Customers arriving at Randy’s Pizza for dinner on Friday night were met with a sign on the door saying the restaurant would be closed until further notice. It comes just one day after a deadly shooting inside the restaurant that killed employee Mohammed Aly.
Due to the Thursday night investigation, the entire shopping center was closed during the dinner rush, and this is not the first shooting in the area that impacted business.
“Hopefully it won’t have too much of an impact,” said Karlene Delapenha, who came to Randy’s Pizza only to find the doors locked. “Prayerfully, this is just an isolated incident, and it won’t spill over to the other businesses. We can only hope.”
Unfortunately, neighboring businesses felt a hit.
One business owner told WRAL News she had to cancel more than a dozen orders on Thursday night, some of which were already prepared.
Ward 2 Councilwoman Shanette Burris said crime directly affects local businesses.
“You know if you don’t feel safe, you are not going to want to patronize a business,” Burris said.
Burris tells WRAL this issue is not isolated, and other businesses share similar concerns.
“We owe our small business owners the chance to be vibrant, and we must work collectively to prioritize solutions and make sure folks feel safe,” Burris said.
While some business owners worry crime could drive customers away, Councilwoman Burris and Mayor Leonardo Williams said they are working on solutions.
When it comes to crime around Durham, Burris said there are bigger questions that they need to tackle first, like how dangerous people are getting weapons and why the shootings are happening to begin with.
For now, business owners say they are hoping the shooting was an isolated incident and that customers will continue to support the area.
