3 November 5-11, 2026 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NEWS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | Month XX–Month XX, 2008 miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | RIPTIDE | METRO | NIGHT+DAY | STAGE | ART | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | ▼ DOWNTOWN MIAMI LOVE THY NEIGHBOR? E11EVEN COFOUNDER INVOKES ‘BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW’ AGAINST ISLAMIC CENTERS. BY ALLISON BECK E 11even cofounder Marc Roberts is coming out hard against Islamic center developments in Palm Beach County. The real estate investor sent a mass email on Oct. 21 urging recipients to contact Gov. Ron DeSantis to oppose the proj- ects, which he said would attract people “vio- lently opposed to our biblical worldview,” according to a report by The Real Deal. Quotes pulled from Roberts’ email in The Real Deal article appear to be the same ones used in a widely-shared post by anti-Islam in- fluencer Keren Gee on Oct. 22. She has also reposted other openly Islamophobic content, including one Instagram post that called Muslims a “fundamentally evil and demonic ‘people.’” Neither message mentioned specifics about reasons for opposition. Instead, they referenced New York City and Dearborn, Michigan and alluded to unsavory funding sources for the developments. Gee did not respond to New Times’ Face- book message requesting comment. The Real Deal reported that Roberts’ email specifically targeted Islamic center projects in Delray Beach, Loxahatchee, West Palm Beach and Vero Beach. The Delray Beach location, in particular, has drawn public outcry. Despite being ap- proved in 2023, people who oppose the proj- ect, which would include a school, day care and mosque, have flooded recent City Com- mission meetings. According to reports by WPBF, an Oct. 3 meeting ended with swastika-wearing pro- testors shouting anti-semitic slurs in the county civic center’s parking lot. Interfaith coalition leaders have since spo- ken up, saying that they trust the people be- hind the project. Boca Raton Interfaith Clergy Association co-president Rabbi David Stein- hardt told WPTV that he believed a lack of cross-religion dialogue was part of the uproar. “I think that when you don’t know people, then you suspect people, and when you’re suspicious, you fear people. And so when you fear people, then you don’t necessarily act ra- tionally,” Sreinhardt said in the WPTV inter- view. “This is not a new group of people. These are people that have been in town for de- cades. We have worked together at the hospi- tals, in the courts, in business, in all different arenas of public society.” In contrast to his “biblical worldview,” Roberts has said he wants to turn Mi- ami’s Park West into an East Coast Vegas — in other words, transform his slice of Vice City into Sin City. Roberts started his career as a boxing pro- moter and, according to his website, grew his business into a publicly traded sports manage- ment firm. He pivoted to real estate investing in the 2000s, focusing on South Florida. In 2014, Roberts co-founded the iconic Miami club E11even with cabaret and strip club mogul Dennis DeGori and developer Mi- chael Simkins. The club is part concert venue, part up- scale “ultraclub,” featuring burlesque per- formers, aerialists, and its own vodka brand. It also has a co-branded condominium com- plex and hotel, an NFT-based private club and a cryptocurrency company. While the venue is considered one of the best in the world, it faced several controver- sies in 2026, including hosting members of a crypto conference and the arrest of a U.S. Park police officer. New Times contacted Roberts’ attorney by phone and email for comment but received no response. [email protected] | RIPTIDE | GET MORE NEWS & COMMENTARY AT MIAMINEWTIMES.COM/NEWS Twenty-four hour ultraclub E11even in downtown Miami. Photo by Laurie Charles