At Paramount’s Carowinds Water and Theme Park, you can test your stomach against the Borg Assimilator, a Star Trek-themed roller coaster.

In the eighteenth century, Queen Charlotte of England must have been thrilled to learn that a small city in the American colonies had been named after her. But the former Charlotte-Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Germany, who was the wife of England’s King George III during the Revolutionary War, would be stunned to see what has become of her namesake. Charlotte, N.C., is still known as the Queen City, but that’s where similarities to the colonial town end.

Today the city is the second-largest banking center in the U.S. with total assets of $1.1 trillion, and lies at the heart of the fifth-largest urban area in the country, with some 2.2 million people living in the 13-county Greater Charlotte area. The region includes the cities of Charlotte and Gastonia, which lies on the Catawba River to the west, and extends south to Rock Hill, S.C., which is 25 miles south of downtown Charlotte.

The city’s reputation as a financial center began in the late 1700s when a 12-year-old boy found a 17-pound yellow rock and took it home to his parents, who used it as a doorstop for three years before learning it was a giant gold nugget. That sparked America’s first true gold rush, but the 40,000 people who move to Charlotte each year are now looking for their own kind of treasure — a vibrant business environment and a comfortable, enjoyable lifestyle.

On duty

“North Carolina hasn’t been hit quite as badly by the nursing shortage as some other states, but we’re still looking for it to get worse over the next five to 10 years,” says Billy Bevill, RN, MSN, associate director of recruitment and retention at the North Carolina Center for Nursing. “The last survey we did about two years ago showed a statewide RN shortfall of about 6%.”

With a potential crisis looming in North Carolina’s future, the NCCN has launched several programs designed to prevent the kind of nursing deficit other states are experiencing. “We started NCCN in 1998 when there was a real glut of nurses, before the shortages began,” Bevill says. “But our models predicted a shortage, so we created some materials to keep nursing in the forefront of students. We did some heavy marketing to middle schools, high schools, and others, and I think that had an impact.”

One program called “Nursing: The Power To Make A Difference,” promotes positive images of nursing through public service announcements on television and radio, and has generated a significant increase in traffic on the NCCN website. Prospective nursing students are invited to visit the site for information about nursing careers and can e-mail their questions directly to working nurses in the field.

NCCN also established the Recognition, Reward & Renewal Grant Program to promote retention of experienced nurses in North Carolina. The program was created to recognize and reward outstanding achievements in nursing, but has since been refocused to include the recruitment of individuals into the nursing profession. NCCN’s 2004 program awarded grants to 10 North Carolina health care agencies to implement creative nurse recruitment and retention programs.
One recipient was Charlotte’s flagship Carolinas Medical Center, one of the area’s largest health care employers. One of only five academic teaching hospitals in the state, the 777-bed facility serves as the regional referral center for western North Carolina. The medical center’s Children’s Hospital includes a 53-bed NICU, a PICU, a neonatal progressive care nursery, and other pediatric areas. Due to the region’s rapid growth, plans are underway to build a new 230-bed annex called Levine Children’s Hospital on the CMC grounds. The $85 million facility is scheduled to open in 2007.
CMC provides a number of specialty services to the Charlotte area, including The Women’s Institute, which specializes in the diagnosis and management of women’s medical and reproductive conditions, as well as other health concerns. It is comprised of the Center For Gynecology, the Center for Reproduction, and the Center for Prenatal Diagnosis, giving women a single location for diagnosis, treatment, and ongoing care.

Charlotte’s other major nursing employer is Presbyterian Healthcare, which employs about 6,000 people. The system’s main facility is Presbyterian Hospital, a private, nonprofit regional medical center and one of the largest health care institutions in the Carolinas. The 593-bed hospital’s 1,400 physicians treat about a quarter of a million patients each year. The system’s Presbyterian Orthopedic Hospital is one of only a few hospitals in the country solely dedicated to orthopedic injuries and diseases, and is ranked No.1 in North Carolina for joint operations such as hip and knee replacements.

Presbyterian Hemby Children’s Hospital began as a pediatric unit in the 1950s, and now boasts a Level III NICU and PICU, a critical care transport unit, and the region’s only ED exclusively for children. It features specially designed, age-appropriate equipment, seating, stretchers, and supplies to meet the needs of pediatric patients. Children can play video games or watch movies while waiting for treatment.

