UNC institute to help in Eastern N.C.

A business institute at UNC-Chapel Hill has taken on the cause of revitalizing Eastern North Carolina with plans to spur entrepreneurship and small business growth in the distressed region.

The Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise will take over efforts begun by the Foundation of Renewal for Eastern North Carolina, a group started five years ago to help the area east of Interstate 95.

The region has struggled to recover from declines in farming and factories. Some communities have seen their populations shrink as younger residents moved elsewhere to find opportunities.

"You either try to do something to make things better or you surrender," said H. Kel Landis III, the former CEO of RBC Bank and chairman of the foundation. "We don't think you should surrender in a place where there are 2 million people."

The foundation, among other initiatives, worked with five communities as they make the transition from old-line economies. It also developed a marketing plan for the inner coastal region, dubbed the "Inner Banks."

The foundation started working with the Kenan Institute about a year ago and decided recently to make it a more permanent arrangement. The institute "has such resources and brainpower and creative thinking" to take "our work to another level," Landis said.

The institute, housed at the Kenan-Flagler Business School, works with businesses and communities around the world to tackle competitive challenges. It is led by John D. Kasarda, who has some experience in the east.

He came up with the idea for the Global TransPark in Kinston, which was created more than a decade ago and just this year won an anchor tenant.

The institute has hired Thomas Stith III, a former Durham City Council member, to lead the eastern efforts full time. It has identified 1,000 high-growth companies that should provide insight on what works in the region.

The goal, Stith said, is to "show this is a viable place" to locate and grow a business.