Day 10: Your Questions, Their Answers: Holly Springs (NC) Mayoral and Town Council Candidate Q&A Series
Economic Development & Small Business: What specific actions would you take to support the growth of locally owned businesses, particularly in the Village District and other commercial areas?
Holly Springs, NC, Oct. 3, 2025 — As Holly Springs prepares for the upcoming municipal elections, Holly Springs Update (HSU) and What’s Happening Holly Springs (WHHS) are working to give residents a clear view of where the candidates stand on key issues.
Earlier this month, all candidates were provided with a questionnaire developed from community-driven submissions and refined by Christian Hendricks, publisher of HSU, and Aaron Wenzel, moderator of WHHS. Candidate response documents were first published together in a story on September 22nd.
Earlier story: All Candidate Submissions Now Published in Holly Springs (NC) Mayoral & Town Council Questionnaire (9/22/25).
To facilitate easier comparison and contrast of answers, responses are being shared on an individual basis. Beginning September 24 and continuing through October 4, one question will be featured each day.
Today’s installment marks Day 10 of the series. For readers who missed prior days’ coverage, stories can be found by clicking on the links below:
Day 1: How will you ensure that growth does not outpace the town’s capacity for infrastructure (roads, water, sewer, safety, technology, utilities)?
Day 2: What specific steps would you take to address congestion on NC 55, Avent Ferry, Sunset Lake, and other deficient roads and connectivity and walkability of greenways and sidewalks?
Day 3: What steps would you take to improve school safety and better protect students?
Day 4: How would you address school overcrowding and frequent student reassignments?
Day 9: How should arts and culture be prioritized as part of Holly Springs’ economic development strategy?
Note: All candidate responses are published exactly as submitted, without editing, and are presented in alphabetical order by last name. Links are also provided below to all answers from each candidate and their respective campaign websites.
Question 10: Economic Development & Small Business
What specific actions would you take to support the growth of locally owned businesses, particularly in the Village District and other commercial areas?
Mayoral Candidate Answers
Mike Kondratick
Holly Springs needs a higher rate of small business growth, especially those that are locally owned, both to provide for residents’ needs and to effectively balance our tax base.
Achieving this growth, especially in an environment with higher tariffs and rising healthcare expenses, requires us to help reduce the cost of establishing and running a small business. We need to create budgets that invest in more services that help reduce small businesses’ operating costs, including:
• Expanding access to business development grants beyond the downtown corridor
• Providing access to the resources and expertise needed for businesses to form purchasing cooperatives that can help lower the costs of buying increasingly more expensive items, like health insurance
• Funding an internship program that matches talent from our high schools and community colleges with small businesses that need support
Introducing affordable housing also supports small business growth by providing more units in which employees of our small businesses can live.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Sean Mayefskie
As a Holly Springs small business owner, I know firsthand what it takes to succeed. That’s why I’ve made supporting local business a core focus. I helped make Holly Springs an “Entrepreneur Certified” town and personally launched the Entrepreneur Club at our local high school — giving students tools to pursue their own ventures. I’ve also worked with developers to recruit mom-and-pop shops and restaurants to the Village District. In a second term, I’ll keep building a business climate that champions both startups and established community anchors.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Town Council Candidate Answers
Joe Cuccurullo
Recently, I hosted a small business roundtable where I brought together owners from many different industries here in Holly Springs. I listened directly to their concerns, and as a small business owner with a storefront myself, I am very sensitive to the challenges they face.
One idea I have already proposed is restructuring a staff position so that the Town has a dedicated advocate and liaison for small businesses. This person would serve as a single point of contact for owners who want to expand, renovate, or build. Having a resource to guide business owners through the development process would save time, reduce frustration, and help more businesses achieve their goals.
We should also expand support tools. The current Downtown Investment Grant program has not had a widespread impact, and I believe it should be made more accessible to a broader range of businesses. Expanding eligibility and simplifying the application process could help offset rising costs that are challenging small businesses across every sector.
Finally, maintaining our low municipal tax rate is one of the most important ways we can support small businesses. Every increase in property taxes ripples through local shops, restaurants, service providers, and hospitality venues. Keeping taxes stable gives business owners the predictability they need to thrive and invest back into our community.
By combining a stronger liaison role, more accessible grant opportunities, and a
commitment to fiscal responsibility, we can make Holly Springs one of the best places in Wake County to start and grow a small business.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Annie Drees
I do not own a local business in Holly Springs, but I see that as an advantage in this role. I am able to represent local businesses without any direct financial advantage. I can focus on what is in the best interest of the public without it impacting my pocketbook.