Presbyterian Healthcare also offers a 240,000 square foot, 102-bed hospital 12 miles away in Matthews, and in November will open a 50-bed facility in nearby Huntersville. Rawle Barker, a human resources executive at Presbyterian, says the process of staffing the new hospital has already begun. Barker notes that the 50-bed facility will be “a smart hospital, very high-tech, which will serve as a sort of R&D lab for our larger organizations. We’ll be able to try out new processes and programs there and then transition them to our larger hospitals.”

Barker says the area’s rapid growth means there are a multitude of employment opportunities. “Opportunities in this area for nurses are booming,” he says. “I get calls from headhunters every day. Nurses here can write their own ticket and select where they want to go. Charlotte is still an inbound city; everyone wants to come here.”

A short drive across the state border in Rock Hill, you’ll find Piedmont Medical Center, a 288-bed facility managed by Tenet Healthcare. The hospital’s services include 24-hour emergency care, cancer care, cardiac care, women’s services, mental health and substance abuse care, orthopedics, pain care, rehabilitation services, surgical care, and wound care services. The hospital also has a digestive disease center, a sleep disorders center, and a pediatric unit.
In Gastonia, Gaston Memorial Hospital has provided a full spectrum of care to the community since 1946. Its specialty centers include The Comprehensive Cancer Center, CaroMont Heart Center, the Pain Center at Gaston Memorial Hospital, a psychiatric center, the Sleep Center, and the CaroMont Wound and Diabetes Centers.

Charlotte isn’t just a good place to work, it’s also a great place to learn. Both Queens University of Charlotte and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte offer four-year nursing programs that lead to a baccalaureate degree in nursing. In July, Presbyterian Hospital’s 100-year-old nursing school merged with the nursing school at Queens University, creating the largest nursing school in the region. Presbyterian had been offering a two-year diploma program, but with the merger, students will now be able to earn an associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degree at one school.

Other nursing schools in the Charlotte area include: UNC Charlotte School of Nursing, which offers bachelor’s and master’s programs; Carolinas College of Health Sciences, which offers an associate degree program; Central Piedmont Community College, which offers an associate degree program; and Carolinas Medical Center-Mercy School of Nursing, which offers a diploma program.

Off duty

One reason so many people move to Charlotte is its mild climate. Only half of all winter days fall below freezing, and the average annual snowfall is just 5.4 inches. Another reason is its proximity to the mountains, which offers a host of recreational opportunities no matter what the season. The city’s cost of living is lower than the national average, as is the average home price. In addition, educational opportunities abound — Greater Charlotte is home to 17 colleges and universities.

Out and about. The area’s mild climate means outdoor activities are possible all year long, and Charlotte’s consolidated city/county park system aims to make sure you’re never far from a place to enjoy them. The system has set aside 175 parks comprising 15,000 acres where people can play. On top of that, you’ll find 20 public recreation centers; three nature centers; and even a downtown aquatic center, the Mecklenburg Aquatic Center, to enjoy.

In nearby Gaston County, Crowders Mountain State Park beckons the work-weary with its miles of trails through mountain peaks, valleys, and gently rolling piedmont. The park occupies the highest point in the county, giving you sweeping vistas of up to 20 miles. As you explore gently splashing brooks while songbirds warble overhead, civilization seems worlds away.

A few miles west of Charlotte on I-85 in Belmont, Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden provides another good place for a respite. The 450-acre park offers four themed gardens: Four Seasons, Cottage, Canal, and Perennial. You’ll also find a dozen fountains; a gift and garden shop; woodland trails; and an ornate visitor pavilion with elegant Tuscan columns, a copper roof, and a magnificent stained glass dome. About three-quarters of the park’s acreage are still undeveloped.

If you like to canoe or kayak, McDowell Nature Preserve offers a place to paddle and wealth of other outdoor recreational opportunities. The largest park in Charlotte covers 1,108 acres on Lake Wylie in southwestern Mecklenberg County, and is one of the most popular outdoor destinations in the area.

