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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION:CABARRUSCOUNTY <br />Cabarrus County sets its sights on building a recession - resistant economy <br />with a triple- bottom -line payoff <br />abarrus County is getting down <br />and dirty with economic <br />development, giving a nod to <br />the economy's roots in cotton and <br />tobacco fields by developing a model <br />for building a modern, sustainable <br />community. At its heart: investment in <br />small business and agriculture. <br />The county's businesses already help <br />drive the economy of the greater Charlotte <br />metropolitan area. Recognized as the <br />"Center of American Motor Sports," <br />Cabarrus is home to numerous NASCAR <br />race shops as well as Charlotte Motor <br />Speedway, with fans filling the county's <br />3,000 hotel rooms on race weekends. Con- <br />cord Mills mall, just down the road from <br />the speedway, draws more than 17 million <br />shoppers each year, making Cabarrus <br />County the top tourism destination in the <br />state. The high -profile North Carolina <br />Research Campus, the newest life sciences <br />and biotech center in America, is revital- <br />izing the former textile town of Kannapolis. <br />But like most communities around <br />the country, Cabarrus County and the <br />municipalities of Concord, Kannapolis, <br />Harrisburg, Midland and Mt. Pleasant <br />are facing great challenges brought on by <br />the weak economy. County leaders <br />anticipate the recession's impact will be <br />felt for many years to come and will <br />likely forever change the way businesses <br />operate. Instead of relying solely on <br />traditional approaches to economic <br />development, they're experimenting with <br />new tools to encourage local entrepre- <br />neurship and consumerism. <br />The Cabarrus County Board of <br />Commissioners began gaining a more <br />holistic view of the county 's strengths <br />and opportunities during a two -year <br />strategic planning process that began <br />in 2007. Developing a vision for <br />Cabarrus as "a county where our <br />children learn, our citizens participate, <br />our dreams matter, our families and <br />neighbors thrive and our community <br />prospers, commissioners envisioned a <br />new future that focused on building a <br />sustainable community. Like many <br />businesses large and small that have <br />committed to socially responsible <br />governance and operations, Cabarrus <br />leaders began to look at the triple <br />bottom line when making decisions, <br />designing policies and regulations to <br />76 B U S I N B S S N O R T H C A R O L I N A <br />Attachment number 1 <br />1 -1 Page 298 <br />