Bank of America to buy Merrill Lynch (Charlotte, Madison: prices, moving)

[Londonlawyer]

Charlotte clearly has a diverse corporate base, but none of those companies are in B of A's or Wachovia's league. Everyone in this city refers to Charlotte as "banktown" -- not SPX, Nucor or Family Dollar-town.

[flyingscotsman]

the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce. Niney-two firms employ 500 or more
people within Mecklenburg County. Of these firms, 42 are headquartered in
Charlotte-Mecklenburg and are indicated by an asterisk.
20,000 - 29,999 EMPLOYEES
CAROLINAS HEALTHCARE SYSTEM*
Mr. Michael Tarwater, President/CEO
1000 Blythe Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28232 704.355.1116
WACHOVIA CORPORATION*
Mr. Ken Thompson, CEO
301 South College Street, Charlotte, NC 28230 704.335.5878
10,000 - 15,999 EMPLOYEES
BANK OF AMERICA*
Mr. Ken Lewis, CEO
100 North Tryon Street, Charlotte, NC 28255 704.386.4771
WAL-MART STORES INC
Mr. Lee Scott, President/CEO
See Charlotte Telephone Directory
Charlotte, NC
5,000 - 9,999 EMPLOYEES
ADECCO
Ms. Susan Benoit, Regional Vice President
11025 Westlake Drive, Charlotte, NC 28273 704.583.2916
CHARLOTTE-MECKLENBURG SCHOOLS*
Dr. Peter C Gorman, Supt.
PO Box 30035, Charlotte, NC 28230 980.343.3000
CITY OF CHARLOTTE*
Ms. Pam Syfert, City Manager
600 E Fourth Street, Charlotte, NC 28202 704.336.2241
DUKE ENERGY*
Mr. Jim Rodgers, CEO
526 South Church Street, Charlotte, NC 28202 704.594.6200
FOOD LION
Mr. Rick Anicetti, President/CEO
See Charlotte Telephone Directory
Charlotte, NC
NORTH CAROLINA STATE GOVERNMENT
Mr. Michael Easley, Governor
See Charlotte Telephone Directory
Charlotte, NC
3,000 - 4,999 EMPLOYEES
AT&T NORTH CAROLINA
300 South Brevard Street, Charlotte, NC 28202 704.417.7707
MECKLENBURG COUNTY*
Mr. Harry L Jones Sr., County Manager
600 E Fourth St, 11th Floor, Charlotte, NC 28202 704.336.2472
PRESBYTERIAN HEALTHCARE/REGIONAL HEALTHCARE
Mr. Dan Hagler, Vice President
200 Hawthorne Lane, Charlotte, NC 28207 704.384.9113
RUDDICK/HARRIS TEETER, INC*
Mr. Fred Morganthall, Division President
701 Crestdale Drive, Matthews, NC 28105 704.844.3100
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
800.333.4636
US AIRWAYS*
Ms. Terri Pope, Managing Director
PO Box 19004, Charlotte, NC 28219 704.359.3000
1,500 - 2,999 EMPLOYEES
ALLEN TATE CO INC*
Mr. Allen Tate, CEO
6700 Fairview Road, Charlotte, NC 28210 704.365.6910
ALLTEL COMMUNICATIONS
Mr. Scott Ford, CEO/ President
10005 Monroe Road, Matthews, NC 28270 704.716.7000
BB&T
Mr. Garrett Thompson, Regional President
See Charlotte Telephone Directory
Charlotte, NC
BELK INC*
Mr. David Stoval, Chairman Central Division
2801 West Tyvola Road, Charlotte, NC 28217 704.357.1000
BI-LO FOOD STORES
Mr. Dan Cohagen, CEO
See Charlotte Telephone Directory
Charlotte, NC
BOJANGLES RESTAURANT, INC
Mr. Joseph Drury, CEO
9432 Southern Pine Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28273 704.527.2675
CAROLINA RESTAURANT GROUP*
Mr. Quint Graham, President/CEO
16055 Johnston Road, Charlotte, NC 28266 704.341.1008
CENTRAL PIEDMONT COMMUNITY COLLEGE*
Dr. P Anthony Zeiss PhD, President
PO Box 35009, Charlotte, NC 28235 704.330.2722
COMPASS GROUP*
Mr. Gary Green, CEO
2400 Yorkmont Road, Charlotte, NC 28217 704.328.4000
CVS PHARMACIES
Mr. Bobby Tamplin, Area Vice President
See Charlotte Telephone Directory 704.939.6000
ECKERD/RITE AID
Mr. John Sensabaugh, Regional Vice President
1776 Statesville Avenue, Charlotte, NC 28206 704.371.3600
FAMILY DOLLAR STORES, INC*
Mr. Howard Levine, President/CEO
10401 Old Monroe Road, Matthews, NC 28105 704.847.6961
IBM CORP
Mr. Ken Watts, Senior Local Executive
8501 IBM Drive, Charlotte, NC 28262 704.594.1000
LANCE INC*
Mr. Dave Singer, President
PO Box 32368, Charlotte, NC 28232 704.554.1421
MICROSOFT CORP
Mr. Steven Sorenson, Director
8055 Microsoft Way, Charlotte, NC 28273 980.776.8084
PARAMOUNT’S CAROWINDS
Mr. John Shamrock, Executive Director
PO Box 410289, Charlotte, NC 28241 704.588.2600
TARGET STORES
Mr. J.J. Erlbacher, District Manager
See Charlotte Telephone Directory 704.841.7534
Charlotte, NC
TIAA-CREF
Mr. Herb Allison, CEO
8500 Andrew Carnegie Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28262 704.988.1731
UNITED PARCEL SERVICE
Ms. Carol Brolley, District Manager
1514 N Graham Street, Charlotte, NC 28206 800.742.5877
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHARLOTTE*
Dr. Philip L Dubois, Chancellor
9201 University City Boulevard, Charlotte, NC 28223 704.687.2276
WELLS FARGO HOME MORTGAGE
Mr. Patrick Carey, EVP
2115 Rexford Road #315, Charlotte, NC 28211 704.367.7600
YMCA OF GREATER CHARLOTTE*
Mr. Andrew Calhoun, CEO/ President
500 E Morehead St, Suite 300, Charlotte, NC 28202 704.716.6200

