Sept. 2—Davidson: The Lake Norman Chamber’s annual business expo is apparently a penstroke away from moving back to Davidson College after a two-year hiatus. The popular business expo—the largest in the Golden Crescent region—was not held in 2009 because of conflicts with student use of the Belk Arena. Chamber and college officials have talked off and on about bringing the Expo back to Davidson since the last trade show there in 2008 and a contract is apparently ready to sign. The 2010 expo was held at Central Piedmont Community College’s Huntersville campus in April. The date for next year’s expo is March 4, 2011.  Hosting the event at Davidson College allows the chamber to give exposure to about four dozen more businesses than the CPCC campus, or some 200 exhibitors.

Sept. 1—Mooresville: A private equity firm in Texas has acquired a majority interest in Carolina Beer & Beverage, based in Mooresville. Founded in 1997 by J. Michael Smith and John Stritch, Carolina Beer & Beverage got its start when the duo acquired the rights and formula to the Carolina Blonde and Cottonwood Ales beer brands. Carolina Blonde "co-packs" specialty-sized cans, specialty plastic bottles and glass bottles. Smith will continue to serve as CEO of the company. Financial terms were not disclosed by SunTx officials. Carolina Beer & Beverage has a current capacity of 35 plus million cases annually. SunTx Capital Partners is a private equity investment partnership that works closely with management teams to buy and build middle market companies. It has $600 million of assets under management.

Aug. 31—Rowan County: The economy is apparently behind an increase in enrollment at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College. RCCC says a "sustained student surge" is attributable to the high number of people who are out of work, as well as traditional students who are opting to start their college education at a lower-cost institution. RCCC’s fall 2010 headcount has risen 4.58 percent to 7,392, roughly 324 more students than the fall of last year. Since the 2007 fall semester, RCCC has added 1,871 degree- and diploma-seeking students, a 34-percent increase. The enrollment figures do not include students in RCCC’s corporate and continuing education programs. When those shorter-term programs and classes are added, RCCC serves more than 20,000 students annually. Gaye McConnell, RCCC vice president, said some programs have reached their capacity. RCCC is asking Rowan County residents to support a $12 million bond for new facilities at the North Campus in Salisbury.

Aug. 27—Rowan County: Boral Composites Inc. will break ground Sept. 9 on a $12.8 million plant in East Spencer that will create 25 jobs. The 38,000-square foot plant in Salisbury will produce a new line of residential building products made out of recycled materials.  Meanwhile, W.A. Brown and Son has hired back 41 of 100 positions that were eliminated when the manufacturing company shut down in November of last year. The company, which makes walk-in coolers and freezers, has resumed operations under a new owner, Southern Stainless Equipment of Waynesboro, Va. Southern Stainless is a division of Clark Manufacturing Co. in Michigan.  Rowan Works, the economic development corporation in Rowan County, is in discussions with W.A. Brown about regarding marketing help including video clips that help tell the story of both Brown and Rowan Works. 

Aug. 26—Elkin: Joseph H. Towell has been named president and chief operating officer of Elkin-based Yadkin Valley Bank. He will oversee all major functional areas of the Bank. Bill Long, who will continue as CEO, promoted Mark DeMarcus chief banking officer in charge of banking, investments, marketing and branch administration. He will report directly to Towell.  Meanwhile, Rick Patterson has assumed the responsibilities of regional executive of American Community Bank and will report to DeMarcus along with regional executives from the other member banks. Ed Shuford will transition into the role of chief credit officer, while continuing his function as regional credit officer for the High Country and Yadkin Valley regions through the end of 2010.

Aug. 24—Concord: The Cabarrus County government will purchase a 10,267 square foot portion of The Old Creamery at Church and Peachtree, a mixed-use project owned by a Concord investment group, for $837,500. Harris Morrison, managing partner of the Creamery Concord LLC, said he expects the deal to close in a couple of weeks “if everything goes as planned.” The Cabarrus County Board of Elections will be responsible for building out the space, which was a popular creamery for many years. The Harris Morrison Co. renovated the complex which adjoins an old Coca-Cola bottling plant with about 32,000 square feet of space ready for final build-out. The county will hire its own architect and contractor to build out its space, Morrison said. The creamery side of the project and the Coca-Cola side are connected by an open courtyard with benches and planters.

GRAY

The Lake Norman Transportation Commission is pushing a variety of transportation projects, not just commuter rail from Charlotte to Lake Norman, according to Carroll Gray, the executive director.

The LNTC has more than a dozen projects and goals on its agenda, including managed lanes on I-77, new bridges across I-77 to promote connectivity in Cornelius and Huntersville and a new parkway running north-south from I-485 to Lake Norman, but east of NC 115.

As online collaboration becomes increasingly common, will small business owners migrate to virtual offices, limiting the need for brick and mortar and face to face communication?

“This is one of the trends we’re going to see in the future,” said Kathleen Rose, of Rose and Associates, an economic development consulting firm in Davidson. “We’re seeing more folks just need a place to land a meeting, have a mailbox and an address to look like a legitimate company.”

According to a U.S. Census Bureau survey, 2.8 million Americans now telecommute, an increase of 14 percent from last year. Still, last year there were 154.5 million employed Americans. The 2.8 million telecommuters represent less than 2 percent of the workforce.

Donna Carpenter: CCVB president and CEO

After a year on the job, Donna Carpenter has Cabarrus County tourism on a fast track. The president and CEO of Cabarrus County Convention & Visitors Bureau counts opening two satellite offices, one at the speedway and one at Concord Mills, among her achievements.

In an interview on her one year anniversary, Carpenter said Cabarrus hotel occupancy rates fell slightly for the first six months of 2010, but they rose in June, this in the face of a whopping 32 percent increase in rooms.

Through June, demand for rooms in Cabarrus County was up 16 percent, an increase to bank on.

Carpenter, who was the director of tourism and partnership development for Visit Charlotte, oversees a $3.37 million budget, funded by hotel tax receipts.

The theme of Business Today’s sixth annual Top Women in Business Awards is leadership and capacity building. Business Today recognizes the key role women play in the Golden Crescent economy and has honored top achievers for six years with special editorial coverage and a Champagne Reception.

Business Today columnist Cheryl Kane, a consultant who is on the faculty at UNC-Charlotte, will facilitate the “power networking” session which has been part of the Champagne Reception for women business leaders for three years.

O'TOOLE

Now a “senior fellow” at the think tank has come down hard on Charlotte Light Rail. Randal O’Toole often focuses on private land rights, weighing in on public land use regulations and light rail, mostly from a hands-off point of view.

Here’s are excerpts from what  O’Toole had to say about public rail transit in Charlotte: