Monroe North Carolina
Monroe is a charming Southern county seat, with its 1886 Victorian Italianate courthouse and quaint downtown surrounded by stately historic homes and tree-lined streets. Monroe’s downtown, with its wrought iron benches, Japanese Zelkova trees, brick pavers and gas lamp streetlights, is home to city and county governments, a thriving legal community, specialty shops and trendy restaurants. City leaders are pushing for more revitalization. They are getting help from banks willing to lend money at attractive rates for property owners who wish to build or renovate downtown. Tax credits and incentives offered by the City assist in attracting downtown development.
Downtown Monroe, Inc. supports revitalization with special events and beautification projects that attract people downtown. The lovely old courthouse and other buildings easily could (and occasionally do) stand in for old-time towns in television shows and movies. But there's more to Monroe than that. This city has plenty of business, its own airport, a busy retail district and more - a far cry from its humble beginnings as a town started from scratch in 1844. Monroe — named for James Monroe, the United States' seventh president — was founded to serve as the county seat for Union County, formed two years earlier. The cotton industry and the railroad's arrival were two early spurs to commerce.
Monroe Hardware Co., which today employs more than 200 people in its wholesale and retail operations, traces its roots back to 1887. The Charlotte-based Belk department store chain got its start in 1888 when William Henry Belk opened The New York Racket at Main and Morgan streets minaking a home union county here. Camp Sutton built during World War II brought about a major change in local demographics as soldiers remained in the county, married local women and became business leaders in the community.
Today, business is still helping to shape the city. Business development is profound at and near the Monroe Regional Airport, which is surrounded by companies who like the airport's convenience and the large tracts of land, as well as the area's proximity to Charlotte. The 6,000-square-foot airport terminal and planned runway extension from 5,000 to 7,000 feet set the stage for mega growth. The Monroe Corporate Center and adjacent developments have attracted numerous high tech companies and are experiencing heavy prospect activity. Another organization boosting the city's business fortunes is South Piedmont Community College. This institution, with facilities on Old Charlotte Highway in Monroe (near the airport and Corporate Center), Polkton and Wadesboro offers numerous college transfer and technical curriculum programs, continuing education and basic skills courses. SPCC serves as an effective provider of a skilled, specialized labor force – further enhancing the airport’s attractiveness to new and expanding companies.
You'll find a suburban mall and neighborhood shopping centers throughout the city. Physicians' offices are clustered near Union Regional Medical Center. The suburban business district is along U.S. 74, also called Roosevelt Boulevard. Almost everything you need is close by.
Courtesy of the Union County Chamber of Commerce
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