the project in February.

Harmon said she is friends with Barbara McKay, the senior vice president for Studio Development Charlotte and a local television host. Harmon, who said she has lived in Charlotte for four years, said one benefit to the project would be the ability for NASCAR drivers to film commercials and other work locally rather than having to travel.

McKay said the project would generate “jobs, jobs, jobs” for the area.