A Case Study In Successful Economic Development

"The problem Mooresville faced when turn-of-the-century mills started closing is hardly unique. The Carolinas lost more than 100,000 mill jobs between 1991 and 2001. Last year alone, 62 plants closed, taking 23,000 textile jobs as the industry--once the economic foundation of the Carolinas--suffered through its worst year since the Great Depression... But a combination of shrewd planning, blind luck and convenient geography turned Mooresville into an unlikely success story: a town that re-created itself as "Race City, USA," home to the nation's top stock-car teams. Now, with a facelift, identity transplant and economic transfusion, this nowhere town has such a prominent place on the map that it's even become a honeymoon destination."