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Western North Carolina Jobs and Employment
You already know that Western North Carolina is a great place to raise a family, but you may not realize what a great place it is in which to raise a business. More than 1,200 manufacturing companies and 300 technology companies can certainly attest to the fact that the wonderful quality of life we enjoy here in the Blue Ridge Mountains extends beyond our front lawn or the campus of our children’s school.
There are some 23 counties in the entire western end of the state and among other business incentives they boast a fiber optics network and other broadband connectivity that many other rural areas in the U.S. only dream of.
Even with a tightening economy many available and affordable certified industrial buildings and sites can still be found. Working through many local, regional, state and federal programs and organizations, attractive tax incentives and grants are being made available not to mention access to several organized networks of entrepreneurs and angel investors. Combine these enticements with a skilled, creative and motivated workforce of more than a half a million and a transportation infrastructure that includes two interstates with easy access to several more and it’s easy to see why Western North Carolina has everything you need to start up, relocate or expand your business.
AdvantageWest
AdvantageWest Economic Development Group is Western North Carolina’s regional economic development commission. AdvantageWest is a non-profit, public-private partnership whose primary focus is marketing the North Carolina mountains to corporations seeking to relocate or open a new facility, expand an existing business within the region. Chartered by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1994, AdvantageWest also hopes to attract those companies and organizations who might improve the quality of life for region’s citizens in other ways such as through filmmaking, entrepreneurship and tourism. The offices are located at the Asheville Regional Airport.
Real Estate
Western North Carolina’s real estate market may not be booming but still remains strong and with each national endorsement business just gets better. Whether it’s publications such as Money, Kiplinger’s and Forbes ranking western North Carolina as a top destination for living, working, recreation, arts and technology; Barron’s Online and Modern Maturity listing it as one of the best places to retire; or Bike magazine calling Asheville one of America’s top five best mountain biking towns; finding the perfect piece of real estate for you in WNC can still happen.
So why does it seem the nightly news cries gloom and doom everywhere else in the country? Hazy Oberski is a realtor with RE/MAX All Stars Realty in the Asheville area and had this to say. “Asheville is one of the areas that goes into a market correction last and one of the first to come out of it. We are a ‘local’ market and tend to not get caught up in the negative media about the nationwide soft market. Compared to the rest of the nation we still have a great market.”
Asheville is tending to have a bit better real estate market than some outlying counties but many of those areas can still draw upon the Asheville area’s strong points. For instance, Asheville’s economy is bolstered by having a regional airport, a state community college, and university. It also has one of the largest historic districts on the National Historic Register. Add to this the surrounding beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and you have an unbeatable combination of city convenience with small town charm.
One of those areas taking advantage of the proximity to Asheville’s resources lies just south between Asheville and Greenville, South Carolina. The Cliffs Communities are bordered by hundreds of thousands of acres of protected woodlands, three national forests and one national park. The Cliffs communities have chosen to put a second community in Buncombe County, according to Oberski. “Tiger Woods is putting his name on his very first golf course in the United States. That is also in Buncombe County,” added Oberski. Just another example of the Western N.C. real estate market drawing national attention again and again.
Retail/wholesale
Calista Foisy is showroom manager at Rexel Inc. on Asheland Avenue in Asheville. The Rexel company is the leading distributor worldwide of electrical supplies. Rexel serves three main end markets: industrial, commercial and residential. Foisy agreed with Oberski that the housing market is strong and if anything is turning to a more “upscale” customer.
“We’re finding a more educated customer base coming to Rexel’s showroom,” said Foisy, “so we’ve begun a new initiative to meet that demand. Our showroom has seen increased customer requests for lighting that is Energy Star rated and, for products that comply with the directive to build ‘green.’ We offer many styles of both indoor and outdoor, energy efficient lighting products that our vendors endorse as using 2/3 less energy and lasts six to10 times longer.”
Foisy added that there are other things the consumer can do to save energy. “With each lighting purchase we recommend the addition of a dimming devise, where possible, that can save up to 60 percent in electricity and extends bulb life up to 20 times longer. We also offer the latest in LED (Light Emitting Diode) lighting products. LED is the most innovative, long lasting and energy efficient light source available today for household lighting.”
The complete revamping of Rexel’s showroom on Ashland Avenue is not just for energy efficiency; it’s also for requests they’ve received on the “style” end of the spectrum. “We are finding the current demand is for increased options for contemporary lighting so we are actively redressing our showroom and refitting our displays with up-to-date lighting designs from companies like Fine Art, Corbett Lighting, Troy and Hudson Valley, Eurofase, Techlighting, and WAC,” says Foisy. “These product lines help to round out our other dedicated lines of Progress, Kichler, Emerson, Kalco and Murray Feiss and others. We are excited to be able to better serve both residential and professional customers as we bring exciting new products to display in the Asheville showroom.”
Hollywood comes to WNC
Though filmmaking in the mountains of Western North Carolina actually dates back to the 1920s, it’s making a re-appearance, this time as a very viable industry. With breathtaking mountain scenery, both city and small town locations, and remarkable diversity, WNC is incredibly film friendly. In fact, North Carolina as a whole has more production complexes and sound stages than any state in the nation outside of California.
Western North Carolina has already been the setting for some major films such as Being There, Bull Durham, The Clearing, The Fugitive, Forrest Gump, The Green Mile, Hannibal, The Last of the Mohicans, My Fellow Americans, Patch Adams and 28 Days.
Asheville got some large-format exposure this past January during the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, with the screening of “Anywhere USA,” a locally produced film. “Anywhere USA” was formerly known as “Asheville the Movie” and was directed by Anthony Haney-Jardine, co-writer of the screenplay with producer Jennifer MacDonald. It was one of 16 films in the dramatic film category at Sundance.
Just last year the State of North Carolina made it even easier for film companies to make the most of their production dollars by launching an attractive new Film Incentive Program. In it, production companies that spend at least $250,000 in North Carolina on motion picture or television production are eligible to receive a refundable tax credit of 15 percent of in-state spending for labor, goods and services. A reduced “privilege tax” of only 1 percent (the current sales and use tax is 4.25 percent) is also available for film production-related purchases made in-state.
Anyone interested in more information on filmmaking in Western North Carolina may visit the AdvantageWest’s Web site or the N.C. Film Office’s site at www.ncfilm.com.
Whether you decide to move here for the strong economy, friendly people, ready workforce, the magnificent view or all of the above – the best part is, you don’t have to pick and choose – with Western North Carolina you get the complete package.
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