
{"id":11507,"date":"2010-07-14T13:53:25","date_gmt":"2010-07-14T21:53:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/?p=11507"},"modified":"2010-07-14T13:53:25","modified_gmt":"2010-07-14T21:53:25","slug":"biz-beat-mid-year-economic-outlook","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/2010\/07\/14\/biz-beat-mid-year-economic-outlook\/","title":{"rendered":"BIZ BEAT: Mid-year economic outlook"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Margot C. Lester<br \/>\n<\/strong><br \/>\nBack in January, I surveyed a handful of local business owners to find out what they thought 2010 had in store for their enterprises. (You can read their original prognostications here: bit.ly\/92Zts8). Now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve hit the mid-point of 2010, I wondered how things were going. <\/p>\n<p>Dianne Reid, president of the <strong>Chatham County Economic Development Corporation<\/strong>, says things looked good in the first half of the year. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The EDC is seeing more interest in business expansion, more new entrepreneurs exploring start-up business ideas and more interest from outside companies looking to locate in Chatham County. We project continued interest, particularly as we launch additional marketing efforts on behalf of the county.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>But she remains guarded. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The economy is in a very precarious state and a major problem in one of a variety of fronts \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a major drop in the stock market, an increased number of people walking away from underwater mortgages \u00e2\u20ac\u201c could send us into a tailspin.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Orange County folks are keeping an eye on budget cuts at  UNC. Brad Broadwell, director of the <strong>Orange County Economic Development Commission<\/strong>, said there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s good news and bad news in that department. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153UNC-Chapel Hill might lose up to 200 employees. But it looks as though UNC Health Care would more than take up the slack, as it is reported to be looking at hiring up to 350 employees.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also been an uptick in entrepreneurial activity. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Through the first five months of the year, we have seen a growth of over 450 micro businesses in Orange County,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Broadwell boasts. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Proof once again that our citizens are resilient, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t stay on the government dole and add to the relative stability of the Orange County economy.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>And what do business owners think about the first half of 2010? Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what they said:<\/p>\n<p>Brad Bonneville, owner<br \/>\n<strong>Bonneville Renovation &#038; Repair LLC<\/strong>, Carrboro<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been short-handed and over-worked since February with a lot of restaurant repair, renovation and new stuff; a lot of home upgrades and additions; and even some new construction. So I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t see the economy in Carrboro and Chapel Hill as being too bad right now. Last summer was so slow \u00e2\u20ac\u201c this summer we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re slammed.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>Matt Neal, co-owner<br \/>\n<strong>Neal\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Deli<\/strong>, Carrboro<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I think the economy needs to get a lot better; it seems to have a hard time getting any traction. We are doing more business than last year due to some good press that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve gotten. Hopefully, those new customers were happy and will come back this fall! Going forward, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll focus our marketing on our lunch delivery to downtown Chapel Hill and campus and on catering.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Ashley Atkins, account manager<br \/>\n<strong>OENOPHILIA<\/strong>, Hillsborough<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Our sales numbers last year at this time were not high because of the economy. This will be \u00e2\u20ac\u201c hands down \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the best summer in the 27-year history of the company. Early indicators point to us reaching our sales goals for the year. I expect\u00c2\u00a0we will\u00c2\u00a0look back on 2010 as a great year.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Lyle Estill, vice president<br \/>\n<strong>Piedmont Biofuels<\/strong>, Pittsboro<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We did not anticipate BP\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Deep Horizon well filling the Gulf of Mexico with oil.\u00c2\u00a0Our phones are ringing off the hook, and we are adding new members at an unprecedented rate. Nowadays, we have a new class of member running on our fuel.\u00c2\u00a0They are cutting up their BP credit cards and signing up with us.\u00c2\u00a0We are guessing this will be our best year ever.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Charles House, owner<br \/>\n<strong>University Florist<\/strong>, Chapel Hill<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I still am somewhat optimistic, but perhaps not as much as at the beginning of the year.\u00c2\u00a0The economy may have shown some first signs of improving, but until the public thinks it has and starts to spend again, I am afraid we will not see a great improvement in sales. Our business is a little off from last year, but we have tried to adjust by more careful buying and adjusting staffing.\u00c2\u00a0So far, so good.\u00c2\u00a0As usual, our sales will rise with the reopening of the university in the fall \u00e2\u20ac\u201c always has \u00e2\u20ac\u201c so that should help with the final six months of the year.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<br \/>\n<strong><br \/>\nSustainable car care<\/strong><br \/>\nLast month,<strong> Chapel Hill Tire<\/strong> became the first car care center in the Triangle to offer the Environmentally Friendly Oil Change. But that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just the latest in the company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s efforts to operate more sustainably. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153In 1996, Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center was the first car care center in the Triangle to offer Nitrofill, a nitrogen tire inflation system,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d explains owner Marc Pons. Tires inflated with pure nitrogen can improve fuel efficiency by up to 10 percent, and they last up to 30 percent longer.<\/p>\n<p>Among its other efforts, the company uses recycled anti-freeze, has two company cars that are hybrids and encourages store managers to reduce energy and water costs by 10 percent. The recently renovated Carrboro store was sustainably built, with a 16.4-kw solar system consisting of 81 solar panels and dual-flush toilets, rain barrels to capture rain water and irrigate the garden, reused building materials and insulated low e-glazing window panels.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the right thing to do,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Pons says of doing business sustainably. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It demonstrates that you are running a good business.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Real estate news<br \/>\n<\/strong>Local home appraiser <strong>Jim Mansfield<\/strong> was diagnosed with cancer earlier this summer. Friends and colleagues have established an assistance fund for him and his family and tax-deductible donations are now being accepted. Checks should be made payable to Amity United Methodist Church, with \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Jim Mansfield\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in the memo, and mailed to 825 N. Estes Drive, Chapel Hill, N.C., 27514. <\/p>\n<p>Deborah Rigsbee Miller of <strong>Coldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston<\/strong> in Durham is now an EcoBroker Certified\u00c2\u00ae agent. Miller completed an informative training program on the energy and environmental issues that affect real estate transactions. Green issues aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t new to Miller, who worked with the EPA for 26 years prior to going into real estate. <\/p>\n<p>The Winmore neighborhood is expanding its footprint with multifamily rental and for-sale properties. The Landings, developed by <strong>Crosland Builders<\/strong>, will consist of 58 affordable apartments designed for families. The 1,000- to 1,350-square-foot townhomes in Winmore, developed by <strong>David Weekley Homes<\/strong>, are now on the market. Additionally, construction of Phillips Square, Winmore\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s village center, is nearing completion. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Back in January, I surveyed a handful of local business owners to find out what they thought 2010 had in store for their enterprises. Now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve hit the mid-point of 2010, I wondered how things were going. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[275],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-economy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11507"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11507\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11509,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11507\/revisions\/11509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}