Charlotte's forecast: blue skies tomorrow.

• Author: Holloway, Constance
• Position: Charlotte, NC

WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE QUEEN CITY

Back in 1972, UNC Charlotte professors James W. Clay and Douglas M. Orr Jr. looked at what lay ahead for the area around the state's largest city. They hit the mark.

Although Metrolina does not revolve around an overpowering central city, the region's communication, trade, and finance are strongly oriented toward its regional capital, Charlotte. Activities such as wholesaling financial and commercial headquarters operations, and major communications media require the economies of scale that only the larger central city can provide. Charlotte's ever-rising skyline is proof that the city's importance is increasing."

- Metrolina Atlas

Charlotte. The Queen City. Metrolina, as it is sometimes called to encompass the 11 surrounding counties. Today, as in the past, it's the commercial hub of the Carolinas and the banking hub of the South. In September 1995, the county's labor force totaled 321,240, and its unemployment was a mere 3.5%. This year, according to the 1996 edition of Charlotte in Detail, 465,895 people will reside in the city, 596,875 countywide.

But what will tomorrow bring for Charlotte-Mecklenburg residents? Rest assured, the region's leaders say, there will be ample new opportunities for Charlotte to flourish. It's a conviction shared even by those who have not yet arrived in the city.

"I am extremely excited about moving to Charlotte," says Steven Cohen, a partner in the New York City-based law firm of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft. The firm, [TABULAR DATA OMITTED] which Cohen says "traces its lineage to 1792," expected to open its downtown Charlotte office April 22. Cohen planned to come June 1.

Why the excitement about Charlotte? For Cohen, whose specialty is banking and finance law, there are numerous reasons. "NationsBank and First Union have emerged as world-class financial institutions. As a result, the Charlotte community is attracting talented professionals from throughout the United States.

"What Charlotte appears to offer is an ideal combination of a very sophisticated legal and financial practice coupled with a balanced lifestyle," he says. "Coming from New York, the emphasis on maintaining a family life while at the same time pursuing a professional career is very appealing."

Charlotte's future will be shaped by factors that have existed, in many cases, for decades. Those factors include an emphasis on family and a sense of community; a strong, diverse economy; public-private partnerships; and a wealth of leadership.

What forces do leaders say will drive Charlotte's growth? Mayor Pat McCrory lists three: a healthy economy that offers employment opportunities; the city's emergence as a top banking and distribution center; and continued growth and expansion of the airport.

The facility, a USAir hub, now offers 500 flights daily to more than 150 cities, says Melvin Tennant, president and CEO of the Charlotte Convention & Visitors Bureau. In 1972, according to Metrolina Atlas, United Airlines, Delta, Eastern, Piedmont and Southern Airlines provided a combined 69 direct flights daily to 26 cities on the Eastern Seaboard.

Charlotte's burgeoning retiree population will continue to boost growth, says Vickie Gron, business-development manager for Royal Insurance's Charlotte branch. "I definitely think the aging population and the people retiring in this region and in this area will continue to be good for the Carolinas. Construction and the service industry that support that population can do nothing but help us grow."

Overall population growth will continue to shape a city and county teeming with people. The Charlotte Chamber predicts that Mecklenburg County will be home to 661,091 residents in the year 2000. Five years later, that number will climb to 760,255.

Where will they live? East and south Charlotte, which have long drawn more than their share of Queen City residents, now have competition from the booming UNC Charlotte area. Next in line is the area dubbed City West, which consists of three clearly defined zones between the south 1-85 and 1-77 corridors that are bounded by the Catawba River.

"Long overlooked, this functionally integrated and growing section of Charlotte is now being recognized as one of the most important and dynamic areas in the city and region" writes Michael Gallis in the 1995 Charlotte Real Estate Report.

In his article, Gallis, a fellow of the Urban Institute at UNCC, offers convincing proof of that area's newfound popularity:

"Jim Merrifield of the Crosland Development Corporation, in describing to the Airport Area Council why his company chose this location for its Whitehall Development project, stated that, 'This section of the city contains half of the city's manufacturing jobs, is home to the most important transportation element, the...