VISION 2011 AND OUR FUTURE

In February of 2001 more than seventy people attended a Vision Forum in the Hotel Concord to chart the future of Historic Downtown Concord. This forum focused on bringing diverse representatives of the community together to define a shared vision of what Concord's future downtown should be like in 2011. The 70 people attending the meeting represented a cross section of many groups including downtown property and business owners, residents of surrounding neighborhoods and citizens from around the county. Facilitated by the North Carolina Main Street Program, the Vision Forum was the beginning of fulfilling the dreams of a viable diverse downtown which will remain the anchor of the city.

After twenty-one years of hard work since becoming a Main Street community, many of the visions from the 2001 Forum have become a reality. Twenty-three businesses have expanded and Historic Downtown Concord has seen a net gain of fifty-five new businesses creating ninety-eight jobs. Thirty-nine buildings have been renovated and forty-four facades have been rehabilitated. More than $22 million dollars of public and private investment has occurred during the past decade.

Now, ten years later, the CDDC is again bringing the community together to seek input on where Historic Downtown Concord should go from here.  A Community Input Session to be held on March 3, 2011 will bring the community back together in the Hotel Concord ballroom to take the pulse of Downtown. This input will assist the CDDC Board of Directors as they set new goals and strategies.