[0:00] what a gift to be here and to be able to [0:02] dedicate this place to the Lord we have [0:04] a sovereign king in Jesus Christ and and [0:08] we pray in his name lord God creator of [0:12] all that is we are so grateful that we [0:15] get to come before you today and [0:16] dedicate this location in the name of [0:20] Jesus Christ [0:22] jesus you are worthy and we know that [0:26] everything in your hands is safe and [0:29] will prosper and we're asking that here [0:32] for this business today [0:34] we thank you Lord and praise you for [0:36] coming to today you've seen all of the [0:39] challenges that have brought to the [0:41] brought us to this moment and you've [0:42] been with Daniel and Gabby and all of [0:45] the partners lord you are so faithful [0:47] every step of the way we ask that this [0:51] is a place God that you are at work far [0:53] beyond what we see in sales and far [0:56] beyond what we see in the way that [0:58] people come through the door and have [1:00] their physical needs met lord we ask [1:03] that this is a place where you are [1:05] raining down your grace on people that [1:08] you're building community here we ask [1:10] that this is a place God that there is [1:13] thriving in your name that you are [1:16] blessing the families that work here the [1:18] families that come here [1:20] that you are strengthening your people [1:23] right here and right here is a light God [1:26] that goes out across this city [1:30] we ask this all and praise your name [1:32] Jesus amen amen [1:43] inspech [2:09] infinia [2:12] Bond gracias [2:38] grandio [2:52] seor [3:01] guardia [3:05] Exaltto [3:21] Grande [3:23] graciasper [3:48] and to Mr [3:50] to [4:02] [Applause] [4:12] Amen amen [4:26] thank you so much to Rosa and Pastor [4:28] Mark for those opening words [4:31] we are so excited to stand here today [4:35] because we are opening a new grocery [4:37] store on the north side in Colonial [4:40] Market [4:48] in 2023 the north side lost a massive [4:52] community asset a place where people [4:54] could gather where they could get food [4:57] you've got 50,000 residents on the north [5:00] side and when a grocery store closes [5:03] it's even more of a food desert your [5:06] access to fresh fruit and vegetables to [5:09] wholesome foods should not be dependent [5:11] on the zip code in which you live uh and [5:14] right now far more zip codes on the [5:18] north side right where we are standing [5:20] have the kind of access that they need [5:22] to put food on the table to fill their [5:26] kids' lunch boxes this is a huge asset [5:30] that I know will serve not just for [5:32] today but many generations into the [5:34] future uh and so much of it is due to a [5:37] really beautiful partnership that has [5:39] been created the partnership between [5:41] Daniel Hernandez give him a huge round [5:43] of applause by the way [5:47] who owns Colonial Market uh as well as [5:50] David Wellington who owns this space uh [5:54] I got them together back in 2023 and a [5:57] partnership was forged out of friendship [6:00] uh out of a common ethic and ultimately [6:03] what that partnership is doing is [6:05] helping a whole lot of people uh and as [6:08] Colonial Market is opening right here as [6:10] I mentioned it's a beautiful community [6:11] space but they've got a butcher a deli I [6:16] got a bakery they've got a takaria [6:20] they've got everything you could [6:21] possibly need right here uh with the [6:24] kind of food that northsiders are going [6:26] to absolutely love uh and so this is [6:28] just such a special thing again a [6:30] grocery store is the kind of staple that [6:32] every community needs uh and if you have [6:34] to walk or drive a mile to get to one [6:38] that's just not acceptable uh we know [6:40] that for generations there have been [6:42] food deserts on the north side in [6:44] particular uh and this helps to provide [6:47] the kind of oasis that the community [6:49] needs that the people need and it'll [6:51] keep people healthy for the long haul um [6:54] I'm really thankful again uh to Daniel [6:57] Hernandez uh and to David Wellington for [7:00] all the work that they have done on [7:01] bringing this forward uh I'm also uh [7:03] very thankful uh to council member [7:05] Latricia Vita she has been a champion of [7:08] the north side uh when people need food [7:12] she tells me uh when additional assets [7:15] need to be applied to ensure safety she [7:18] lets us know when a small and local [7:20] business needs help she makes sure that [7:23] our city enterprise is following through [7:24] and doing the kind of work that we need [7:26] to succeed that noriders need to succeed [7:30] without further ado I'm I'm honored to [7:32] welcome up Council Member Latricia Vita [7:38] good afternoon everyone my name is [7:40] Latricia Vita and I am a council member [7:42] here in North Minneapolis i am beyond [7:46] excited about this space and the ability [7:50] to buy a pinata oh my goodness i I came [7:53] in last week and I was just mesmerized [7:57] by everything that is here you know when [8:00] I met Daniel a couple years ago we [8:02] talked about him being a grosser we [8:04] didn't talk about all the other [8:06] wonderful things he was going to bring [8:08] to to this community and as someone who [8:10] represents the area Li is a cultural [8:13] corridor and that's what this store [8:15] represents it res it represents the [8:18] culture of this community it makes [8:20] everyone feel welcome and feel like they [8:23] have something here in this community so [8:25] I am so excited that Daniel and his [8:28] partners took the time to get