Candidate for City of Miami Commissioner District One: Marvin Tapia - Community Leader

Sebastian Rusk00:05 - 00:26

This is the Beyond the Story podcast, a show that goes way beyond the story. And now, Sebastian Rusk! Marvin Tapia, welcome to the show, dude. Thank you, appreciate it.

Marvin Tapia00:26 - 00:30

Dude, it's been way too long, man. It's definitely been too long. We were just saying, last time was Calle Ocho?

Sebastian Rusk00:30 - 00:39

It was, we were getting a haircut like on a Saturday morning, you were with your boy. And yeah, man, time flies. It does, it does. He's five years old now. Mine's 22.

Marvin Tapia00:41 - 00:42

I can't imagine.

Sebastian Rusk00:42 - 00:47

Crazy. Just graduated from college and moved to Texas. It's in the master's program. There you go. So nobody needs me home for dinner.

Marvin Tapia00:47 - 00:50

There you go. It's a good place to be, brother.

Sebastian Rusk00:50 - 00:53

It's a good place to be. You did your work. You did your job. I did.

Marvin Tapia00:53 - 00:55

Check plus on Have a Kid. Now I'm free.

Sebastian Rusk00:55 - 01:21

Now it's you time. That's it, man. Lean Cuisines every night, baby. Let's go. So I've, of course, been in touch through your Mr. Miami stuff. Just deeply passionate about this. great city of ours, of Miami. You always have been, even when it was just a hobby of yours to talk about Miami and discuss it, but then you got more and more involved and have really been able to inflict change.

Marvin Tapia01:22 - 01:49

You know, that's been the goal, you know, I mean, from, from day one, the goal was just show Miami a different light, you know, whether that was community food bar scene party, I just wanted to show Miami in a different light. And, uh, I think, you know, it's, it's evolved obviously from, uh, just being, you know, a person on social media posting to actually opening an investment company to invest in those small businesses to now running for local office.

Sebastian Rusk01:49 - 02:42

Love it. And that's where we reconnected again, rather, last week over this upcoming new political opportunity that you're stepping into, which I can only venture to believe is It's not uncharted waters because you've been inflicting a lot of good change within the city and when having a city official position allows you to really lean into that process. But let's back up a little bit and talk a little bit about how You started to get in the mix of, of making some difference in the city of Miami. And then when this opportunity came up for you to run, which by the way, for those of you locals here in Miami, uh, city of, uh, city commissioner district one position, uh, Marvin, uh, is, is looking to occupy here in the, in the very near future, but let's back up a little bit, just for some context on how this all kind of came together.

Marvin Tapia02:43 - 05:59

Yeah, I mean, again, started with social media, posting on different aspects of Miami. I think it all started like officially was when I became a board member for Bienes Culturales, which is the organization that represents the cultural diversity of Little Havana. They still do those cultural nights? That's right. Last Friday. Now it's the third Friday and that gets political as well. I'll get to that. I'll get to that. Year 2000 has started. Susie Battle, the owner of Azucar Ice Cream. Yes, absolutely. You know, good friend. Great human. Really, really changed Little Havana and 8th Street. And the ice cream game. Oh my goodness. Well, she was one of the first to inject some modern business into 8th Street. Yes, she sure was. We became a good friend. Very few places you can go in Miami and not try her ice cream. You know, she's all over the place and we're all very proud of her. She reached out to me and said, hey, you know, I think I've seen the work that you're doing. We would like to invite you to become a board member of Vienes Culturales. That was an honor. And so she took it back to the board, and they voted for me to become a board member. And I became the first board member that was not directly invested in the community. So I wasn't a business owner in Little Havana. I wasn't, you know, and no financial ties to it, except my passion and an active community member. So that was an honor. And I became the board member, really trying to rejuvenate and reinvigorate the organization, which we did. We did a phenomenal job in bringing back Bienes Culturales. And then two, three years in, I became the spokesperson. So I represented this organization. So being a Colombian, so I was born in Colombia, being a Colombian, representing a predominantly Cuban neighborhood was amazing. They let you in. They let me in. They respected it, which is a great way to say it. And but also if it's really Miami, where you have these mix of cultures representing each other. And I think that's the epitome of Miami, you know, the cultural diversity and how people are proud of where they come from. But we also coexist beautifully. Sure. Yeah. I mean, that's and then I continue to do that work. I do a lot of work with County Commissioner Eileen Higgins, and she actually appoints me to a board, which I'm the chairperson of currently, the Miami-Dade County Hispanic Advisory Board. Essentially, we represent the entire Hispanic community across Miami-Dade County, which was... Big community. big proud community. And it was an honor because being an immigrant and coming from an immigrant family, you know, to be able to give resources and teach and help that community that sometimes doesn't know what to do or how to do it. you know, to give them those resources and be the chair of that through our county commissioner and our mayor, Daniela Vincava, you know, lend her hand in her office to help me do it was, man, that I think that really sparked more and more. So the more I transitioned, the more I evolved, the more I said, you know, I'm getting more power, more ability to help. Yeah. And then here we are really trying to take the next step and to help our people. I just think that

