When our community's traditional industry, textiles, began moving offshore, Mooresville's town leaders decided that diversification was the answer in order for the town to survive. And, in order to obtain diversification, the community needed business parks and industrial buildings in which to locate it's new growth. Seven industrial business parks later, our town has quadrupled in population.
        While other communities struggled to sew together a new future, Mooresville was able to transform itself from a dying textile town to "Race City USA." What is our secret? Jack Schultz documented this in his recently published book, Boomtown USA: The Seven-and-a-Half Keys to Big Success in Small Towns. Mooresville, North Carolina is named one of 397 small towns in America that found a way to beat the odds and flourish, while in the last decade almost 15,000 small towns in the United States have declined in population.
        In the book, Mooresville is cited as a case study and several characteristics are identified that set growing towns apart. The characteristics identified are: (1) maintaining visionary leadership, (2) having a can-do attitude, (3) leveraging strengths and resources, and (4) building a town brand.
        In Mooresville, our "can-do" attitude and visionary leadership have led the way. What is our brand? Racing. With over 47 race teams (such as Dale Earnhardt, Inc., Penske Racing South, Robert Yates Racing), and 100-plus motorsports suppliers, the town has become a destination for business and tourism.
        Mooresville is a small town community that supports business and offers a quality of life that would be the envy of many big-city executives and commuters. Within the last 10 years, we have added over $950 million in new tax investment and over 4,500 new jobs. This year, Lowe's Companies, Inc. moved into Phase 1 of their new corporate facility, bringing over 1,500 jobs and several hundred vendor-related companies into our community.
        If your company wishes to be located:
        • Within 15 miles of 3 interstate highways: I-77, I-40 and I-85;
        • Within a 30-minute drive of a labor force of over 1,000,000 people;
        • 30 minutes from the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, a hub for US Airways, with over 538 passenger and cargo flights daily; and
        • Within 25 miles (40 km.) of Charlotte, with professional sports, national performing arts, and first-rate shopping and dining opportunities . . .
        Then Mooresville is for you! We are a progressive small town that is pro-growth with dynamic ideas for the future. If you would like to learn more about the Mooresville-South Iredell area, contact Melanie O'Connell Underwood, CED, Executive Director of Economic Development, at 704-664-6922.