The Good News Report

[KJHburg]

13 minutes ago, CarolinaDaydreamin said:

Holding out isnt the same thing and shouldn't dismiss those which have already gone elsewhere.

Paypal has as far as I know has not announced an expansion anywhere in the country since they decided against Charlotte. Of course they could have quietly expanded some where but I follow a lot of economic development through various sources and  I have not heard anything. As for Deutsche Bank in the RTP area they never officially gave up their incentives from the state when they said they would not carry through with the expansion and this was reported in the RDU media. So according to the state they could start adding jobs tomorrow under their previous arrangement. 

[rancenc]

12 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

Paypal has as far as I know has not announced an expansion anywhere in the country since they decided against Charlotte. Of course they could have quietly expanded some where but I follow a lot of economic development through various sources and  I have not heard anything. As for Deutsche Bank in the RTP area they never officially gave up their incentives from the state when they said they would not carry through with the expansion and this was reported in the RDU media. So according to the state they could start adding jobs tomorrow under their previous arrangement. 

You are correct KJHburg on Paypal; they have not set up an office anywhere else which I find puzzling since there were other choices after the Charlotte announcement early last year (I actually thought Tampa was in 2nd place).  I did read that back in September, PayPal was interested in a highrise in downtown Providence RI that was completely empty.  That was the last of hearing about Paypal and it's expansion plans.  Deustche Bank on the other hand has been mired in financial problems that occurred around the time of their expansion cancellation in Cary....I would be surprise to hear anything about growth from that company.

Edited March 30, 2017 by rancenc

[Norm2]

1 minute ago, rancenc said:

You are correct KJHburg on Paypal; they have not set up an office anywhere else which I find puzzling since there were other choices after the Charlotte announcement early last year (I actually thought Tampa was in 2nd place).  I did read that back in September, PayPal was interested in a highrise in downtown Providence RI that was completely empty.  That was the last of hearing about Paypal and it's expansion plans.  Deustche Bank on the other hand has been mired in financial problems that occurred around the time of their expansion cancellation in Cary....I would be surprise to hear anything about growth from that company.

 

Makes me wonder what is going on inside of Paypal that they have not selected a new site yet. Hopefully that means good news for us!

[KJHburg]

This is interesting from the Business Journal today about Red Ventures and their CEO and the repeal of HB2. 

"When asked how HB2 has affected Red Ventures, Elias said the company halted plans to expand in North Carolina. “We haven’t really announced this but we were very actively looking at an uptown anchor facility and we stopped everything,” Elias said. The entrepreneur said the company fulfilled its commitment to add jobs in the university area, but pulled back on further expansion in North Carolina because of HB2."

Then today Charlotte School of Law is marketing 175,000 sq ft of sublease office space in Charlotte Plaza uptown. Hmmm interesting. Wonder if with all their growth they would look again at uptown and they tend to go for less expensive options like this sublease space at below market rates. 

 

[KJHburg]

This is GREAT news 35.000 new jobs in the Charlotte metro in the last year fastest in the state. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/05/metro-charlotte-added-35-000-plus-jobs-in-february.html?ana=RSS%26s%3Darticle_search&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

No wonder traffic is worse and everyplace is more crowded and the real estate market is en fuego. 

[Niner National]

12 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

This is GREAT news 35.000 new jobs in the Charlotte metro in the last year fastest in the state. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/05/metro-charlotte-added-35-000-plus-jobs-in-february.html?ana=RSS%26s%3Darticle_search&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

No wonder traffic is worse and everyplace is more crowded and the real estate market is en fuego. 

The traffic has gotten markedly worse since I moved back to Charlotte from DC in 2012.

Until February, I worked a mile from home, so I didn't really notice it all that often, but now my business takes me all over the area and traffic can back up in many areas any time of day. It is definitely fun watching Charlotte grow, but traffic is a big negative.

[Dale]

1 hour ago, Niner National said:

The traffic has gotten markedly worse since I moved back to Charlotte from DC in 2012.