Sebastian Rusk05:59 - 06:34

you know, we always live in a constant state of disruption. It's always, um, evolving and that's how the world continues to unpack the way that it does on here. But I really think that, especially with Miami being just a, just a gigantic city. And one of the big ones throughout the entire nation on here, there has to be someone to step in and say, we're going to do this different. We're going to do this, with integrity. We're going to do this with deep passion for the city that we live in. We're going to do this without agendas.

Marvin Tapia06:34 - 07:25

We actually care. Correct. So when people tell me, Oh, you're young, you're different. I go, you're right. Right. That, that is that those are facts, but the biggest fact. is that I actually care and come from this community. I'm trying to break this decades-long cycle of career politicians, of corruption, with agendas. So before they even file their paperwork, they already have a plan of what they want to do, with who, and most of the time, it doesn't include the resident. It's about them, their special interests, and whoever they have in their pockets that's going to help them win. That's not how this is supposed to work. Not only locally, but across the board. It's supposed to be a person from that city, that county community. Correct. That people know and recognize.

Sebastian Rusk07:25 - 07:30

An elected official from that specific community. Right. Very simple.

Marvin Tapia07:30 - 08:35

That's how it should be. You know, I know Sebastian. I know what he represents. I know what he's been doing. Right. not because of his parents or because of what his family has done. No, I know him and I know what he's done. So we're going to elect him so he can represent us. So when I go to Sebastian, I ask him, Hey man, I've had an issue with this. First of all, the fact that you can actually go to Sebastian, that the doors open, you can actually reach him and say, Hey, you know, I've got this issue. And then he takes that issue back to city hall and to the commissioner and say, how are we going to help him? That's the goal. And that's what I've done. And that's what I'm going to continue to do. So the question is, have you been wanting to do this? And how did this come about? And it's just, yes, I've been civically engaged for years. Now, I have to get politically engaged to make a bigger difference. I have this community of people that have been asking and wanting for help. And unfortunately, those commissioners or those elected officials that are there meant to help haven't done that.

Sebastian Rusk08:35 - 09:18

Yeah. And that's where, that's how you inflict change is that you're, you know, from, from a civic perspective, you've been able to cultivate, um, a community of people that believe in what you're doing and understand your message and see eye to eye with that. And then in turn, when you, when it turns political, you've already got that base. They're a true base. without the agenda outside of, Hey, this guy is for us legitimately. It's for our city, uh, to, you know, hopefully this starts to, you know, those city hall, uh, late night, uh, meetings that happened. I mean, not only did they make for phenomenal internet, uh, content, but, uh, I, I just, I don't know a lot about politics, but I'm pretty sure that's not how they're supposed to be.

Marvin Tapia09:19 - 10:58

Which is what I say, you don't really need to be involved or know too much about politics. What you do need to know is that people have to come from the community and have to want, want to help. And we're talking residents. So I see myself and a lot of people, thankfully, the support from the community has been phenomenal. I see myself as a beacon of hope to really, you know, Change is a word that can trigger a lot of people. It's more about giving the power back to the people. And people feeling, for once, like there's someone that's actually on their side at City Hall. I don't want people to see City Hall or the commissioners as this ivory tower where they cannot reach. Marvin is a commissioner, and we won't see him again. No. It's actually the opposite. Marvin is a commissioner, and he's now really in the community. I know where I can find him. I want to have town halls in local businesses, restaurants, parks. Really bring City Hall to the people. The people don't have to come to us. We should go to them. So we bring that aspect to the town, to the city. And so I want to, which I've already done, but I want to bring a small town halls, monthly, weekly, different businesses, and have the residents come to us and talk. Old school style. Yeah, I mean, it worked. It worked. You bring it back to the people, and people feel like they can see you, they can reach you, and you're there for them. I mean, I don't want to reinvent the wheel here. That's not what I'm trying to do. Let's just go back to the basics on what works. Go back to the basics and let people know that we're here for them.

