(WSVN) - Thousands of people contacted Help Me Howard this year. Many had problems that are common … and then you get the problems that are incredibly unique. How unusual? Let’s bring in Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser to talk about them.
We have never seen this before: a landlord destroying his own parking lot in a dispute with a tenant.
Roberto Salas: “I was like, ‘What’s going on? This is like an earthquake or something.'”
Roberto Salas is one of the owners of United Auto Center in Davie.
He and the landlord, Charles Rowars, have sued each other in court.
Roberto Salas: “So you know he’s doing a lot of stuff to hurt me.”
In the middle of the legal battle, the landlord sent out a front-end loader to not only tear up Roberto’s parking lot, but also block customers from getting into the auto dealership.
Roberto Salas: “No way we can do business like this. This is crazy; I don’t know how to describe it.”
You described it well, Robert. It’s crazy, and it’s in court, so we will let you know how it turns out.
Speaking of one-of-a kind crazy, legally, “Male” is Wilfredo’s name. Why?
Wilfredo Quiles: “I was released from the hospital without my name being put on the birth certificate.”
And so, some bright person wrote his name as “Male” on the birth certificate, even though his mother named him Wilfredo when she got home from the hospital.
Wilfredo Quiles: “So I filed my taxes Wilfredo Quiles. I work Wilfredo Quiles.”
Then the state of Florida refused to renew his driver’s license, saying his name was not Wilfredo. His birth certificate said he was named “Male.”
Wilfredo Quiles: “I have given up hope sometimes.”
We got it straightened out, got Wilfredo a license.
Now he can get back on the road.
Wilfredo Quiles: “I got a valid ID and a driver’s license thanks to Help Me Howard.”
We were also able to help Dalia find what she was searching for, but it was not a perfect ending.
Dalia Santana: “I was 6. He left in a rush, and I wanted to give him a kiss.”
Dalia had wanted to hug her father that day. She didn’t, and she never saw him again.
Her grandmother told her he just left them, then 58 years later, she found out they had not told the truth.
Dalia Santana: “I found his death certificate, and I just sat there and cried. I just couldn’t believe it, that he was really dead.”
Dalia wanted to visit her father’s grave to be sure he was dead.
She couldn’t find him. She asked us to help.
Dalia Santana: “I want to know where he was buried. I want to go there and be able to grieve.”
As we did our research, we discovered her father, Marino Martinez, didn’t abandon Dalia.
He was murdered, and 58 years ago was buried at a cemetery once called Paradise Memorial.
We told Dalia.
Dalia Santana: “Oh, my God. I can’t believe this. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.”
And that’s when it became clear to me. Despite her father’s death certificate, until that moment, Dalia still hoped her father was alive.
Dalia Santana: “I thought someday he would just pop up and say, ‘Here I am. I’m sorry.'”
Sorry, Dalia, sorry.
Now let’s end with a lighter one-of-a-kind story.
Eileen Silio: “Bunnies. I was appalled. I thought, ‘Wow.'”
Eileen was appalled by “Breeding Bunnies,” a painting in Allapattah of two rabbits smoking, while doing what rabbits do.
Eileen Silio: “Having sex, smoking some type of cigar, cigarette, and I think that that’s not something that belongs in the entrance of a neighborhood, and for me to have to drive by there with my kids in the car.”
Eileen considers it atrocious.
The property owner considers the work of the creator, Jules Muck, one-of-a-kind art.
And the City of Miami agrees. It’s legal.
Eileen Silio: “It made me feel awful.”
Because the breeding bunnies are not hopping away.
Eileen Silio: “Paint something else. Paint one rabbit or paint two, but don’t have them engaging in a sexual act.”
I don’t know whether it’s better to have a unique problem, like a landlord destroying his own parking lot to hurt a tenants business, or a common problem, like a contractor taking the money and not doing the job. But either way, we will be here to help you find a way to solve it.
Give us the name of your problem, then park it in our lot, and let us hop to it to help.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
Email: helpmehoward@wsvn.com
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN
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