REDWOOD CITY — Chick-fil-A's plan to hatch a new location of its fast-food restaurant in Redwood City has run afoul of a San Mateo politician who dislikes the company's anti-LGBTQ politics.
The Georgia-based chain wants to bring its famous chicken sandwiches to Whipple Road where it would replace a McDonald's restaurant, which means the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors doesn't have much authority to halt its opening.
But Supervisor David Canepa was shocked about Chick-fil-A's intentions and has vowed to fight back, because of donations made to anti-LGBTQ groups by the company's charitable wing and its opposition to same-sex marriage.
"In 2012, the CEO had made comments about marriage just being between a man and a woman," Canepa pointed out. "In addition, he's funded organizations that are anti-LGBTQ. The [Chick-fil-A> logo might as well just say we hate LGBTQ people."
Canepa has written a letter to ask CEO Dan Cathy to think again about coming to Redwood City, and he's also planning to stage protests if Chick-fil-A does show up.
Some Redwood City residents think Canepa is on the right track, but others told KCBS Radio that they expect Chick-fil-A to succeed despite the conservative views of its executives.
"I would never go into a restaurant that espouses the values they do," Canepa said.
There was a serious outcry when Chick-fil-A opened up a branch at Mineta San Jose International Airport. In response, officials there tried to make the best of things by turning it into "the gayest Chick-fil-A on Earth."
But Canepa doesn't think that's necessarily the right approach.
"You can't put lipstick on a pig and make that pig look beautiful," he said.
For its part, Chick-fil-A insists it always tries to be a good neighbor.