Until February, I worked a mile from home, so I didn't really notice it all that often, but now my business takes me all over the area and traffic can back up in many areas any time of day. It is definitely fun watching Charlotte grow, but traffic is a big negative.

I'm returning to Charlotte, in June, and seeking employment. This time around, as I look for a job, traffic will definitely be a consideration.

[ah59396]

2 hours ago, Niner National said:

The traffic has gotten markedly worse since I moved back to Charlotte from DC in 2012.

Until February, I worked a mile from home, so I didn't really notice it all that often, but now my business takes me all over the area and traffic can back up in many areas any time of day. It is definitely fun watching Charlotte grow, but traffic is a big negative.

I'll second this.  I've been in the city for over a decade and always reverse commuted to Huntersville.  Up until about 18 months ago, it's been an easy 20 minutes max either way.

Now 35 minutes is the norm.  And I feel like it happened over night.

[caterpillar2]

18 minutes ago, ah59396 said:

I'll second this.  I've been in the city for over a decade and always reverse commuted to Huntersville.  Up until about 18 months ago, it's been an easy 20 minutes max either way.

Now 35 minutes is the norm.  And I feel like it happened over night.

I remember five years ago when newcomers would laugh at anyone that complained about traffic in Charlotte. Now, not much laughter. We are catching up with the big boy city traffic issues. Build the RED LINE.

[NcSc74]

3 hours ago, caterpillar2 said:

I remember five years ago when newcomers would laugh at anyone that complained about traffic in Charlotte. Now, not much laughter. We are catching up with the big boy city traffic issues. Build the RED LINE.

Good luck with that. Probably no TIGER funds for the foreseeable future.  

[southslider]

^The bigger hurdle remains Norfolk Stubborn.

[KJHburg]

While this is not in Charlotte but in the Triangle many of his points about moving his start up tech community apply to Charlotte as well. Our tech community is really growing in employees and space all over town. https://medium.com/@matthewsniff/why-i-moved-our-company-from-the-valley-to-the-triangle-b7d4df06d291

Here another article that specifically mentions Charlotte as a location for growing tech companies

http://nreionline.com/office-cre-market-study/part-2-city-or-burbs?NL=NREI-21&Issue=NREI-21_20170412_NREI-21_24&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2&utm_rid=CPG09000011418910&utm_campaign=9096&utm_medium=email&elq2=445093846c4946a4863518b9db26ca9f

Edited April 12, 2017 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

Something talked about  a lot on these message boards is finally going to happen. Duke Energy is spending $4.9 Billion to bury power lines in their service area over the next 10 years. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/12/duke-energy-plans-13b-in-new-infrastructure.html

[Norm2]

52 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

Something talked about  a lot on these message boards is finally going to happen. Duke Energy is spending $4.9 Billion to bury power lines in their service area over the next 10 years. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/12/duke-energy-plans-13b-in-new-infrastructure.html

 

I know this wouldn't be ALL power lines....so it would it maybe be just along major roads or in very specific areas?

[KJHburg]

13 minutes ago, norm21499 said:

I know this wouldn't be ALL power lines....so it would it maybe be just along major roads or in very specific areas?

Sounds like in residential areas as they mentioned above ground lines in neighborhoods so many  I would guess in your intown neighborhoods where they are still above ground. But it seems it would make sense to do the lines along major roads that serve a lot of customers. All new neighborhoods are built that way that is why I seem to notice it more intown but in the burbs they are all underground in residential areas. 

[deleted]

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/biz-columns-blogs/development/article144591074.html

Great news...what is Crescent waiting for?!?

[KJHburg]

Charlotte is number 6 in the nation in first quarter office space 2017 absorption according to JLL. We bested New York, San Fran, Silicon Valley, Atlanta, Nashville etc in office space absorption mainly led by our financial firms but tech contributed too. Check out the numbers and we should continue to roll out with several office completions this  year where companies are taking more space than they are leaving. 

http://www.us.jll.com/united-states/en-us/research/office-outlook   and of course this does not even count 550K lease at 620 S Tryon by Bank of America. 