Sebastian Rusk10:59 - 11:31

not the opposite. Do you think that, you know, residents have been too conditioned based on the way things have always been with politicians having their own agenda outside of really what it should be, which is the concern of it? Or do you, in your experience, have you felt like that, that, the residents of the city of Miami truly know what they want and desire out of the city and rely on the city to make that a reality, whether or not it's happened or not before.

Marvin Tapia11:31 - 14:10

More now than ever. Things are more in the open. So people are really finally realizing, you know, it's more like a myth. Miami and some of these commissioners are very corrupt. That was a myth. You know, there's no proof. It was just, and now there's proof. Right. Now there's, it's out in the open who's being investigated for what, what they're not doing, who they're doing it for. You know, it's more in the open. So people are really demanding, you know, that change, that, that, that, uh, that difference, you know, transparency too. Why were you doing it for this person? I mean, there's lists and lists of the people that were doing it for, uh, I mean, We're getting commissioners that, we have a seat that's vacant. District one is currently vacant. There is no commissioner because the commissioner, the person that was elected was removed because of money laundry, bribery, and so many other things that he was, you know, that have been, you know, that he's been in court for, or that he's been, you know, sued for. And here we are, no seat. How sad is that? You know, so people are demanding change and difference because it's more in the open. So they're like, we need transparency. We need someone that's out for us. I mean, in it for us and not, you know, my team said, I was giving my oath. I was giving my oath to the residents the day that our Alexia Laportia was being arrested. And so my team was phenomenal. The irony, you know, my actual, My date was for Tuesday, and we were ahead of schedule. We had the whole month to do it. And my team's like, you know what? Let's do it Thursday. We want to just take a look at your paperwork, make sure everything is in order, there's no issues, so that when you go, There's no issues and you can give your oath and everything will be fine. I said, okay, perfect. You know, I'm, I want to do it that way. So I go in Thursday, I'm giving my, my oath, my hand is up. Literally my hand is up when all of a sudden commotion is going up and I'm hearing that he's being arrested behind me. And so my team puts out a press release, which I thought was great. So this is what it starts with. We need, or it ends with, I'm sorry, it goes, we need a commissioner. that's going to walk in through the front door with his head held up high, and not one that's going to walk out the back door in handcuffs. And I thought that was genius, but I mean, it really goes to the testament of why I'm running. And you hit it on the nail. I mean, people are demanding a difference and change, and it's necessary. It's necessary.

Sebastian Rusk14:10 - 14:46

So does it, you know, when Things have always been a specific way for a specific time, and there's a new sheriff in town, if you will. Does it cause, does it make your, do you think it's going to make your job more difficult with people that are set in their ways of the way things have always been in an existing, air quotes, I use this term very loosely, existing system of how politicians Do politics, is it, or is it just, that's just, hey, blinders on. I'm here to, I'm here with, with an agenda for the people. And this is just the way it's going to be. There's not really any, you're not paying much attention to.

Marvin Tapia14:46 - 16:46

Well, it's a little bit of both. It's going to be a little bit of both because yes, people are definitely going to, you know, uh, are used to doing things a certain way, especially forever. This is how Miami has been ran for the longest. And, um, I'm excited about that, and I'll tell you why. Because I want to talk to those people. I like to talk to those people that might oppose my ways, if you will. And I want to know why you would oppose a person that's here for you. I want to hear it. I like to have those conversations. And I've had them numerous times. I've knocked on 1,000-plus doors. And I'll tell you, out of the, let's say, 1,000 doors that I've knocked on, I've had four. I've had four quote unquote negative conversations. you can't change, you can't change it. I go, you know what? I like that. I like that you have that and tell me why I can't change it. And then we talk about how, because I'm a person of conversation, I like to open a door because this is how we're going to evolve. If I just shut, no, you don't believe in me, I shut the door. That's not how this is supposed to be. This is a conversation, it's open. Let's talk about your views, my views, and how we find common ground. That's how I don't care if you're blue, red, left or right. That's not what I'm here for. I'm your commissioner and I'm here to make sure that you, that I make the best decisions for you. It doesn't matter where you stand. This is a nonpartisan race. And if it were partisan, same, I'm here to make our residents life better. That's how it's supposed to be. So when you tell me you can't do it or it's been done this way, okay, well let's talk about how we're going to change that together. Not me, This is not going to be a win for me. I don't see it as a personal thing. I see it as a district-wide, city-wide win. So if I win, we all win. Why do we all win? Because your best interest is what I'm here for. That's what you elected me for.

