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Appendix 4
Resident Economic Characteristics
Selected economic characteristics of the Morrisville population are summarized below.
Table 2.
SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS,
MORRISVILLE, NC, 2000
Factor
Number
Note
Labor Force Particip.
3,450
83% Versus 63.9% nationwide
Median HH Income $ 56,548
135% Of national median
Poverty Level
235
4.6% Versus 12.4% nationwide
Commuting Time
21.1
83% Of national median
Sources:
U.S. Bureau of the Census and Randall Gross /
Development Economics.
Partly because of higher education levels, as well as smaller families, the labor force participation rate in
Morrisville (83%) was much higher than the national average, at 63.9%. Labor force participation is the
share of the adult population that is either working or actively seeking employment. More people working
and higher salaries have contributed to median household incomes that are 35% higher than the national
average. Conversely, the poverty level is relatively low in Morrisville, at 4.6% versus 12.4% of individuals
nationwide.
One of the primary reasons that new residents are flocking to Morrisville is its incomparable location
within a short commuting distance of RTP. Even though Morrisville is a suburban area on the outer fringe
of Raleigh, commuting times are relatively short. On average, Morrisville’s residents were commuting an
average 21.1 minutes in 2000, which was just 83% of the national average commute.
Business & Employment Trends
Trends in business base, employment, and payroll in the Morrisville area from 1998 through 2004 are
summarized in Table 3.
Morrisville, while known as a growing bedroom community near RTP,
actually has a large and growing business base of its own. The Morrisville area (including zip code
27560) was home to about 730 businesses in 2004, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That number
represented growth of more than 250 businesses or 55% from 1998. By comparison, the business base
in Wake County expanded overall by about 17% during this same period.
While the Morrisville area added new businesses in almost all major industry sectors during this period,
the most prominent growth has been in professional and technical service establishments (such as
architects, engineers, information technology specialists, etc). Morrisville added almost 100 businesses
in that sector, for a growth rate of 176% (or almost 30% per year). Most of these businesses are clearly
spun-off, contracting, or otherwise related to activity in Research Triangle Park. The businesses are
mostly located in the office and business parks positioned along Aviation Parkway closer to I-40, RTP,
and the airport.