[sclark]

As an asthmatic, this is good news to me. 

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article145484524.html

[videtur quam contuor]

Knew a man long time ago and he and his wife had a child with severe asthma. Hospitalization, CPR level asthma. The doctor here said the hope for the child was to live in a climate with long winters, short growing seasons and this also meant fewer flowering plants and other asthma producing issues. It would also be great if this location could be on a large body of water to keep better air moving. His company was able to offer a transfer to Buffalo, NY. When Buffalonians asked why he would move from the South to Buffalo he could honestly reply "The weather here is great!"

I sometimes wonder of Buffalo migrants here discover unknown levels of respiratory discomfort that were concealed by the Buffalo weather.

[Dale]

I'm asthmatic too, with allergies. And for some reason, I've struggled less in Charlotte than back in Florida.

[nakers2]

7 hours ago, tarhoosier said:

Knew a man long time ago and he and his wife had a child with severe asthma. Hospitalization, CPR level asthma. The doctor here said the hope for the child was to live in a climate with long winters, short growing seasons and this also meant fewer flowering plants and other asthma producing issues. It would also be great if this location could be on a large body of water to keep better air moving. His company was able to offer a transfer to Buffalo, NY. When Buffalonians asked why he would move from the South to Buffalo he could honestly reply "The weather here is great!"

I sometimes wonder of Buffalo migrants here discover unknown levels of respiratory discomfort that were concealed by the Buffalo weather.

I was born and have lived in NC practically all but three years of my life, so maybe I've grown used to natural particulates in the air, with the exception of right around this time of year. However, after living in the relatively small city (big town?) of Hickory, and then through high school in the Boone area, what seems to become more noticeable in the Charlotte area is air pollution. I know its gotten better, but last summer I worked a job that required me to be outside around midday, and on code orange and the the one or two code red days we had I could definitely feel a slight burning in my eyes and throat, same with the wildfires in November, but having lived in the mountains that wasn't something new to me. 

[KJHburg]

Boston tech firm opens in a west Charlotte coworking space and will employ 12 initially. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/20/boston-tech-company-takes-space-at-co-working.html  Read the CEO quote about Charlotte and our tech scene. 

Edited April 20, 2017 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

Cardinal Innovation Healthcare a Kannapolis based company is moving its headquarters to 3 floors of former Chiquita sublease space in NASCAR Plaza. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/28/cardinal-innovations-healthcare-corporate-hq-relo.html?ana=e_du_prem&s=scroll&ed=2017-04-28&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1493406922&j=78052271   Now the biggest available block of sublease space in the Charlotte Law School space in Charlotte Plaza and several big blocks of space for direct lease in various buildings uptown like 300 South Brevard, First Citizens Bank bldg, 525 N Tryon and Independence Center are the locations of any big blocks of space other than the 2 new buildings of course. Always good to see a suburb to uptown move. 

Cardinal is Medicaid supplemental  insurance company  They are leaving a pretty nice building in Kannapolis which will now allow Cabarrus County to have some available class A office space which it really has in very short supply. http://www.milestoneave.com/

Plus they plan to grow in the building too which undoubtedly means more jobs Cardinal Innovations Healthcare is expected to take an additional floor at NASCAR Plaza when it becomes available in 2019 for a total footprint of about 90,000 square feet.

Edited April 29, 2017 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

This is a great story about a family owned business Hissho Sushi a guy comes from Burma, penniless, little English winds up in Charlotte and creates one of the nation's largest sushi making companies. Kudos to Harris Teeter for being one of his first big customers and there is one of his sushi bars at the airport. http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/04/28/lwin-family-co-puts-hissho-sushi-on-the-map.html Had 350 employees now most in Charlotte. 

[Dale]

Lookee here ...

http://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/article/32-of-the-best-urban-parks-in-america/ss-BBAgN6x?li=BBnb7Kz#image=3