That's one big field hospital (free version)
Plus: Big changes in ad industry; Backlog of unemployment claims; Biltmore furloughs 2,000
Today is Friday, April 3, 2020. You’re reading The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with local business-y news and insights for Charlotte, N.C.
Editor’s note: This is a shorter, free version of The Charlotte Ledger sent to people on our free sign-up list. The complete version for paying subscribers went out 15 minutes ago. It included full articles on:
what other cities in the country are doing with field hospitals
a piece on how the economic effects of the coronavirus are altering the advertising industry
information on Mecklenburg County’s new rules on car dealerships under the “stay at home” order
Paid subscriptions to The Ledger start at $9/month, and you receive full access to every edition by email and on our website, including the complete Wednesday and Friday issues. And you’ll be supporting independent, original local journalism. Details here.
Other cities are building field hospitals, but almost none would be as big as the one envisioned for UNC Charlotte
Field hospitals are going up in cities across the country, and the one that Charlotte is envisioning at UNC Charlotte would be one of the biggest in the country.
On Thursday, Atrium Health and Novant Health informed county officials that they would like to use a portion of UNC Charlotte as a field hospital. They anticipate they might be short as many as 3,000 beds because of an anticipated surge of coronavirus cases, which they predict will peak between mid-April and mid-May. They want the field hospital built, stat.
If state and local governments build a 3,000-bed temporary hospital at UNC Charlotte, it would be one of the largest hospitals in the country.
If you look around the country at what other cities are doing on field hospitals, you’ll see that nobody else is really talking about one on the scale of Charlotte’s plans — not even in the areas where the coronavirus seems to be hitting the hardest.
The full article is available to paying Ledger subscribers.
The original field hospital
More than one Ledger reader yesterday said all this talk of field hospitals made them nostalgic for the one made famous from the Korean War. Its exploits were broadcast on CBS from 1972 to 1983:
Ad business shaken by coronavirus fallout
The coronavirus pandemic has hit a lot of businesses hard. Those that remain standing face a tricky question: How do they reach you now that your daily habits have changed and you’re staying at home?
Lots of industries are retooling on the fly these days. That’s especially true in advertising. Some sectors, such as restaurants and travel, have pulled back big-time from buying ads, as their industries are all but shut.
Others are redirecting their ad spending toward media that reach people where they are now, like online and TV, and away from billboards and radio.
The full article is available to paying Ledger subscribers.
In brief
Unemployment-claim processing: The N.C. Division of Employment Security has added 350 people to its 500-person staff to help process unemployment-insurance claims. It received more than 355,000 initial claims in the last two weeks. That’s “almost a thousand claims an hour, 24 hours a day, the last 14 days,” the division’s director said. (WFAE)
Biltmore layoffs: Biltmore Estates in Asheville is furloughing 2,000 of its 2,500 employees. “Other than closing during World War II, the Asheville estate will not allow visitors for the first time since 1930.” (WBTV)
Arts in trouble: “Anxious Charlotte arts groups losing millions in pandemic” (Observer)
Small-business forum: The city of Charlotte is hosting an online forum today for small-business owners to share ideas on how the city can help them through this challenging time. Details here.
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The Charlotte Ledger is an e-newsletter and web site publishing timely, informative, and interesting local business news and analysis Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, except holidays and as noted. We strive for fairness and accuracy and will correct all known errors. The content reflects the independent editorial judgment of The Charlotte Ledger. Any advertising, paid marketing, or sponsored content will be clearly labeled.
Editor: Tony Mecia; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire