Fayetteville's two new council members speak on their goals for the city

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- The newly-elected council is having its first meeting at city hall Monday night. Fayetteville's two new city council members have had very different paths to City Hall.

Inaugurated last Wednesday, the downtown district's Malik Davis is coming in fueled by what he said is his childhood passion for community service. He said he was inspired to run for office after attending city council and community watch meetings as a member of Fayetteville NEXT -- a city initiative for young professionals.

"This is not an opportunity for me to glow in my success, but it's an opportunity for me to point to the next generation," Davis said.

Davis said tackling homelessness downtown will be a major priority, as well as working with the mayor to attract more young talent and professional opportunities.

"It's important if we want to continue to grow this city to be a desirable place for the next generation, for the millennials, we have to have jobs come to our city," he said.

Lynne Greene is now representing District 5, an area between Hope Mills Road and Morganton Road. She said she wants to revive the city's successful tactics from the past:

"The way we handled economic development, the way we handled business recruitment," Greene said.

Greene pointed to the volunteering she's done for several city initiatives since the early days of her career, including the Fayetteville-Cumberland Economic Development Board, the Chamber of Commerce Board, and the Fayetteville Urban Ministry.

Greene said she was here to promote transparency, build trust, and make all voters feel heard:

"We represent our district, and we of course want our constituents to feel like they're being well-represented, but at the same time, we have to look at it across the entire city," Greene said. "I really want to spend time meeting people across the city."