N.C. Is First Again in Site Selection Magazine's State Business Rankings

Site Selection

magazine.

North Carolina has finished first in five of the last six years based on criteria that includes a survey of corporate site selectors and a database of four statistical categories as gathered by the magazine.

The winners were disclosed in Site Selection’s November issue.

“North Carolina has maintained this No. 1 ranking for five out of the last six years,” said Governor Mike Easley in a statement. “It is further proof that our aggressive economic development efforts are working. Our investments in infrastructure, education and workforce training continue to meet and exceed the needs of companies that choose to locate and expand in our state.”

North Carolina’s winning of a new campus for Fidelity Investments in Research Triangle Park that will produce 2,000 jobs was also picked as the magazine’s top “incentive deal” of the year.

Georgia and South Carolina also fared well in the survey, ranking third and fifth respectively.

Comments from corporate site selectors count for 50 percent of the magazine’s criteria in ranking states. And North Carolina received numerous positive comments, as Mark Arend wrote in Site Selection’s article about the rankings. Comments about N.C. included:

The top 10 rankings were:

1. North Carolina 2. Texas 3. Georgia 4. Alabama 5. South Carolina 6. Tennessee 7. Florida 8. Arizona 9. Nevada 10. (tie) Indiana 10. (tie) Kentucky