| Cumberland County, North Carolina
Fayetteville and Cumberland County comprise North Carolina's fourth largest metropolitan area. The Community takes pride in the fact that it is home of both Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base and it serves as an economic growth center for southeastern North Carolina providing employment for five surrounding counties including - Bladen, Harnett, Hoke, Robeson and Sampson.
The 652.4 square mile metropolitan community is located on I-95 approximately 60 miles south of the State Capital of Raleigh, NC and has a population of 302,963. According to the 2000 census, Fayetteville is the State's sixth largest city, and Cumberland County is the fifth largest county in North Carolina.
Fayetteville is provided with north-south interstate highway access by I-95. East-west interstate highway access is available via convenient connections with I-20 (78 miles south) and I-40 (27 miles north). Fayetteville is also within 100 miles of the State's seaport in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Rail access is provided by CSX, Norfolk Southern and the Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroads. This allows shippers three rail alternatives and promotes competitively priced service. Daily AMTRAK service provides for passenger service.
Commercial air passenger service is provided at the modern Fayetteville Regional Airport. American Airlines, USAir, ASA-Delta, United Express, and American Eagle provide approximately 46 daily flight arrivals and departures. Full service corporate or charter aircraft facilities are available through a private fixed base operator.
Cumberland County has a well educated and highly trainable workforce. The availability of semi-skilled and unskilled labor is extremely good within the Fayetteville MSA. Wage rates for the area are lower than for most metropolitan areas in the southeast. The presence of the large dependent population at Ft. Bragg and Pope AFB provides a significant part-time/temporary labor force and adds appreciably to the area’s skills pool.
Cumberland County operates a consolidated school system including 53 elementary, 15 middle, 11 high schools 3 alternative schools and 1 charter school. Private and parochial schools are also available. The area is home to three major accredited institutions-Fayetteville State University, Methodist College and Fayetteville Technical Community College. These institutions offer access to programs in liberal arts, teacher education, computer sciences, a masters program in business administration, and numerous vocational programs. Fayetteville Technical Community College can offer new businesses immediate, high quality skills training in a recently dedicated 30,000 square foot Center for Business and Industry.
Cumberland County and the Fayetteville community continue to offer southern hospitality and a small-town flavor while providing southeastern North Carolina cosmopolitan cultural advantages without the big city cost of living. Cumberland County is home to one of the the country's largest military installations and is rich in military tradition and cultural diversity. Cumberland County's economic opportunities and diverse community are a great asset to southeastern North Carolina.
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