After all that relaxation, you may be ready for a little excitement, and Paramount’s Carowinds Water and Theme Park can provide it in spades. Just 15 minutes from downtown on the North Carolina/South Carolina border, the 105-acre park features more than 50 state-of-the-art rides, shows, and movie-themed experiences for all ages. The newest is the Borg Assimilator, an exciting Star Trek-themed roller coaster that shoots screaming riders through eight inversions, sends them hurtling toward the ground, and then pulls them out just in time for the next inversion. According to Paramount, “the unique rider position offers breathtaking and virtually unobstructed views of the park.” That is, of course, if your vision isn’t blurred by the G-forces.

Cultural musings. Charlotte’s museums and artistic offerings may not rise to quite that level of intensity, but they are just as thrilling in their own way. The city’s Arts and Science Council raised more than $10 million during its 2003 fund drive, and that money was returned to the community in the form of grants for cultural and educational projects.

Charlotte’s growing reputation as a leading arts center is typified by such unique attractions as the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center downtown. The center includes the 2,100-seat Belk Theater, the 434-seat Booth Playhouse, and the 150-seat Studio Theater. More than 3 million patrons have visited the center since its opening in 1992, enjoying Broadway shows, symphonies, operas, and dance productions.

Also under Blumenthal’s management is Spirit Square, which began life as a Baptist church in 1909. Today it’s the home of six resident performing companies, and includes the 700-seat McGlohon Theater; Duke Power Theater; and several art, music, and dance studios.

Continuing the theme of church conversion, the Afro-American Cultural Center is housed in the restored Little Rock AME Zion Church, which was built in 1910. Inside you’ll find paintings, sculpture, theater, jazz, lectures, exhibits, art, and history and culture presentations revolving around the black experience in southern America. The building’s gorgeous stained glass windows remain intact.

No visit to Charlotte is complete without a trip to Discovery Place, a hands-on science museum that’s just as appealing to adults as it is to children. It’s the home of the Kelly Space Voyage Planetarium — the largest planetarium in the U.S. — as well as a three-story rain forest, the Charlotte Nature Museum, and a giant-screen Omnimax theater that puts you in the middle of the action.

Shopping around. If you’re a power shopper, you can’t go wrong at Concord Mills, Charlotte’s premier shopping center. With 15.3 million visitors in 2003, the sprawling complex near Charlotte Motor Speedway was the state’s top tourist destination according the N.C. Department of Commerce. The center is an attractive mix of outlet stores, specialty shops, and entertainment options.

Charlotte’s SouthPark Mall offers more than 100 specialty stores, including Ann Taylor, Gap, Tiffany & Co., Pottery Barn, and Banana Republic. The Eastland Mall features an indoor skating rink, a cinema, and a kiddie train. At Carolina Mall, you’ll find Dillard’s; Hecht’s; Belk; J.C. Penney; Sears; and more than 140 specialty shops, including Aeropostale, American Eagle, Ann Taylor, and Merle Norman.

Of course, the city is also home to many smaller shopping destinations that offer more specialized merchandise. One is Ballantyne Commons East, which includes Providence Bistro, Port City Java, Zapata’s, and McAlister’s Gourmet Deli, as well as other upscale shops and, of all things, a YMCA. Another is Phillips Place, a laid-back shopping village in the city’s Southpark area that beckons you to explore its many unique vendors, dine in its fine restaurants, and perhaps catch a movie at its 10-screen theater.

A sport for everyone. Charlotteans love their sports, and here in the South, that means NASCAR. At Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, you can relive the glory days of drivers such as Dale Earnhardt and other motorsport legends. Ten miles south of town, you can catch the Charlotte Knights AAA baseball team at Knights Stadium. If you are a football fan, the Carolina Panthers, who played in last year’s Super Bowl, will entertain you at Bank of America Stadium uptown, or you can enjoy fast-paced arena football courtesy of the Cobras, who play at the Charlotte Coliseum.

Basketball is another favorite in town, and until recently, the WNBA’s Charlotte Sting had the court at the Coliseum to themselves. Now, however, they’ll have to share the floor with the new NBA expansion team the Bobcats, who play their inaugural game in the Queen City this year. If you need to cool off, you can catch the East Coast Hockey League’s Checkers at Cricket Arena.

With its vast array of social, cultural and recreational offerings, it’s no wonder that the Queen City attracts so many newcomers. The gold rush may be over, but for those seeking a better life, golden opportunities still await in Charlotte.