Champaign-Urbana Located in east-central Illinois, the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana offer an excellent environment for small businesses and international corporations. The area is headquarters to many major manufacturers/distributors (Kraft, Humko, Solo Cup, etc), Carle and Covenant medical centers, and numerous wholesalers and retailers. Home to more than 100,000 residents, Champaign-Urbana is continuing to expand. One three month period alone saw the addition of over 600,000 square feet of retail.
Unemployment levels in the twin cities are consistently among the lowest in the state, and the area continues to grow as one of the nation's most economically sound areas.
A large part of this success is the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the area's largest employer, who employs about 20,000 area people. Approximately 28,000 undergraduates and 10,000 graduate students flock to Champaign-Urbana every year, giving the cities a consistent economic base, regardless of the state of the country's overall economy. The University's annual budget is about $1 billion, and the campus is perpetually expanding, with new construction projects appearing every year. The school, along with its various sports programs, attracts large groups of people throughout the year.
North Prospect Development Area
The area bounded by Mattis Avenue to the west, Olympian Drive to the north, Market Street to the west, and Interstate 74 to the south is Champaign-Urbana's newest, rapidly growing development area. North Prospect Avenue runs through the center of this area, and most of the growth is clustered around Prospect Avenue. Businesses in the North Prospect development area include many big box retailers, offices, distribution centers, restaurants, shopping centers, a regional mall, and a multi-screen movie theater. There are also two large apartment complexes, and a 500 lot single-family home subdivision is included in the area development.