Sebastian Rusk16:46 - 17:08

Right. So, and those of you listening, they may not be familiar with the whole hierarchy and logistics of how local politics works. Obviously, you got the mayor, is the president of the city, if you will. And then you've got city commissioners that oversee different parts of the city to rally change and inflict change and be able to listen to residents.

Marvin Tapia17:08 - 19:09

So you have the mayor, the city manager. Yeah. Right under the mayor, and then you have our five commissioners. Districts, they represent five different districts across the city of Miami. Yeah, so you have mayor. Not a political. Not a polyscience major, clearly. And it's fine, I'm learning. I'm learning as I go because, you know. You're a chart. We're gonna create it, we're gonna simplify this process because that's the only way you can get more people involved. Right. The more, and it's been, it's created this way. It's created for people not to know. Mass confusion, right? So that you don't know who to vote for, you know, it's kind of scary. Yeah. I'm trying to simplify that because when you simplify it, more people are engaged. They're more interested. You know, you ask, are people going to, you know, are they going to be afraid of, or, you know, just kind of their, they are threatened, you know, threatened to difference and they are because they don't know what's available to them. And when you simplify the process, people are comfortable and they come out, you know, they come out of their shells and they see what's available to them. But yeah, so you have mayor, city manager, and then you have the commissioners and then the commissioners divided into five different districts. So you have district one, district two, three and four and five, and they all, you know, uh, they go into their different areas. District one is mostly Alapata. So it's a very big, um, Dominican community actually called Little Santo Domingo, just like Little Havana. There's a community called Little Santo Domingo. I did not know that. Yeah, right. It goes south of 36th Street, northwest 36th Street, and I want to say like 7th Street, you know, northwest 7th Street. So, you know, it's the Miami River. It's Grapeland Heights. It's Flagami. You know, it's a very diverse, very unique district. You know, a lot of people say that it's one of the most unique districts because of what it encompasses. And, you know, so it's it's ground zero for right now, for for this election.

Sebastian Rusk19:09 - 19:23

You know, it's yeah, I learned something new about Miami every day. That's that's the fun part about our, you know, incredible city here, you know. So thinking optimistically, you get elected, you get into office. What's the first thing on the agenda?

Marvin Tapia19:24 - 21:43

man open it up open it up to the people let them know that I'm here and what I'm here for you know definitely first thing I'm doing is addressing the people and letting them know that this is this wasn't a win for me again this is a win for us I want to know what the concerns are I mean I Talking to the people, I know what the top three priorities are from the people, not mine. Affordability, gentrification, and lack of representation. One of which is very simple to change, and the lack of representation. I'm here for you. That changes from day one. It's changing right now, but once it's official that I'm the commissioner, if and when, The first thing that changes is, I'm here for you. This is my number. This is my office. This is my team. We're here for you. Affordability and overdevelopment kind of go hand in hand. But I've been talking to developers. I've been doing the legwork of seeing how I'm not opposed to development. What I'm opposed to is development without the input of the residents. You know, here's a land, the commissioner cuts a deal with the developer, and the residents are left in the dark. All of a sudden, they're seeing this building being erected, they had no idea what it's for, who it's for, and it's really land taken away from the residents. So we need more input. That's just politics 101. Do the residents know what they want to do with the land? Yeah, they want more green space. They want to have things that are for the community, and things that are going to impact them. Sometimes, I've talked to developers that have built these things that are actually going to positively impact the residents. They don't know it because they weren't involved. So all they see is building coming up, and they don't know the amenities, the price points, what it's going to bring to the community. They just know that they don't know what's going up. So again, transparency. and community input are huge. So that you're seeing, so maybe you are doing something positive for the community, but they don't know it. So you're supposed to open it up, have a town hall. Hey, I'm talking to Sebastian. He's a developer. He wants to bring this idea. What do you guys think? What are your ideas for it? And now you create, you know, a bridge and a partnership with this developer and the community. They know who they are. You know, they know what they're about. And so transparency and communication are so huge. They're so big.

Sebastian Rusk21:43 - 21:58

Those can be two components that absolutely revolutionized the entire political game. They're so simple. Right? Again, back to the basics though. They're so simple. They've done a great job of making sure there's green space in Brickell. They're like, there's a five by five square.

Marvin Tapia21:58 - 22:01

We can definitely- There's a tree. You mean there's a tree? There's a tree. Get rid of it.

