Statesville officials are hopeful that 2012 will bring the same steady economic recovery as the previous year.
Statesville Regional Development Business Expansion and Retention Director John Marek said every economist he has spoken to in the past indicated recovery would be slow moving. In reality, he said, it could be 2016 or 2017 before the country returns to 5 or 6 percent unemployment rates.
“We’ve had a lot of attention this year,” Marek said.
Retail sales are up, along with site visits from prospective companies and occupancy tax collections, which lead Marek and his associates to believe that consumer confidence is on the rise.
Marek said there are another half dozen projects they are working on in addition to the announcement of the expansion at C.R. Onsrud in Troutman and the new Pate Dawson Company distribution site at Statesville Business Park.
Iredell County’s success in recruiting new industry and growing existing companies, despite the economic setbacks, should make people feel good about the area they live in, said SRD Executive director Michael Smith.
“Charlotte continues to be a great draw for us,” he said.
Mitchell Community College continues to be an asset to businesses in the community, Smith said. The college partially funds Marek’s position with the SRD, and provides training opportunities through its Advanced Integrated Manufacturing System lab.
The lab gives local residents the opportunity to learn how to work with electronic, mechanical and hydraulic components in various advanced manufacturing equipment.
In many ways, the economic decline forced companies to take a step back to re-evaluate how they distribute the work among their employees, Marek said.
It isn’t that companies aren’t manufacturing goods, but they are using new methods and machinery that result in a higher amount of productivity, he said.
Greater Statesville Chamber of Commerce President David Bradley said retail sales went up during the past year.
According to the October sales tax report from N.C. Department of Revenue, taxable sales hit $153.6 million, up from $124 million in October 2010.
The same increase is mirrored in the 9 percent increase in occupancy tax collections for Statesville, Bradley said.
While cautiously optimistic about 2012, Smith said other factors could negatively impact the economy, such as the financial situation in Europe and the election.
“We are going to have a lot of chances for our confidence to be beaten,” Bradley said.
Smith and Bradley expect the incoming traffic for the Democratic National Convention in fall of 2012 to expose Statesville to the rest of the country in some fashion.
Bradley said during the convention, the focus of the nation will be on Charlotte, but a number of people are expected to stay in Iredell County.
“It’s going to be a plus,” he said. “There is going to be people traveling here.”
Since most of Statesville’s tourism traffic is tied in with business travel, he believes the upturn is a good sign of things to come.
“We are very pleased with where things are going,” Bradley said.
statesville.com
Statesville Regional Development Business Expansion and Retention Director John Marek said every economist he has spoken to in the past indicated recovery would be slow moving. In reality, he said, it could be 2016 or 2017 before the country returns to 5 or 6 percent unemployment rates.
“We’ve had a lot of attention this year,” Marek said.
Retail sales are up, along with site visits from prospective companies and occupancy tax collections, which lead Marek and his associates to believe that consumer confidence is on the rise.
Marek said there are another half dozen projects they are working on in addition to the announcement of the expansion at C.R. Onsrud in Troutman and the new Pate Dawson Company distribution site at Statesville Business Park.
Iredell County’s success in recruiting new industry and growing existing companies, despite the economic setbacks, should make people feel good about the area they live in, said SRD Executive director Michael Smith.
“Charlotte continues to be a great draw for us,” he said.
Mitchell Community College continues to be an asset to businesses in the community, Smith said. The college partially funds Marek’s position with the SRD, and provides training opportunities through its Advanced Integrated Manufacturing System lab.
The lab gives local residents the opportunity to learn how to work with electronic, mechanical and hydraulic components in various advanced manufacturing equipment.
In many ways, the economic decline forced companies to take a step back to re-evaluate how they distribute the work among their employees, Marek said.
It isn’t that companies aren’t manufacturing goods, but they are using new methods and machinery that result in a higher amount of productivity, he said.
Greater Statesville Chamber of Commerce President David Bradley said retail sales went up during the past year.
According to the October sales tax report from N.C. Department of Revenue, taxable sales hit $153.6 million, up from $124 million in October 2010.
The same increase is mirrored in the 9 percent increase in occupancy tax collections for Statesville, Bradley said.
While cautiously optimistic about 2012, Smith said other factors could negatively impact the economy, such as the financial situation in Europe and the election.
“We are going to have a lot of chances for our confidence to be beaten,” Bradley said.
Smith and Bradley expect the incoming traffic for the Democratic National Convention in fall of 2012 to expose Statesville to the rest of the country in some fashion.
Bradley said during the convention, the focus of the nation will be on Charlotte, but a number of people are expected to stay in Iredell County.
“It’s going to be a plus,” he said. “There is going to be people traveling here.”
Since most of Statesville’s tourism traffic is tied in with business travel, he believes the upturn is a good sign of things to come.
“We are very pleased with where things are going,” Bradley said.
statesville.com
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