Business
I-77 fight widens as Cooper issues demand to Cintra
By Dave Vieser. Cintra and the NCDOT might have won a couple of battles in January—the WidenI-77 lawsuit and the Charlotte City Council vote—but the war seems to be escalating in Lake Norman, with what amounts to freedom fighters among citizens and business leaders. Indeed, WidenI-77 founder Kurt Naas, a Cornelius resident, broke the news that […]
Motorsports mogul inducted into NASCAR Hall of Fame
Feb. 3. Bruton Smith has been inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. The motorsports legend and father of the Charlotte Motor Speedway also organized the Sonic Automotive Group, a nationwide chain of dealerships. An innovator and dynamic business leader, Smith founded Speedway Motorsports, Inc. by consolidating his motorsports holdings in December 1994, and in […]
Aquesta Bank will open Wilmington branch
Feb. 2. Cornelius-based Aquesta Bank will open a full service bank branch in Wilmington, proof, perhaps, that the Aquesta name and logo translates well to an upscale, waterfont-oriented marketplace. Aquesta Financial Holdings officials said they “recently finalized the purchase of a soon-to-be full-service bank branch” in Wilmington. While no other details were immediately available, the […]
CPCC: Billion-dollar economic engine
Feb. 2. Central Piedmont Community College recently unveiled the new Cato III Building at its Charlotte campus on Grier Road. The Cato III Building provides academic and workforce training space at CPCC’s most crowded campus. The 85,000 square-foot building increases the campus’ overall space by 85 percent. Meanwhile, a new study say CPCC adds more than […]
ProctorFree raises funding, closes partnerships
Feb. 1. ProctorFree, a Charlotte-based automated exam proctoring service, announced a successful round of investment funding to close out 2015 and contribute to continued growth in 2016. This financing round was led by Real Ventures with participation by Task Force X Capital and other select, individual investors. This funding will enable ProctorFree to maintain and […]
Aquesta declares stock dividend
Jan. 29. Aquesta Financial Holdings, the parent company of Aquesta Bank, has declared a 20-percent stock dividend, payable Feb. 24 to shareholders of record Feb. 10. A shareholder owning 1,000 shares prior to the transaction will own 1,200 immediately afterwards. Since Aquesta records of ownership are maintained electronically, most shareholders will need to take no action […]
Aquesta reports higher net income for quarter, year
Jan. 27. Aquesta Financial Holdings, Inc. and subsidiaries, including its primary subsidiary Aquesta Bank, announced today unaudited net income of $387,00 (15 cents per share) for the fourth quarter of 2015. This is an increase from the 2014’s fourth-quarter income of $368,000, or 14 cents per share. For the twelve months ending Dec. 31, 2015, […]
Zombie craze could bite into cable
By Erica Batten. A giant cable TV battle is playing out right in our own backyard as Mooresville-based MI-Connection, like dozens of locally-owned providers nationwide, negotiates with AMC Networks for renewal of their network carriage agreement. Small cable companies are crying foul when it comes to proposed fees, saying AMC Networks, which includes AMC, WE-TV and […]
Cintra’s parent firm built Canadian bridge which buckled
Jan. 25. By Dave Vieser. A newly constructed two-lane bridge in northern Ontario, Canada, which split apart on January 10, was designed and built, in part, by Ferrovial, which owns Cintra, the company building the I-77 toll lanes. The damage to the Nipigon River Bridge, which carries traffic using the Trans Canadian Highway, was extensive […]
CRTPO vote galvanized LKN opposition to tolls
Jan. 22. You might call it Pyrrhic victory, one that causes as much harm to the winner as it does to those who appear to have been defeated. The Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization did just as expected last night, voting 50-12, based on a weighted voting system, to approve the concept of managed lanes […]