Sebastian Rusk22:01 - 22:52

A condo can go right there. It's just been crazy. I moved back to Miami in 2008. And I lived, I moved into The View. My daughter went to Southside, which was a great school, still is. And there was Merry Brickle Village, which was dying a slow death then. The shopping center, not the actual neighborhood part there. And there was P.F. Chang's, Starbucks, The Ocean Air, and Rosa Mexicana, and Blue Martini. And that was it. And I remember riding my skateboard on Sunday morning down South Miami Avenue and going, this is like eerily like, empty and where it was all at. And to see it all come to life here, um, has, has been cool, but it's, it's pretty crazy down there. I, you know, I do a lot of comedy down in Brickle and, uh, it's always like, Oh, I gotta go to Brickle, you know, type deal.

Marvin Tapia22:52 - 22:53

Oh my gosh.

Sebastian Rusk22:53 - 23:01

And the flooding and the logistics and the people and like, and I get it, it's thriving and it's there, but like, it is, I don't know if I'm getting older or I'm like, there's just too many people everywhere.

Marvin Tapia23:01 - 24:02

It's become a concrete jungle. Yeah. If you see a tree, where's the greenery? I understand what you're saying. Well, look at Wynwood. I mean, Wynwood is the same. If you go to Wynwood at night, or even throughout the day now, it's very hard to maneuver. Yeah, it is. And you're trying to- I miss the old days. I miss Lester's. I mean, it was just what it was. And so we need to preserve. On that token, we need to preserve our neighborhoods. We need to preserve our residents. Again, we're not against this type of development. We're just against the input. Because you know that if you spoke to the residents, you'd have a different outcome. Because it would be based towards us, not towards just these big developers that come in and just try to, What do they care about us? They're here to turn a dollar. They're here to make some money and leave. They don't care about the impact they're making here. You know, that's where we come in.

Sebastian Rusk24:02 - 25:01

So how do, and again, it's a slippery slope because our city you know, runs on tourism and is, you know, a huge component of it. But I just, I was in little Havana yesterday and it just doesn't feel like the old little Havana from 10 years ago. Like when we had to go to cultural nights on, on Friday nights back in the day when I first introduced to them when I first moved back. Uh, and I love that I lived right on eighth and eighth. So I would walk over and I did, it just seems like an, it feels like South beach. and just overran with tour buses and tour groups and tours. And here's a menu and here's a cigar. I didn't really roll it, but I said it's hand rolled. And like, it's this, and Wynwood's the same thing. And I, and that's always been, you know, that's any large gentrification of a, of a neighborhood, which has happened with, with Wynwood, which is kind of like our, our Soho kind of sorta. So how do you mitigate through this whole process of not being, because as a local, I want nothing to do with Wynwood or Little Havana. I'm like, get me out of here. It's a total tourist trap.

Marvin Tapia25:01 - 27:22

Let me specify. Little Havana is huge. And so what you're referring to is 8th Street, right? So Main Strip. right yes lots of tourists it's become it's it is that main strip you know our our our duval our our bourbon you know that's what a street it has become um which which i understand um the the beautiful part you know or the the silver lining here is that not a lot of residents on 8th Street. You know, on 8th Street, it's more, it's a business forward street. So good for the businesses, right? Tourists are coming in, business is booming, if you will. But Little Havana as a whole is thriving as well because you're not getting all those tourists You know, staying on 8th Street, and then you still get the exposure of Little Havana on social, in media, for the businesses. So, yeah, you know, actually in 2022, don't quote me on it, one of these years after the pandemic, Little Havana was the most visited tourist site in Miami, more than South Beach, more than Wynwood. Wow, that makes sense. which was great for the businesses after a pandemic. And so we have to be careful. I'm very proud to say that we spearheaded the project that turned Little Havana into a national treasure. That was, to this day, one of my proudest accomplishments. And so what it does is it doesn't make it impossible for a developer to come in there. What it does is it's more of a deterrent. It costs a lot more money. You have to jump through a lot more hurdles. You have to keep the historic aspect and the facade. You have to keep that. It's very protective. Not impossible, but it protects a lot of the integrity of the history of the neighborhood. So very proud that we did that. So again, we've done a lot of work to mitigate the developers coming in. As you can see, it's a lot of local businesses. Very few are like a Starbucks in the corner. They were grandfathered in from the Burger King. But all businesses that are thriving on 8th Street are local. Aside from your CVS and your Starbucks, it's all local businesses. So we're happy to see as tourists come in there and frequent the Azucar, the Bonchain, the Domino Park, the Los Pinareños, the Casa Los Trucos, you know, it's all local businesses. So we're happy to see them there. How's the

Sebastian Rusk27:23 - 27:30

the art artist community because I know for a while there was it was there was some galleries and specifically with Cuban art. Shocker.