Along with the rest of Town Council, I voted in October to improve upon the Downtown Investment Grant program to expand the pool of eligible applicants. Once we have had a year with the updated program, we will review it at Council to ensure our updates have made it more accessible and that it is addressing the most pressing needs for small businesses. We will discuss expanding the applicants beyond the downtown village district, but that would need additional funding.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Tim Forrest
Locally owned businesses are the soul of Holly Springs—they provide jobs, keep dollars circulating locally, and shape our town’s unique character. Ensuring they thrive, particularly in the Village District and downtown, requires targeted leadership and support.
• Downtown as a Destination
Continue investments like the festival street on Avent Ferry, Mims Park enhancements, and a permanent farmers market pavilion. These amenities drive foot traffic and create the vibrant public spaces that local businesses need.
• Grant Opportunities for Small Business Owners
Continue and improve the Downtown Investment Grant program—modeled after successful initiatives in other states—that provides assistance for façade improvements, signage upgrades, or small-scale renovations for downtown businesses. These grants support local entrepreneurs while protecting taxpayer dollars.
• Dedicated Small Business Advocate
Designate a Town staff member as a Small Business Advocate—a go-to resource who helps locally owned businesses navigate permitting, access town programs, and scale their operations. This creates capacity-building support that doesn’t exist today.
• Streamlined Processes
Simplify permitting and regulatory processes so that local entrepreneurs spend less time navigating bureaucracy and more time growing their businesses.
• Public-Private Partnerships
Encourage developers to include spaces designed for locally owned retailers in mixed-use projects—small footprints in prominent locations where local businesses have a chance to thrive.
• Collaboration with Local Business Networks
Strengthen partnerships with the Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Business Alliance to provide marketing support, training, and collective events.
• Targeted Incentives
Leverage state and regional grants, like those under Rural Downtown or Main Street development programs, to fund storefront enhancements, marketing campaigns, or new business “pop-ups” in underutilized spaces.
Bottom line: A thriving local business ecosystem is essential for economic health and community identity. By providing funding tools, local advocacy, regulatory relief, and intentional infrastructure, Holly Springs can empower its small businesses to be the anchors of our vibrant downtown.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Kara Foster
Small businesses are the backbone of Holly Springs. They make our town unique and keep dollars circulating locally. Yet too often, chains dominate new commercial areas while small business owners struggle with red tape and visibility.
As a small business owner myself, I know the challenges. To strengthen our Village District and other commercial areas, I propose: simplifying the permitting process and cutting unnecessary barriers, investing in downtown walkability, lighting, and parking to make it easier for residents to shop and dine locally, and hosting regular town-sponsored events that bring people into the Village District, boosting foot traffic and exposure.
Recent town data shows we have added more than 100,000 square feet of new retail and mixed-use space downtown in the past two years. That momentum must benefit local entrepreneurs, not just national chains.
By making Holly Springs a small-business-friendly town, we not only diversify our economy but also strengthen the fabric of our community.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Sarah Larson
Locally owned businesses are the heart of Holly Springs’ economy and community identity. Supporting their growth strengthens our downtown, creates jobs and provides unique experiences that highlight our town.
I have firsthand experience advocating for small businesses from my time as Program Manager for a downtown association, where I served as a liaison between business owners and town officials. I also work for a small business today, so I understand the challenges they face, from navigating regulations to planning for growth.
While the Town has a dedicated small business economic developer, council involvement ensures that long-standing businesses, as well as new businesses, have a voice and the support they need to be successful. I will also advocate for small business focused town hall meetings where town staff, council, and business owners can discuss challenges, opportunities, and upcoming regulations.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)
Josh Prizer
I believe the Downtown District is the perfect place to attract small businesses. If done properly, this will be a higher density area in terms of residents and foot traffic. It would be both a place where people would live but also visit to get to shopping, restaurants and entertainment. The commercial storefronts would ideally be the perfect size and location for small business.
That being said, other areas of our town certainly need small businesses. The new Oakview Commons is a great example of this. We have growing pockets of residential in our town and small businesses will be needed in all of them..
I believe the key to helping out small businesses is to continue to work with them to understand their struggles and roadblocks and do whatever I can to help remedy that.
A small business community makes a better community.
Links: (candidate submittals, website)