economic growth

An approved rezoning request for the Riverlights community marked a win for developers this week. Wilmington’s City Council moved to allow more residential units in the neighborhood, despite protests from Riverlights residents. 

Covid-19 shut down North Carolina in March.  A cautious re-opening plan by state officials has led to a flattening of the case count curve, but the restrictions have also stalled commerce. 

Three Brunswick County Republican candidates will advance to the November elections. The 2020 primary victors include Pat Sykes for Commissioner in District 3, David Robinson for Board of Education in District 2, and Steven Barger for Board of Education in District 4. Those two latter races ended in upsets.

Democrat Christopher Ward will challenge incumbent Republican David Rouzer for North Carolina’s 7th Congressional District in November. Ward won the 3-way Democratic primary in the Tuesday, Mar. 3 election.

Three Republicans are competing for one open spot in the Brunswick County District 4 Board of Education Primary. The candidates vary -- in their experience and their top priorities. But they all have two concerns in common: overcrowded schools and teacher pay.

Incumbent Buddy Fowler has served on the Surf City Town Council since 2004, and has been in public service for most of his life. He’s running again, and he wants to continue to work on current council projects. 

UNCW professors Adam Jones and Thomas Simpson are forecasting partially cloudy skies for next year’s economic growth. The economists told an audience today at the University’s Economic Outlook Conference that despite strong numbers, wages aren’t keeping pace, and a recession may still be on the horizon. WHQR reports on an unlikely measure for this potential economic downturn.

The Cape Fear Region is the fastest growing section in North Carolina. Census figures show Brunswick and Pender Counties at the top of the list. Pender County is 933 square miles stretching from the Atlantic coast inland towards Wallace, Atkinson and Ivanhoe. In Part One of our series on growth in the region, WHQR goes to Pender County.

North Carolina added more than 10,000 jobs in the tech sector last year alone.  That makes it seventh in the nation for job growth, according to a study by Computing Technology Industry Association, a nonprofit advocacy group.

2016 will bring stable but moderate growth to North Carolina and the Cape Fear region. That’s the prediction from the 24th Annual Economic Forecast, sponsored by McGladrey, the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, and Wilmington Business Development.

Home prices and household spending are on the rise, indicating consumer confidence.  But the economic recovery hasn’t quite reached the business sector yet.  Here’s Rick Kaglic of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond:

At UNCW’s annual OUTLOOK conference, economists forecasted the regional economy would grow slightly faster than the national average over the next year.  WHQR’s Isabelle Shepherd says UNCW’s Dr. Adam Jones compared the local economy to a car being driven with both feet – one on the gas, and one on the brake. 

Economic growth strategy is dominating conversations from neighborhood associations to cities and counties -- to the state and federal levels.  New Hanover County Commissioners recently paid for an analysis on the best ways to grow the area’s economy.