(WSVN) - The pandemic is crushing small businesses, and tonight, one Coral Gables shop owner says the city is making it impossible to survive with fines and citations. It’s tonight’s Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
Elena is a hard-working entrepreneur. COVID has crushed her.
Elena Linares, Razzle Dazzle Barbershop: “This is not business as usual. Businesses are hemorrhaging.”
Before COVID, Elena had six Razzle Dazzle barbershops.
Elena Linares: “What we do here is we offer the old-fashioned hot lather shaves, and we specialize in hair-cutting.”
After COVID, Elena was left with just her Brickell shop and moved the other one to a different location in Coral Gables, where customers are hard to come by.
Elena Linares: “Look at Miracle Mile. It’s a ghost town. So many businesses have closed. I’m determined not to end up closing my shop.”
To attract business, Elena decorated the outside with pictures and plants. It started to work, as people noticed. Unfortunately, so did the city.
Elena Linares: “I got a warning: ‘You got to take everything off because you’re trying to get attention.’ I am trying to get attention ’cause that’s what I need.”
With so many people struggling, Elena was surprised Coral Gables was coming after a shop trying to get going.
Elena Linares: “It’s common sense. Guidelines need to be flexible, especially now during this COVID crisis that we’re facing.”
And Elena noticed the city was being flexible with restaurants, allowing tables on the sidewalks to attract customers.
Elena Linares: “They’re allowed umbrellas, decorative plants, massive banners. What’s wrong with a couple of pictures on my wall?”
Elena asked for the same break for her shop to temporarily put the pictures up until business picked up. The response?
Elena Linares: “They come in, and they put that on the window.”
Fines and more fines.
Elena Linares: “I’ve gotten five fines, totaling $2,100.”
A total of $2,100 in fines for pictures on a wall. It’ll take a lot of haircuts to pay for that.
Elena Linares: “I need a break from the city. They need to back off and stop giving me fines.”
We are in a pandemic. Businesses are dying. Howard, are government agencies required to help them survive?
Howard Finkelstein, 7 News Legal Expert: “Yes, they should, and yes, they can, but no, they do not have to help them out. In this case, the problem was the pictures were screwed to the wall, making them, what the law calls permanent as opposed to a temporary sign, like a banner, that can be put up and taken down easily. The city officials should have explained that to Elena how to do it to avoid fines.”
By the time we got involved, Elena had been fined seven times totaling $3,100. Her appeal to Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli brought this reply: “We would be happy to help in any way we can, but your posters, displays outside of your shop cheapen our Miracle Mile and make it look like a Middle East cheap bazaar.”
Elena then removed all the permanent signs.
We got in touch with the city attorney, who reviewed the case and wrote to us. The fines had been reduced to the original $200 amount because Elena had come into compliance, and this “business owner has not had violations of the code in many years.”
Howard Finkelstein: “It’s good the city attorney took care of this, but the bigger picture: city officials have to realize they need businesses to succeed. They are a large source of the revenue that pays government officials’ salaries, so give people a break until we recover from this pandemic.”
Elena Linares: “Thanks to Help Me Howard, the fines were dramatically reduced.”
With the fines reduced, Elena can turn from battling the city to tackling the pandemic, as she tries to increase business at her Miracle Mile barbershop.
Elena Linares: “I will forever be grateful. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. Channel 7 is my familia. Thank you so much.”
Running a business during COVID — talk about a struggle, and remember, local businesses need you to come in now, so they will be there for you when the pandemic finally ends.
Facing a hair-raising experience? Don’t deal with a close shave. Clip our contact info, so we can use our shear legal skills to trim away your troubles.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
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