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The Moreland Farmers Pantry is supposed to open soon in Sellwood, but the owners views on gays has provoked a storm of protest.

(Harry Esteve/The Oregonian)

Another controversy has erupted over a Sellwood-Moreland business, this one over the owner’s views on gays and same-sex marriage.

Facebook and other social media sites have exploded over a soon-to-open fresh meat and vegetable store called Moreland Farmers Pantry. Neighbors and nearby business owners, once excited by the prospect of the new shop, are now backing away.

"They're choosing to open a business in a very open-minded neighborhood," said Tom Brown, owner of Brown Properties and president of the Sellwood Moreland Business Alliance. "I think their personal views are going to hurt."

Located on a busy block near Southeast Milwaukie Avenue and Bybee Boulevard, the store is taking the place of a former antique shop. Remodeling has been under way for months, and anticipation of what appears to be a new, high-end place to buy food has been building.

Recently, neighbors found Facebook postings by owner Chauncy Childs that brought them up short. She wrote a long post about her opposition to same-sex marriage, complaining that “a tiny minority is dictating a change of our social structure.” She also posted an article, written by someone else, supporting the right of businesses to refuse to serve gay people.

One neighbor posted a seven-minute video on YouTube about the issue, including snippets of Childs' posts on Facebook, documents that show she is the owner and other information that shows she tried to change her Facebook name.

In a telephone interview with The Oregonian, Childs said she never thought her Facebook views would become public and that they don’t have anything to do with the store she’s trying to open.

“We aren’t discriminating,” Childs said. “We have no anti-gay or anti-racial bias or anything like that. We have members of our family who are homosexual.”

Childs said she is religious and has a libertarian view that government should not be allowed to dictate whom a business does or doesn’t serve.

“We’re not going to refuse to serve anybody,” she said. “But we believe a private business should have the right to live their conscience.”

She said she believes that gay marriage is wrong because it is the start of a slippery slope that could eventually lead to pedophilia and bigamy. But she said those are her private religious beliefs and don’t reflect how the store will operate.

Childs, who owns a farm in Oregon City, said her idea was to open a place where she could sell her own GMO-free produce and dairy along with other GMO-free products made by local vendors.

Beth Ramsey, who runs Chou Chou a Beauty Parlor in Sellwood, said she was initially excited about the prospect of shopping at the new store but now doubts she will go in.

“I’m disappointed,” said Ramsey, who is lesbian. “It’s not like a boycott kind of energy. But I don’t need her to have my money.”

About two years ago, Sellwood neighbors raised a storm of protest over a business that offered counseling services to sex offenders. The business eventually moved.

Ramsey said she is a bit surprised by Childs' naivete, not just about Facebook but also about the neighborhood she picked.

“This neighborhood is like Mayberry. Everybody knows everybody. Everybody is talking to everybody.”

Childs said she’s already had to deal with a number of headaches getting the store ready because of the age and size of the storefront she is remodeling. But she still plans on opening this month.

“It’s been a nightmare,” she said. “Now, with this happening, we’re going, ‘Wow.’”

-- Harry Esteve