Marvin Tapia27:30 - 31:21

That's Bienes Culturales. Okay. Well, we used to do. Yeah. So so since the year 2000, Bienes Culturales was the last Friday of each month. It thrived. You know, this is where everyone knew that the last Friday starting at 5, 4 p.m. you can show up to Domino Plaza right next to Domino Park and you'd have this beautiful street fair of local vendors. You had local artists. I mean we've been doing this proudly. Dr. George would do walking tours. Still does. Still does. But now he's moved to our third Friday and I'll get to why we're on the third Fridays. You know we were so proud. I mean Again, when I became a board member and a spokesperson, it was an honor to be able to represent this organization, because who didn't know Vienes Culturales, right? Then there's our local politician, goes at it with Bill Fuller, the owner of Ball and Chain. And at the time, he was a president of Vienes Culturales. And because he supported another candidate, He goes after Bill and all his assets. And one of those was Bienes Culturales. So he took the permit that we had since the year 2000. He takes that permit for us to be able to operate the last Friday without the city help. We had no help from the city. It was all funded by sponsorships and our money. We didn't take a penny from the taxpayers. We did this for the taxpayers. And then he takes our permit and now uses city funds to throw this, which is right. That's okay to use city funds to throw an event for the city. I mean, that's, you know, that it's, well, why didn't you ever help us? Now you're doing it on your own. So we had an option. We had two things here. Do we cease to exist, or do we pivot to the third Friday of each month? We pivot to the third Friday, brought our vendors, and Paul George has been supporting us from day one. Since the year 2000, Paul George has been doing these walking tours. So you guys, I'm coming with you guys. I'll do it on the third Friday. So third Friday still pulls 150, 200 people. Every third Friday at 7 p.m., you meet them in front of Tower Theater. He is the main event of Vienes Culturales, has always been. People come from all across the country to listen to Paul George's walking tours. So we pulled him in. And so there is an event going on the last Friday of the month. He wanted to call it his Vienes Culturales. Bill was able to trademark the name. And so he calls it a night in La Pequeña Habana and does his event. Why can't we do it together? He just wanted to kick us out. Ego. Again, as you can see, it's not about the people. It's about himself and winning whatever battle he has. It's a vendetta. Our only mission has been celebrating the cultural diversity of our people. You know, so why wouldn't the city support that? Instead, they kick us out and now they have their own event. And it's just, I'm happy that the event's happening for the people. I'm not against that whatsoever. I'm against the reason behind it. And it's unfortunate. So my whole MO is to change that and show people that there is nothing behind this curtain except me. Me and what I'm doing for the people. You know, so I am the clear cut difference between what we've had and the people that are running now and who I am and what I'm doing and what's to come. There's a status quo. If you're happy with what you've seen with our commissioners, then you know who to vote for. If you want someone that's going to put you first and not just say it, not just say it. Imagine that.

Sebastian Rusk31:23 - 31:46

I was bummed to see my breakfast spot was exquisito, exquisito. That was my spot, man. The owner's too, he's always in there. Alex was great. Alex was fantastic, bro. Thanksgiving was my favorite because they'd always do the freaking the stuffed turkey and the whole night I'd be in there for breakfast he's trying to give me turkey and the What happened there? It was like one day to the next. I went there and then no more.

Marvin Tapia31:46 - 31:50

You know, it really was one day to the next. We know Alex personally.

Sebastian Rusk31:50 - 31:53

He was kind of over it. I mean, it was a family business for a while.

Marvin Tapia31:53 - 32:20

He took over for his parents, didn't he? That business has been there. It's one of the pioneers of 8th Street. They've been there for a long time. That was my weekend go-to spot. I would have all my interviews there. I loved it. It was just beautiful. I'd go in and talk to Alex. You know, you said it, one day to another, nobody knew. All of a sudden he's like, it's, I'm closing the doors. Ventanita, down. And it was the best, man.

Sebastian Rusk32:20 - 32:34

You know, it was, it was one of the very few places when, when Little Havana really started, Cayocho Brothers started to really take off and be a, a tourist attraction on there that was still like, you could still get in there and still get that Miami.

