Creative Loafing reports today that Charlotte has lost its
edge.
Apparently the Wall Street
Journal recently conducted a study of the most youth-magnet cities in the
country. Charlotte was bumped off the list this year, in part because
?they jacked taxes through the roof to the point that we
will now struggle to recruit the businesses that will create the jobs people
want and need?..
Meanwhile, the big civic debate here (in Charlotte) is whether we should jack up the
property tax rate again to pay for a $450 million streetcar that will generate
$112 million in property taxes over 20 years. (No, the math on that doesn’t
make sense.) And should we spend millions more turning Eastland Mall into a
tourist destination? Millions more for a baseball stadium? ?..they belong in the trash bin for
now.?
And to add insult to injury, Raleigh scored higher on the study due to
“A relatively low cost of living and a highly educated
population help make this Southern city appealing. Raleigh has job
opportunities in tech and research and a strong university presence. It offers
outdoor recreation and a lively music scene. ‘Raleigh’s future is so bright
that it ought to wear shades,’ says one panelist.”
The article cites our colleague Jeff Taylor over at the MeckDeck, purveyor of all that’s cool in the not so cool Queen City.