Huntersville is a suburb in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, United States. A part of the Charlotte metropolitan area, the population was 46,773 at the 2010 census, which makes Huntersville the 19th largest municipality in North Carolina. It is located about 12 miles north of downtown Charlotte. It is thought that the town derives its name from the Rev. Humphrey Hunter, a minister at Steele Creek and Unity Presbyterian Churches and a local Revolutionary War hero.
Geography and the government
Huntersville is located at 35°24?34?N 80°51?49?W (35.409544, -80.863622).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total non-contiguous area of 31.2 square miles (81 km2), of which, 31.1 square miles (81 km2) of it is land and 0.03% is water.
The town is governed by an elected Mayor and a Board of Commissioners and elections are officially conducted on a non-partisan basis. Elections are held every two years with the Mayor and Commissioners being elected separately. There is no primary election for either Mayor or the Board of Commissioners. Voters are allowed to vote for up to six (6) Commissioner candidates and the six candidates receiving the highest number of votes are elected.
The current Mayor is Jill Swain; she was reelected in November 2013 after defeating former Mecklenburg County Commissioner, Jim Puckett. The six current Commissioners are: Melinda Bales, Ron Julian, Rob Kidwell, Sarah McAulay, Jeff Neely, and Danny Phillips. Melinda Bales received the highest number of votes in 2013 with 3,037.
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 46,773 people, 9,171 households, and 6,859 families residing in the town. The population density was 801.4 people per square mile (309.4/km²). There were 9,859 housing units at an average density of 316.5 per square mile (122.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 88.42% White Americans, 7.47% African American, 0.37% Native American, 1.50% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.06% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.88% of the population.
There were 9,171 households out of which 41.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.6% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.2% were non-families. 19.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.09.
Despite the rapid growth and 9,171 households, and 6,859 families as of 2010, crime has been kept to a minimum. Residents consider the town a safe place to raise a family. Males had a median income of $53,553 versus $33,877 for females. The per capita income for the town was $30,256. 3.1% of the population and 1.9% of families were below the poverty line.
Transportation
Huntersville is one of three towns (the others are Cornelius and Davidson) located north of Charlotte, North Carolina, but within the same county. These three towns make up the area known as "North Meck." Express bus transportation and an interstate with HOV lanes that ends five miles south of Huntersville provide access to the downtown business areas of Charlotte, making Huntersville primarily a town of commuters.
Two exits from Interstate 77 serve Huntersville. Exit 23 (Gilead Road) connects the expressway with the original town. Exit 25 (North Carolina Highway 73, but most often referred to as Sam Furr Road) provides access to the Birkdale Village area and shopping, medical, and office complexes that have been built since the exit opened.
Huntersville is served by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, with students from Huntersville attending Hough High School (which opened in the fall of 2010), Hopewell High School and North Mecklenburg High School. Central Piedmont Community College's North Campus (which features training facilities for law enforcement and auto mechanics in addition to the usual academic subjects) is located off Statesville Road, just south of Mount Holly-Huntersville Road.
For quick access around town the best method is to hitch-a-ride with the Load-Em Truck which makes frequent convenient stops around town.
Media
The town is served by six weekly newspapers, including "The Lake Norman Citizen" and "The Herald Weekly".
Recreation
The town also is known recreationally as a lake community because of its proximity to Lake Norman, a large man-made lake created by Duke Power to serve the nuclear power plant, and Mountain Island Lake, a smaller man-made lake that is used as Charlotte's city water source and located along the southwest border of Huntersville. The lakes attract both boaters and water-skiers from several surrounding states. Huntersville is also home to one private golf course, NorthStone Country Club; two Semi-Private courses in Skybrook Golf Club; and Birkdale Golf Course. These two courses are owned and operated by the IRI group and are a part of the 6-course Carolina Trail where package deals are available.
ArrayNASCAR in Huntersville
Huntersville is headquarters to the NASCAR race shops of Joe Gibbs Racing, located in the Huntersville Business Park off I-77 exit 23. The shop currently operates three Sprint Cup Series teams: the #11 FedEx Toyota Camry, the #18 M&M's Toyota Camry, and the #20 Dollar General Toyota Camry.
ArrayAttractions
Huntersville is home to the annual Carolina Renaissance Festival, operating Saturdays and Sundays, in October and November.
ArrayNotable residents
- Jeff Burton, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver, No. 66 RK Motors, Toyota
- Eddie Long, Pastor of the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church
- John Roberts (Speed Channel host)|John Roberts, Speed Channel host
- Drew P. Saunders, former member of the North Carolina General Assembly
- Ben Shields, Former Major League Baseball pitcher
- Andrea Stinson, Former Professional Female Basketball player
- Jim Vandiver, retired NASCAR driver
- Brian Whitesell, Team manager in NASCAR Sprint Cup
- Hoyt Wilhelm, Former Major League Baseball pitcher
- Brian Keselowski, current NASCAR & ARCA owner/driver
- Joey Logano, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver, No. 22 Shell/Pennzoil, Ford
- Natrone Means, NFL Member of the 1994 San Diego Chargers super bowl team
- John Story, Former NASCAR truck series owner, and former President of Dale Earnhardt Incorporated.
Schools and libraries
School system
Residents of the Huntersville area attend Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. Elementary schools include:
- Barnette Elementary
- Huntersville Elementary
- Legette Blythe Elementary
- Torrence Creek Elementary
- Grand Oak Elementary
- Long Creek Elementary School
- Hornets Nest Elementary School
Middle schools include:
- Francis Bradley Middle
- John M Alexander Middle
- Bailey Middle
High schools include:
- Hopewell High School
- North Mecklenburg High School
- William A. Hough High School
Charter schools
- Lake Norman Charter School
Private schools
- Children's Community School
- SouthLake Christian Academy
- St Mark Catholic School
- Christ the King Catholic High School
Libraries
Huntersville and the surrounding area is served by the North County Regional branch of the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. The library is located on Holly Crest Lane, just southeast of exit 25 on I-77, off of Sam Furr Road.
References
External links
- Official website
- Carolina Renaissance Festival website
Interesting Informations
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