Marvin Tapia32:34 - 32:47

Same prices, same experience, you know, the same lady behind, she knew your name, she knew where you were. The counter, you can sit at the counter. You can still pay with a dollar and a few quarters, you know, where can you say that? You can pay with some change.

Sebastian Rusk32:48 - 33:30

Somebody told me, sorry, way back in the day, the old Cuban guys would go in there, hang out, drinking coffee and whatnot. They would place their bets, like with each other. You know, they just like, they bet on sports here. It wasn't a sports book by the stretch of the imagination. But like back in the day, way back in the day, would be like the main spot to like go and hang. But it was really, I remember I got some great photographs randomly of just Cuban guys in their Guayabera with their cigars drinking, caught right there at that window, you know? It was all the, you know, but the history of that, I always like to say, I always sat at the bar right there at the counter, but sometimes, you know, when you're with someone, you would go into the dining area right there, and I would always sit there and think, man, if these walls could talk, you know? The place has just been, you know, around, but I do miss that place.

Marvin Tapia33:30 - 36:31

So many stories, I mean, and Miami is that. It's exactly that. It's stories upon stories of different cultures that have come here and made it, have come here, you know, fleeing whatever oppression. Another thing that I like to say, we are, as immigrants, we came to this country for a better opportunity, fleeing this type of politicians, these type of politicians. Yeah, here we are voting for these same ones and having to deal with the same ones. You know, it's unfortunate. On a lighter note, on a lighter note, you know, just going back to, you know, the things that I've done and, you know, Now that I'm running, it's kind of like an archive of the things that I've done and things that I've forgotten and what has catapulted me to do this. Two fun things that we've done in Little Havana that really have been for the culture and for the people has been Jimmy Butler. Jimmy Butler came to me before he was a Miami Heat and I don't know if you knew this story I did not at all Jimmy Butler's team came to me. He it was the Wayne Wade's last home game So Jimmy Butler was not a Miami. He he was playing for the 76ers. He was in Philly Very random his team sent me an email or called me. I can't remember which Hey, we've we've heard through the grapevine that you're the guy and Jimmy Butler has this YouTube vlog where he travels and he likes to get to know different cultures. I didn't know it And I knew of Jimmy Butler, but didn't know Definitely did not know what he was gonna become here in Miami. Yeah, but he reached out was very happy to do it Hey, can you give Jimmy Butler tour of Little Havana? You know, he wants to get to know the culture and I said, of course, I'd love to do it You know as a paid gig they paid me to do it. I was happy to do it And he was great. He goes. I don't want anything for free and Wherever we go, I want to pay for it. I'd love to tip. I want to support all the local businesses. Jimmy was phenomenal in that. He told me, one thing I definitely want to do is play dominoes because I played dominoes my whole life. I learned to count. My dad taught me how to count through dominoes. I'm going to beat everyone's butt here. No, Jimmy. Take it back. Settle down, buddy. These guys. Take it back a little bit. And we met at Los Pinarenos, one of my favorite spots to drink coffee. It's just like Cuban, a slice of the Cuban countryside right there on 8th Street. And so we taught him how to drink coffee there. We walked the street, you know. We went to get guayabera. Shout out to Fidel. He has the guayabera guy. Yeah. Fidel Assis, Lopez. He went to a shop, they gave him the story, you know, what the guayabera meant, he purchased them. So if you, there's a viral, look, every time that the heat wins, it's a picture of Jimmy Butler like this with a cigar, he's wearing the fedora, wearing his guayabera, and so he's next to me playing the domino, he's like, hey, you know, he's like playing, you know, playing into the part. The guy was phenomenal. And that was a great- It's been a great addition for our city. If you look it up, if you look it up on YouTube, it's Little Havana, Jimmy Butler, Little Havana. And it's our whole tour. You know, it's like a 15-minute, 20-minute video. I'll link that in the episode here for you.

Sebastian Rusk36:31 - 36:35

It's really cool. Miami and Miami Heat fans and lovers.

Marvin Tapia36:35 - 39:37

Yeah, I mean, it was Wade's last home game, right? That happens. No pictures, no videos, right, between us. Then he, before he gets into his vehicle, he's leaving. It's game day. So he's doing this hours before the game. Gets wired on Cuban coffee for the game He's like hey, let's take a quick video. I want to say something Hey Marvin, thank you so much for the tour. You know, you were great my brother By the way for you Miamians, you're gonna be able to see me more coming soon You can call me Biscayne buckets and he closes the door and his manager turns me around and says you have to sign this and And me being just so naive, I was like, I wonder what that meant. You know, I didn't know there was any talks between him and Dwayne in the heat or him coming. I was just very naive to that. Months later, He breaks the news that he's coming to Miami. And all hell breaks loose. Oh my goodness, those videos, the pictures, Marvin was giving him the tour. Omar Kelly had a show on the radio. A friend of mine goes, hey, were you the one that gave Jimmy the tour? And so the headline reads, Marvin, the host of Jimmy Butler 2, I brought him to Miami. I was like, no, no, no. It became that same day. I would have ran with it. I mean, I signed an NDA, I was crazy, you know? And that same day, Little Havana was a zoo. The manager of Delmar Park called me, you gotta come here, people think that you're here right now with Jimmy. It was crazy. Interviews, you know, left and right, but I'm happy to... And we were able to show Jimmy, you know, a real side of Miami before. And hopefully, you know, able to steer him maybe to make the decision, you know, to come to Miami. So that was great. And then the show that we did recently with John Leguizamo. John has a new show called Leguizamo Does America. And he chose me personally to be his host, to welcome him to Miami, to talk to him about the culture. You know, and I liked bringing the aspect that, you know, we're in Little Havana, It encompasses so many different cultures. Yeah. My point in this is just showing the people that this is what I've been doing, you know, really putting on for the city. That John Leguizamo wasn't paid. You know, that my community work isn't paid. My chairman duties are not paid. You know, it's things that I'm doing because somebody like our county commissioner or a person from the community has chosen me and said, you know what? You know, you're doing the work. We need someone like you. And I want to continue to do that. So elections are November 7th. You know, early voting starts October 25th to November 5th. Beautiful. And then November 7th, we need to get out. The only way that we make change, the only way that we actually put people that are going to make a difference is by casting our vote. Yep. If you don't cast your vote, then we open it up to people that like, well, we have, you know, some people are, you know, I don't vote because I feel like the city has not done anything.

Sebastian Rusk39:37 - 39:39

That's cool. Then you have no right to complain.

Marvin Tapia39:39 - 40:41

You have no right to complain. And you know what? Valid in thinking, wow, my vote doesn't count because nobody's done anything for you. But here we are to make that difference for you. So go out there. Know that there's someone that's counting on that vote, like myself, to really be able to make a difference. There's been polls already where if we activate a 4% of a younger or a demographic that hasn't voted before, it's a landslide. 4%. Wow. That's all we need for people to get up and say, we're going to vote. Sure. And you're voting for yourself. This is what I want to say. That vote that you cast for me is actually for you. Sure. Because I'm here for you. So great. You voted for me. Thank you, Marvin Tapia, number 254 on the ballot. You're voting it for yourself, because I'm here, now that I'm there, those doors open for you. They open so that you can call me and say, I've got an issue, I've called our commissioner for years, never got an answer.

Sebastian Rusk40:42 - 41:02

Well, here we are. Well, that can change people's mind about nothing's ever happened when I do vote. So I just choose not to be able to do it. So Marvin, it's a, it's a privilege to call your friend and to see you again, brother, to be able to catch up. Uh, you definitely got my support. This isn't a political podcast, but it is today. Damn it. And, uh, wish you all the success, man. I look forward to staying in touch and support everything that going on.

Marvin Tapia41:02 - 41:52

Thank you. You know, it's, it's, Aside from politics, politics should open the doors for everyone. So it shouldn't be left-sided or right-sided, blue or red, whatever you are. It's really meant to bring us together, to unify our communities. Because the goal, what is the goal? To improve our lives. I mean, that's what the elected officials are there for. So if we unify our voices and unify our communities, you know, it's not to make it political. It's really to empower and improve the city. So fine, you know, I'm here, you know, trying to get elected, but it's really for, for, for everyone. So, you know, I want to like simplify that process. You know, it's not just political, it's actually for everyone, you know, literally for the people, like he means it. Yeah. Nothing is scripted. This, it all comes from here, man. Marvin, I appreciate you, my brother. I wish you nothing but the best as well.

Sebastian Rusk41:52 - 42:21

Thank you. Until next time, friends, get out to the polls or just, or, or they say in Miami, if you don't vote. Thanks guys. Thanks so much for tuning into this episode of the Beyond the Story podcast. We sure do appreciate it. If you haven't done so already, make sure you're subscribed to the show. This way you'll get updates as new episodes become available. If you feel so inclined, please leave us a review. We sure do appreciate it. Signing off from the podcast, Launchlab.com Studios. We'll talk to you next time.