Business & Economy

Governor Pat McCrory and Commerce Secretary Sharon Decker will make an announcement Monday that will "reform and revise" the whole Commerce Department.  McCrory spoke Friday at an Executive Networking Conference in Pinehurst.  He told the minority business leaders and contractors that the state needs to treat businesses as customers, not adversaries.

Small business owners in North Carolina are more optimistic about their companies, but hiring remains stagnant.  A survey released yesterday from PNC Financial says nearly 30 percent of North Carolina businesses report that they are optimistic about their prospects for the next six months.  That's up from 15 percent last fall.  But PNC economist Mekael Teshome says the state's business outlook reflects the slow growth nationwide.

Members of the Durham Historic Preservation Commission have voted to approve a 26-story mixed-use tower in the downtown area.  Colorado-based developer Austin Lawrence Partners plans to incorporate about 60 percent residential units and 40 percent retail and business space into the building.  Plans would also incorporate facades of older buildings into the high-rise's design. 

Collegiate entrepreneurs from schools like Pitt, Florida State, Clemson and NC State gathered in Raleigh Wednesday for a different kind of ‘March Madness.’  These business-minded students were not on a basketball court.  Instead, they were bouncing around a working prototype in hopes of winning a big check and a foot in the start-up world.