E11even mogul Marc Roberts insists he is not an Islamophobe, and that he didn’t author a mass email that degenerated Muslims as being “violently opposed to our biblical worldview.”
The forwarded message, delivered on Oct. 21 from Roberts’ email address at his namesake company, urged Floridians to contact Gov. Ron DeSantis so he can halt the construction of Islamic centers approved in Delray Beach, West Palm Beach, Loxahatchee, and Vero Beach. The subject line read: Emergency!
The email did not provide any proof to support its characterization of the people the Islamic centers would attract. It also did not identify the projects’ developers, addresses or specific approvals. But it was sent amid a contentious debate over an Islamic center and school planned near Delray Beach that was administratively approved in 2023 and that has drawn recent opposition.
“Do we want to end up like Dearborn, Michigan, or other states currently governed by individuals holding this ideology?” the email states. “I know I don’t, and I certainly do not want your grandchildren and future generations to live in fear instead of enjoying the freedoms that, by the grace of God, this country has granted us.”
He received the message from a friend “raising concerns about developments in Florida communities and [I] forwarded it because I believe the issues warranted attention,” Roberts said in a statement provided by a spokesperson.
“That does not mean I agree with every assertion or characterization in it,” Roberts said. “While I did not write or create the email, I recognize that sharing it makes it important to clarify where I stand.”
Roberts, the co-owner of e11even nightclub and co-developer of two downtown Miami e11even-branded condo towers, said he opposes “hatred in every form, whoever it targets.”
“I am incredibly fortunate to count members of the Muslim community among my most trusted partners on some of my biggest projects,” Roberts said. “I deeply value those relationships and their contributions to my life and business.”
His statement did not address which parts of the forwarded email he disagrees with, and it did not identify the friend who sent it to Roberts.
Roberts’ rise in Miami real estate followed a career managing athletes and a financial collapse that nearly wiped him out. In the late 1980s and 1990s, he represented boxers including Ray Mercer and Shannon Briggs before pivoting to property investments in the early 2000s.
At the time, he teamed up with developer Art Falcone to assemble more than 25 acres in downtown Miami’s Park West for the $6 billion Miami Worldcenter mega-project. Roberts also owned a company, Sunvest, that converted apartments into condos in Florida, Arizona and Nevada. In a 2022 interview with The Real Deal, Roberts said he and his partners converted more than 10,000 units and made $40 million.
The 2008 crash upended those ventures. Roberts said he lost $50 million in equity and faced $100 million in bank debt. Aside from the losses, Roberts was locked in a yearslong legal tussle in Miami and New York courts with his longtime financial backer, Wall Street trader Harvey Silverman. The litigation was ultimately dismissed, including cases dropped by agreement or for lack of action.
Roberts filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2010, listing $266 million in liabilities and $3.3 million in assets. He withdrew the petition two years later, and the case was dismissed.
His comeback took shape in Park West, with Miami Beach-based investor Michael Simkins.
In 2012, they bought the property housing a former strip club, along with its operations and 24-hour liquor license. The duo partnered with Las Vegas nightlife veteran Dennis DeGori to redevelop the site into E11even, a two-story ultraclub and adult cabaret that turned into a global entertainment venue etched in pop culture. The building’s rooftop is home to upscale restaurant Giselle Miami.
The highly anticipated video game Grand Theft Auto 6 has a fictional nightclub called Nine1Nine that is modeled after E11even and is in Vice City, the game’s fictional city based on Miami. As part of a massive Miami marketing rollout for Grand Theft Auto 6’s release on Nov. 19, E11even is transforming into Nine1Nine this Friday.
E11even also became the foundation for Roberts’ and Simkins’ latest real estate endeavors. The duo partnered with Property Markets Group, or PMG, to develop two new luxury high-rises in Park West. Earlier this year, E11even Partners and PMG finished the 65-story, 457-unit E11even Club Hotel & Residences Miami at 20 Northeast 11th Street. The joint venture expects to complete their second tower, E11even Club Residences Beyond, next May.
Roberts is also seeking to cash in on his neighborhood holdings. In April, he and Simkins’ Lion Development Group put a 6.6-acre Park West assemblage on the market for $500 million.
Roberts’ email blast hit inboxes during the final campaign leg of the Nov. 3 midterm election in which some Republican politicians and operatives have wielded Islamophobia like a cudgel. During a recent campaign stop, Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramswamy made inflammatory remarks similar to the message Roberts shared: “Look at what’s happening in Dearborn, Michigan, for God’s sake. We’re not going to let that come to our state of Ohio,”
Dearborn is the first city in the U.S. to have an Arab-American majority. Roberts’ email blast mirrored an Oct. 22 Facebook post by an anti-Islam influencer named Karen Gee, Miami New Times reported.
In South Florida, MAGA Republican influencers and Miami Beach State Rep. Fabian Basabe have attacked his opponent, Lucia Baez-Geller, by falsely connecting her to terrorist groups because her Jewish husband’s law partner is Khurrum Wahid, an attorney known as a founding member of Emgage Florida, a Muslim voter advocacy group, and his connection to the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
Meanwhile, a post on TRD’s Instagram account about Roberts’ email blast elicited visceral responses from individuals condemning him, as well as an equal number praising him. As of Tuesday morning, the post had 239,025 views, 3,700 shares on stories, 71 reposts and 705 comments.
Some commentators noted the irony of Roberts’ sharing a message about “biblical worldviews” when he has a business that features semi-nude exotic dancers and VIP champagne rooms. “Imagine owning a den of sin like E11even and being worried about ‘biblical worldviews,’” wrote Jose Duran. “Make it make sense, sir.”
John K. Pickard noted: “Lmao. I’d venture to say E11even is violently opposed to traditional biblical worldviews as well.”
Meanwhile, Roberts’ partner PMG distanced itself from the controversy created by the mass email. “The views expressed do not reflect those of PMG,” the company said in a statement. “As a firm, we respect people of all backgrounds and faiths and remain committed to the diverse communities in which we develop and operate.”
His other partner, Michael Simkins, did not respond to email requests for comment. In his statement, Roberts said he has “always stood for equality, safety, and respect for people of every race, religion, and creed.”
“Everyone deserves to live safely and worship freely, “ Roberts said. “No one should be treated as a threat because of their faith…Let me be crystal clear: whatever our differences or beliefs, we share a responsibility to stand against intolerance and work together for the good of our communities and our world.”
