Many attendees (including single mothers) were disappointed in the event because they had high expectations for housing solutions that they need NOW. So, this appears to have been no more than a manipulative ploy to generate attendance numbers for positive press in advance of the election, without producing any real results.
Council’s sledgehammer efforts at planning have been both thoughtless and undisciplined. Density does not improve quality of life or lower housing prices.
Good, thoughtful, inclusive processes result in good decisions. It takes a diversity of perspectives to avoid the most damaging, unintended consequences. Mary-Ann Baldwin is selling the lie that growth and development at any cost is good for the people who live, work and visit Raleigh.