Raleigh mayor: City's values support all small businesses

WEST CLUB BOULEVARD TOWARD

INGLEWOOD AVENUE. NO ONE WAS

HURT.

>> ALL RIGHT. GRACE KNEW IT FOR

RALEIGH'S. MAYOR IS RESPONDING

AFTER SOME SMALL BUSINESSES

SAY THEY'RE CUTTING TIES WITH

SHOP LOCAL RALEIGH, THE

NONPROFIT'S EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

IS UNDER FIRE FOR A FACEBOOK

COMMENT. THE COMMENTS STARTED

WITH THERE IS NO SUCH THING

AS A TRANSGENDER SON WRAL'S.

CARLY HAYNES SPOKE WITH

MERRICK. HOW ABOUT THIS?

CARLY, WHICH SAY?

WELL, FIRST, I CAN TELL YOU THE

COMMENT WAS INITIALLY POSTED

ANONYMOUSLY AND TOLD THE GROUP

ADMINISTRATOR REVEALED WHO IT

WAS A SHOP. LOCAL RALEIGH IS

RESPONSIBLE FOR SEVERAL EVENTS

THAT HAPPENED DOWNTOWN SUCH

AS OR THE RALEIGH CHRISTMAS

PARADE.

>> SO WE WANTED TO ASK FOR

ALWAYS MAYOR, WHETHER SHE'S

CONCERNED THAT SOME BUSINESSES

COULD POTENTIALLY WITHDRAW

THEIR PARTICIPATION WITH SOME

OF THESE EVENTS. THE MAYOR TOLD

US THAT SHE WANTS TO TALK WITH

DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS,

INCLUDING THE DOWNTOWN RALEIGH

ALLIANCE, TO GET A SENSE OF OF

THE IMPACT HERE. SHE SAID THE

COMMENT IS CONCERNING AND IT

DOES NOT REFLECT A PERSPECTIVE

OF THE CITY OF RALEIGH. AND

WHILE THE CITY IS COMPLYING

WITH NEW FEDERAL AND STATE

RULES TO NOT SPECIFICALLY

PURSUE DEI INITIATIVES, THE

CITY INTENDS TO WORK WITH SMALL

BUSINESSES THAT THEY HAVE

CONCERNS ABOUT THE COMMENTS.

>> WE STILL DO BELIEVE IN,

RIGHT, SERVING ALL THE SMALL

BUSINESSES IN OUR COMMUNITY.

AND I THINK YOU SEE A LOT OF

DIVERSITY IN THE SMALL

BUSINESSES, PARTICULARLY IN

DOWNTOWN. AND, YOU KNOW, JUST

SMALLER BUSINESSES TEND TO BE

HIGHLY REPRESENTATIVE. AND SO

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE RESPECT

AND SERVE ALL PEOPLE WHO ARE

RUNNING BUSINESSES IN THE CITY

REGULATION.

>> THE MAYOR HAS BEEN IN A ROLE

FOR ABOUT A YEAR NOW. WE TALKED

FOR 20 MINUTES TODAY. I ASKED

HER ABOUT EVERYTHING FROM HER

REACTION TO RECENT HEADLINES

TO DEVELOPMENT TIMELINES.

YOU CAN SEE OUR FULL INTERVIEW

ON THE WRAL YOU TO PAGE.

WE ALSO REACHED BACK OUT TO

JENNIFER MARTIN, THE EXECUTIVE

DIRECTOR OF SHOP, LOCAL RALEIGH

TODAY ASKING FOR A RESPONSE TO

HER COMMENTS AND SHE DID NOT