INFORMATION ABOUT CHARLOTTE:
Charlotte
has used many nicknames over the years. Brittish troops called us a "Hornet's
nest" during the revolutionary war. The Hornets have since been transplanted
to New Orleans to be replaced by the Bobcats. There was a time when we
were called "The spearhead of the new south". Fortunately we are
now widely enough known that people know Charlotte as a place.
The long neglected
and once almost deserted Center City has again become a focus for community
life. 325 of the 500 fortune 500 companies have a presence in Charlotte.
8 of these companies are headquartered in Mecklenburg County. There
are only 4 cities that have more fortune 500 companies headquarters.
The Blumenthal Theatre, Discovery Place and the Mint Museum of Arts &
Crafts are being joined by a host of new cultural destinations. The
vision for the Center City is layed out in the 2010 plan.
Charlotte is second only to New York in finance headquarters.
There are strong manufacturing and distribution sectors as well.
We are becoming
more and more international. You can hear a miriad of different languages
in the grocery stores. The Hispanic population is growing so fast I hate
to give a number. There are a multitude of Asians and Europeans
as well. The extensive global linkages combined with the excellent
living standard enjoyed by the Charlotte region have made us a regional
capital for international business. Over 380 foreign owned firms
are located in Mecklenburg County.
The status
symbols of a world class city are here. We have the most of the same
stores as the really big cities. Nordstroms and Saks are in Southpark.
We have rush hour traffic jams. There are restaurants and
night life down town. The downtown resident population should reach
15,000 in a couple of years.
Charlotte
has over 100 million sq. ft of Industrial, 23 million sq. ft of multi-tenant
warehouse and 7million sq. ft. of multi-tenant flex.
Our
MSA has 1.55+ million people and we are growing at 11.2% per year.
We are the second largest ($'s headquartered) financial center in the country.
Seaports and
Airports are what make global linkages and produce international trade.
Charlotte has a first rate International Airport....and
it is getting better. The airport's third runway is online.
We have many international direct flights. Our international airport combines
with our main railway line and two interstate highways to make us a major
transportation hub.
While we have
allowed our school system to deteriorate some in past years; we are pulling
out all of the stops now to create a school system that is worthy of a
world class city. For SCHOOL
INFORMATION visit the school systems
home page.
We have a
new police chief, Rodney Monroe. He has reduced crime by attacking
the problem of repeat offenders. Unfortunately we have a few people
who are "one man crime waves". He has increased bail for these people
when they are brought in and is doing what he can to identify them and
get them off the streets.
There's a lot more coming on this page. Last updated
12/17/08