[bandibadji]

Originally Posted by Londonlawyer

Sorry, but the financial world does revolve around NY and London. Other regional, financial centers are emerging like Shanghai, Dubai and Mumbai, but Charlotte never will be in their company. I live in Charlotte myself, but I simply recognize its limits. Analogously, the little museum complex on Tryon Street will never be anything more than a little museum complex. It will never compete with anything that NY or London have.

Yea, and you probably used to say that that little NCNB bank will remain a little bank. LOL. For you information, Charlotte's two main banks are only surpassed in size by banking in the cities of Paris, London, and New York. Guess you need to brush up on your limits? Looks like the next in line with the big boys is Zurich. Oh by the way, I have not even considered the acquisition. The world may revolve around New York, but London is slowly losing its status to Istanbul, Moscow and other emerging European cities. Soon, London will slowly begin to lose its current status in the European areana. The little mseum complex on Tryon will be adding a few major museums that makes your comments null and void. As the city grows, these venues will increase tremendously. I guess you aren't aware that things are changing in town? It is really a shame that people move to Charlotte and want it to fail. Charlotte is a southern city and southern cities are simply not suppose to have local people smart or energetic enough to rise to high levels. Right? Eat you heart out people, the wheels are spinning. I also don't understand why someone here would complain and yet remain. It is obviously better than the place from which the person came or they wouldn't be here. Charlotte is a mediocre city. It is not similar in any way to the cities that you mentioned, but most of us don't care. There is enough to keep us here and refreshing to know that it is growing and getting to be a large city to be proud of. If we can be a prosperous city with our own identity, that is fine with us that live here. If one doesn't like mediocracy, they should move to a more thrilling place to their liking. Being jealous or insulting makes no sense. Nothing wrong with a city being mediocre. Ninety nine percent of cities are.

[flyingscotsman]

Originally Posted by Londonlawyer

Charlotte clearly has a diverse corporate base, but none of those companies are in B of A's or Wachovia's league. Everyone in this city refers to Charlotte as "banktown" -- not SPX, Nucor or Family Dollar-town.

You may refer do it as banktown, I don't the two main bank's only employ approx 40,000 here in charlotte, out of 1.8 million people in this area thats a very small amount.

[Londonlawyer]

Originally Posted by flyingscotsman

You may refer do it as banktown...

I don't. I think it's a dumb term, and I clearly don't regard Charlotte as a financial center.

[flyingscotsman]

Originally Posted by Londonlawyer

I don't. I think it's a dumb term, and I clearly don't regard Charlotte as a financial center.

there are no true financial centers anymore.

it's all electronic, with most of it having no true value.

[Londonlawyer]

Originally Posted by bandibadji

...It is really a shame that people move to Charlotte and want it to fail. Charlotte is a southern city and southern cities are simply not suppose to have local people smart or energetic enough to rise to high levels....

Who wants Charlotte to fail? It's a nice, clean, medium-sized, American city that offers an absurdly low cost of living, easy commuting, etc. It's a lot like Minneapolis or Cincinnati except not as cold.

Also, who said that Southerners are not smart? I certainly didn't.

[bandibadji]

Originally Posted by Londonlawyer

Companies come and go. Drexel crashed and burned and that did not affect NY. By contrast, if a small city like Charlotte were to lose B of A and Wachovia, it would devastate the city.

By the way, I am not putting Charlotte down. It's a nice, non-international, American city like Denver or Minneapolis. I simply recognize reality which many residents here refuse to do. I still meet people who honestly believe that the real estate market here has been unaffected and that prices have not fallen.

For many real estate sales people that I know, it is still fine in much of Charlotte. I want to set you straight on some issues you seem to not be up to dat on. First, there are only three cities in the world that have bigger banking than Charlotte, New York, Paris, and London. Zurich is an up and comer so it will soon be there. By your comments, you would have assumed that NCNB would have always remain a small local bank. As far as the little museum on Tryon St., it is being joined by a few new ones in the next year to upgrade the uptown status for cultural venues. Charlotte was a small city a few years ago. I don't know if you have been around long enough to notice that 50,000 people come to this area annually. You insult Denver and Minneapolis. Both are great cities and much more desirable than London in my opinion. Charlotte is a good mediocre city. Nobody ever says it is better than cities of comparable size. However, there are always those that live here, take advantage of what it has to offer and then complain, and insult the place. I am sure that many people are disappointed that Charlotte is doing so well compared to practically all other American cities in areas of growth and prosperity. Like it or not, Charlotte now owns Merrill Lynch and its world status has just jumped up a few notches. Facts are facts. Now you are saying that Charlotte is a "nice international city". Have a change of mind?

[bandibadji]

Originally Posted by Londonlawyer

Charlotte clearly has a diverse corporate base, but none of those companies are in B of A's or Wachovia's league. Everyone in this city refers to Charlotte as "banktown" -- not SPX, Nucor or Family Dollar-town.

Could it possibly be because Charlotte is number two in "banking" in the USA. Didn't you just say that your self in so many words?

[Londonlawyer]

Originally Posted by bandibadji

....Now you are saying that Charlotte is a "nice international city". Have a change of mind?

I said "non-international" and "American." The overwhelming majority of US cities are non-international, as are most Americans. This is a very insular country.