The Good News Report

[urbanlover568]

20 minutes ago, RANYC said:

can you share what they do when here and what they get excited about?

They just  said there's alot to do in the city compared to others. I think they were referring to entertainment and nightlife.  They couldn't stop talking about how beautiful southpark is. 

[JRCLT]

The urban core is becoming more leisurely & tourist focused which means there should be more focus on touristic attractions. I've been of the opinion we need a regional aquarium displaying our various bio/ecosystems. It is an absolute must for the downtown area. 

Where’s my observation tower with revolving restaurant a thousand feet in the air? ; ) (the views would kill, you could probably see Raleigh’s small skyline from that high!) Maybe we’ll get better cell traffic during large events. Who would imagine having full bars of reception and your connection being virtually none! Makes sense but still interesting to think about. (Jokes, but seriously where is it??)

[Reverie39]

20 hours ago, kayman said:

The urban core is becoming more leisurely & tourist focused which means there should be more focus on touristic attractions. I've been of the opinion we need a regional aquarium displaying our various bio/ecosystems. It is an absolute must for the downtown area. 

I would love this. Also, NC is home to the most species of salamander anywhere on Earth, and is the only place the Venus fly trap grows naturally. Could show these off and raise awareness for their protection with some sort of terrarium or botanical garden in Uptown.

[RANYC]

4 hours ago, Reverie39 said:

I would love this. Also, NC is home to the most species of salamander anywhere on Earth, and is the only place the Venus fly trap grows naturally. Could show these off and raise awareness for their protection with some sort of terrarium or botanical garden in Uptown.

Now this is the sort of homegrown display and immersion that should be available to locals and visitors.

[KJHburg]

This is some good news some bad news but this report from CBRE paints the Charlotte office market much better than many others in the country. 

https://www.cbre.com/insights/figures/q2-2022-us-office-figures

download the report for the details.  Charlotte is mentioned a lot like where must downtowns are having higher vacancies than suburbs the reverse is true here in Charlotte.  This would include uptown, Southend, etc vs the Ballantyne, Southpark, University submarkets.  

Case in point 2 large tracts once proposed for office in the Tyvola Billy Graham Parkway area are slated for apartments.  One spot behind the VA Medical clinic is now being developed for apartments and another tract is going through a rezoning in the Lake Point Corporate Center across the street for more apartments both by Dominion Realty Partners.   Both show me the standalone suburban office park has fallen out of favor.   Mixed used districts like Waverly in south Charlotte, Ballantyne reimagined are the wave of the future creating little town centers that attract tenants.   Overall Charlotte is well positioned with office locations in uptown, Southend, and other areas that offer walkable nearby amenities.  

[atlrvr]

 

https://espnpressroom.com/us/press-releases/2022/07/espn8-the-ocho-returns-aug-5th-for-sixth-year-features-day-of-live-events-from-rock-hill-sc/

[rancenc]

From the recent edition of Business NC magazine on the convention industry make a post-Covid comeback in the state.

https://businessnc.com/corporate-meeting-guide-good-times-returning/

[KJHburg]

Charlotte ranked #2 as best place to start an online business in the country so says this study only bested by in state rival Raleigh.

https://business.centurylink.com/internet#onlinebusiness   go half way down the page to find the study in the green box

or here is the WRALTechwire story

https://wraltechwire.com/2022/08/08/raleigh-ranks-no-1-as-best-city-to-start-online-business-charlotte-is-no-2/

[KJHburg]

Business Facilities magazine recently named NC #1 Business climate in the country.    This is in addition to Site Selection and CNBC naming NC #1 so that is the trifecta for the Tar Heel State!  

But here are few more of their rankings which are highly regarded with decision makers

#7 in Biosciences leader

#7 in Manufacturing Output

#4 in Tech Talent pipeline

#7 in Food processing 

#9 in Health care jobs

#6 in Customized Workforce training

#8 in Semiconductors 

#6 in Recovery Leaders

#4 in Installed Solar Capacity

#10 in FDI Foreign direct investment 

#2 in FDI capital investment 

https://businessfacilities.com/2022/08/business-facilities-18th-annual-rankings-report-state-rankings/

Charlotte Metro rankings

#3 Best Large Metro business climate

#8 on Fintech leaders

#10 tech talent on mid sized metros (Austin #1 in this category Raleigh Durham #2)

#9 fastest growing metros by numerical count

https://businessfacilities.com/2022/08/business-facilities-2022-metro-rankings-report/

and yes these rankings do matter when you see your metro and state again and again on these lists.  Proof is in the pudding.  

 

Edited August 10, 2022 by KJHburg

[rancenc]

Let's see if the state's economic pipeline continues to "shoot out" new projects in the coming months!

https://wraltechwire.com/2022/08/11/nc-project-pipeline-is-strongest-it-has-ever-been-says-nc-economic-deveopment-exec/

[rancenc]

Great news concerning visitor spending throughout the state in 2021

https://www.nccommerce.com/news/press-releases/2021-visitor-spending-increases-all-100-north-carolina-counties

[rancenc]

State grants awarded to various companies and local municipalities!

https://www.nccommerce.com/news/press-releases/governor-cooper-announces-15-grants-rural-communities-attract-202-new-jobs-and

[rancenc]

Good news on the funding front for various park and recreation projects throughout the state.

https://governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2022/08/29/governor-cooper-announces-17-million-grants-parks-and-recreation-projects-statewide

[RANYC]

7 minutes ago, rancenc said:

Good news on the funding front for various park and recreation projects throughout the state.

https://governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases/2022/08/29/governor-cooper-announces-17-million-grants-parks-and-recreation-projects-statewide

Nothing for the 2nd most populated county which contains the state's most populous city?

[abttown]

2 hours ago, RANYC said:

Nothing for the 2nd most populated county which contains the state's most populous city?

I couldn't help but notice that as well.  Either Mecklenburg didn't apply for any grant money or the state just assumed we had it under control since we're such a big city 

[KJHburg]

5 hours ago, RANYC said:

Nothing for the 2nd most populated county which contains the state's most populous city?

Nothing for #1 most populous county either Wake.  Or #3 Guilford.  all those towns mentioned are small towns that was probably the focus of the grants. 

[RANYC]

44 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

Nothing for #1 most populous county either Wake.  Or #3 Guilford.  all those towns mentioned are small towns that was probably the focus of the grants. 

Actually, if you read the entirety of the article, there is a mention of a Wake County allocation in addition to the "local grant program" items in the table.

William B. Umstead State Park...

But nowhere in the article is there any sort of mention of Meck.

Edited August 30, 2022 by RANYC

[JHart]

9 hours ago, KJHburg said:

Nothing for #1 most populous county either Wake.  Or #3 Guilford.  all those towns mentioned are small towns that was probably the focus of the grants. 

Wake County has 2 projects in the list and Guilford has 1... Plus the capital project in Wake at William B. Umstead State Park. 

[KJHburg]

well I never saw the complete list of projects only from that link  as for state parks of course they would get additional funding and since Meck has no state parks and both Wake and Guilford do.  However I would probably believe Meck did not even bother to apply.  I guess that is the real question.  

Governor Cooper Announces $17 Million in Grants for Parks and Recreation Projects Statewide | NC Gov. Cooper

[JHart]

11 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

well I never saw the complete list of projects only from that link  as for state parks of course they would get additional funding and since Meck has no state parks and both Wake and Guilford do.  However I would probably believe Meck did not even bother to apply.  I guess that is the real question.  

Governor Cooper Announces $17 Million in Grants for Parks and Recreation Projects Statewide | NC Gov. Cooper

The complete list of projects is shown in its entirety. These grants are not for state parks, they are for local government projects. Everything is in the link you just posted, please just read the page before making random commentary...

[KJHburg]

I only saw the ones in the blue background not the lighter ones in the link.  So my mistake!  Sorry to have offended so of you so much.  

Edited August 31, 2022 by KJHburg

[QCxpat]

I'd like to thank KJ  @KJHburg  for his tremendous contributions to UP.   His photos of the cityscape,  greenways and ring cities are wonderful.

No one does more to make UP a safe and enjoyable place to visit.  Thank you so much Kevin.

                

Edited August 31, 2022 by QCxpat

[nicholas]

12 hours ago, KJHburg said:

well I never saw the complete list of projects only from that link  as for state parks of course they would get additional funding and since Meck has no state parks and both Wake and Guilford do.  However I would probably believe Meck did not even bother to apply.  I guess that is the real question.  

Governor Cooper Announces $17 Million in Grants for Parks and Recreation Projects Statewide | NC Gov. Cooper

let's put white text on the lightest blue background we can find

[stw52]

Toyota Announces $2.5 Billion Expansion of North Carolina Plant with 350 Additional Jobs and BEV Battery Capacity

https://pressroom.toyota.com/toyota-announces-2-5-billion-expansion-of-north-carolina-plant-with-350-additional-jobs-and-bev-battery-capacity/

 

[rancenc]

Industrial development is still going strong in Mecklenburg County.

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2022/09/02/north-mecklenburg-lake-norman-industrial-activity.html?cx_testId=40&cx_testVariant=cx_23&cx_artPos=5#cxrecs_s