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In recognition of “Small Business”, the Lake Norman Chamber of Commerce has planned a week long series of events, seminars, and activities May 21-25. |
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Green Drinks Lake Norman will discuss the US Department of Energy's Clean Cities program at Campania Cafe on May 31 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. Speakers and topics will include new and growing companies and more professionals in the green, energy and sustainable sectors. |
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“Stitched in Time,” a mini-documentary produced by the Cabarrus Chamber of Commerce leadership class, will debut at the Gem Theatre on May 17 at 7 p.m. The film explores the history of the county’s textile industry through personal stories shared by former mill employees. The Cabarrus Chamber Leadership Class brought Historic Cabarrus Inc., Kannapolis History Associates, the A. L. Brown High School Digital Media Department and students from Concord High School into the project. The documentary was directed by A. L. Brown’s digital media teacher, Jonathan Greene.
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May 8 Lucky Dog, a proposed doggy daycare, dog park and coffee/drinks bar in the former Kylie’s Restaurant on Highway 21, was granted a conditional use permit by the Cornelius Town Board at the Monday night meeting. Owners of the nearby Hampton Inn raised objections to the facility because of the possibility that barking dogs would disturb their guests' sleep. Bob Daly, one of the owners of Daly Seven, which owns the hotel, said the company is in the "sleep business." Hampton Inn policy is such that all guests get a full refund if they are not completely satisfied. The board vote, however, was unanimous, in favor of the new canid venture. |
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| A bridge too far out: Cornelius’ idea for a new bridge is bigger than just a bridge |
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By Jackson Sveen
In the age of Disney and Jordan, branding is the principal means to engage a consumer and sell a product — and a small town.
Cornelius hopes to burnish its brand with a new bridge for its main thoroughfare, Catawba Avenue at I-77.
“We want to create the feeling where...you’re driving and you’re driving, and you come up on this amazing structure and immediately you’re going to say there’s something cool there and there’s something exciting happening there; I’m going to get off there,” said Lynette Rinker, mayor pro tem of Cornelius.
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By Reid Creager
Robust year-over-year increases in new car sales at several area dealerships could be a sign of an improving economy, or the fact that all old cars break down eventually. Maybe it’s a little of both.
“We’ve very encouraged,” says Jack Salzman, owner of Lake Norman Chrysler Jeep Dodge. “Business is good” — a whopping 55 percent increase in new car sales from last year, he says.
Salzman attributes the gains to three things: “The average age of the car on the road today is almost 11 years old; credit is getting easier for consumers to get; and I think consumers are feeling better about their personal situation — their job, the whole thing.”
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| Tanya Blackmon |
By Dave Yochum
Tanya Blackmon was raised right.
Her mother was a school teacher who had a way of making her children believe in themselves.
Her father was a Marine Corps drill instructor who taught them they had to be the best at what they did.
Mix in concern for others, a religious upbringing, a good education and you get the president of Presbyterian Hospital Huntersville. |
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May 11 The University of North Carolina Nutrition Research Institute (UNC NRI) announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Steven H. Zeisel, M.D., Ph.D., Kenan Distinguished University Professor in Nutrition and Pediatrics and UNC NRI Director, will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled “Choline and Optimal Development.” |
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Spurned by Huntersville, Carolinas HealthCare System has chosen a site in Davidson for a new 66-bed, 67,280-square-foot behavioral health hospital.
“We are eager to move forward with this project and begin building on our promise to provide more behavioral health services for those who desperately need them in our community,” said Dr. Roger Ray, Chief Medical Officer of CHS. “This new hospital will help us address a profound, unmet need in a professional, respectful, patient centric environment.”
The state of North Carolina began down-sizing state psychiatric hospitals following the passage of the Mental Health Reform Act of 2001. To date, about half of the state-operated hospital beds have closed. Mecklenburg County is experiencing a serious shortage of available beds for behavioral health patients, which results in some patients being held in observation in hospital emergency departments or acute care beds while waiting for placement.
The new facility will include a single-story, 67,280-square-foot hospital with large activity and living areas that will open to self-contained landscaped courtyards for outdoor recreation in a private, secure environment. The 23-acre site also will have a medical office building with 10,000 square feet. CHS and the land owner have an agreement for the sale of the property, which is on Hwy. 73 about a quarter-mile east of Ramah Church Road. |
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| MORRIS |
May 9 Cabarrus County Commission Chairperson Liz Poole retained her seat on the board in Tuesday's elections but Steve Morris, who had backing from an aggrieved business community, captured 7,158 votes, winning a seat on the county board. Holly Blackwelder, another favorite of the business community, missed her shot at the board, coming in third with 6,978 votes. A factor in the Cabarrus commission race was Cabarrus Jobs Now, a non-profit public advocacy group that campaigned for a pro-jobs approach to government.
Relations between the county commission and the business community became strained in recent years after county commissioners voted to cut support of Cabarrus Economic Development, with the blessings of Poole and former Chairman Jay White. Unemployment and job creation became the deciding issues in the May 8 vote.
White lost his bid for N.C. House District 82 to Larry Pittman, 4,262 to 4,032. |
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By Reid Creager
A sampling of inquiries at three Golden Crescent economic development corporations shows distinctly varied results — perhaps a sign that recovery will be uneven despite some recent encouraging signs.
Inquiries, a key measure of business activity and a leading economic indicator, are calculated, defined and even labeled in different ways depending on the specific organization. Nonetheless, figures supplied by leaders at the Cabarrus, Lake Norman and Mooresville EDCs provide a window into local activity. |
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May 7 Uwharrie Capital Corp., parent company for Cabarrus Bank & Trust, Bank of Stanly and Anson Bank, reported net income for the first three months of 2012 rose to $700,000 from $209,000 during the first quarter of 2011. Total assets fell to $518.6 million at March 31, vs. $526.9 million at Dec. 31, 2011. Net income available to shareholders was $539,000 or 7 cents per common share for the three months ending March 31, compared to $48,000 or 1 cent a share for the same period in 2011. Net income available to shareholders takes into consideration the payment of dividends on preferred stock issued by the company. |
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| End of the line: K&W Cafeteria closed in Magnolia Plaza |
| May 4 Two businesses are moving out of Magnolia Plaza in Cornelius, apparently because of a dramatic increase in Mecklenburg County property taxes which are passed on to commercial tenants. The K&W Cafeteria is closing after more than 10 years in Cornelius. The cafeteria will be replaced after upfitting is completed by an Asian food buffet, said B.V. Belk III, a partner in the company that owns the 11,325 square foot shopping center at West Catawba Avenue and Jetton Road. FiFi's Fine Resale, an upscale clothing consignment store, is moving out of the shopping center and heading to The Shops at Fresh Market where it will take 7,200 square foot locaton. Owner Julia Austin said her rent rose by $4,500 a year due to an increase in property taxes caused by the 2011 Mecklenburg County property revaluation. "They killed us on taxes," Belk said, explaining that the new valuation is still under appeal. He said the company's Mooresville properties are drawing more attention than Cornelius. Iredell County taxes, of course, are lower. |
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A short sale at 21600 Norman Shores Drive has sold for $1.42 million after being listed at more than $2.5 million in the past. The Craftsman style lakefront home has an “auto showroom” on the lower level...
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| Randy Stewart |
| Back in 2005, Randy Stewart went through a dozen new employees. Indeed, finding good people is one of the top challenges at Fabrication Automation, a Concord-based company that sells and services equipment that cuts steel plate. |
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