to know [8:30] this area and invest in it we need it [8:33] north Minneapolis is a food desert but [8:36] we're taking that that very shameful [8:38] title away by having stores like this [8:42] Daniel thank you so much thank you in [8:45] your part thank you Abraham abraham's [8:47] smiling faces always here three times [8:49] I've been here he's been here to greet [8:51] me the staff here is wonderful and [8:54] they're really excited about being in [8:56] the community and that makes a [8:57] difference i met with Daniel last week [8:59] and I said "You got to get to know folks [9:02] when you get to know people on the north [9:04] side you're protected by everything [9:07] we're a small town over here we're a [9:09] family." And we are so excited to [9:12] welcome Colonial Market to the North [9:13] Side family thank you thank you and with [9:16] that I'm going to introduce the the hero [9:20] in this David Wellington david there you [9:22] go all right David [9:27] well today we are celebrating a a big [9:29] victory for the north side we're [9:31] celebrating a big victory for the city [9:33] of Minneapolis we know that this has [9:35] been historically a location where a [9:38] large part of the north side have been [9:39] getting their fresh produce uh and food [9:42] for a long time uh and we were certainly [9:45] hoping that we would be able to get to a [9:47] day like today where we get to celebrate [9:48] the victory of having a locallyowned [9:51] grocery store uh setup shop in this [9:53] location this is a triumph for small [9:56] business is a triumph for investment [9:57] back into local communities by people [9:59] that live there uh we really believe in [10:02] the vision that Daniel and Abraham and [10:05] uh their team have for this location and [10:07] we're very excited uh to be able to [10:09] participate in that uh long-term vision [10:11] for this location uh and we intend to [10:14] make sure that uh it is viable for a [10:16] very long time um I just want to uh say [10:19] thank you very much to the mayor uh and [10:22] council member Vita and their teams for [10:25] all the effort they put in to make sure [10:27] that it was a smooth process for Daniel [10:29] and his team to be able to set up shop [10:31] here uh it's a big effort for us to be [10:34] able to get a new grocery store in here [10:36] but we really appreciate all that they [10:37] did to make that as easy as possible um [10:40] and we are just really happy to be able [10:42] to celebrate this big victory so I'm [10:44] gonna hand it over to Daniel [10:49] before before I begin I want to thank [10:52] you know some special pe people um Gabby [10:55] is here my mom is here Abraham Paola but [10:59] there are also people that have support [11:01] me in different ways like uh uh uh [11:04] Coronel Suarez the highest ranking [11:06] member of the Minnesota National Guard [11:08] Inspector Gomez [11:13] Inspector Gomez um that has been you [11:16] know uh helping me every step of the way [11:18] even Greg over there in the back you [11:20] know he's been helping uh John Pacheco [11:23] and obviously you know there's the the [11:25] things happen because of people behind [11:28] me i'm I'm just you know the front face [11:30] but people behind me are the ones that [11:32] actually make things happen so let me I [11:34] I wrote something from GP Chad GPT no [11:37] I'm kidding [11:39] so I wrote something I want to which I [11:41] wanted to to to tell everybody thank you [11:43] all for being here today to celebrate [11:45] not just a grand opening of Colonial [11:47] Market in North Minneapolis but also a [11:49] powerful step forward for our community [11:52] this story is more than just a business [11:54] it's a symbol of opportunity opportunity [11:57] resilience and unity believe me when I [11:59] say unity I really emphasize if it [12:02] wasn't for Major Jacob Prey for that is [12:05] this is not really I mean she's she's [12:08] she should be the North Minneapolis one [12:10] you know the in general so thank you so [12:12] much um [12:15] yeah um David Wellington has been [12:17] helping me all the step of the way so [12:20] I'm very very thankful for that me as a [12:22] proud Afro Latino immigrant who came [12:24] here at to the country at the age of 16 [12:27] with weak dreams and deep love for my [12:30] culture it means everything to be able [12:32] to open a space that serve the community [12:35] that I now call home [12:38] colonial market bring together culture [12:40] flavors and family a grocery store and a [12:42] restaurant but above all a place where [12:44] everybody is welcome here in North [12:46] Minneapolis we know the importance of [12:48] access access to fresh food to safe [12:51] space and to economic opportunity this [12:54] store represent all of that and more [12:56] especially for the minority community [12:58] that has long been underrepresented and [13:01] underserved [13:03] we're here to invest in this [13:05] neighborhood and believe me when I say [13:06] that I I know what I'm telling you [13:10] create jobs support local vendors and [13:12] uplift voices that deserve to be heard [13:14] we also want to thanks our partners in [13:17] local government who make things [13:18] possible for this vision to become a [13:21] reality from city council the uh [13:24] electricia from to the mayor Frey office [13:27] to support your support shows that when [13:30] government work hand in hand with the [13:32] community we all rise together us um [13:36] also to the Wellington family and the [13:38] wellington management for the commitment [13:40] to upliftive Minneapolis communi [13:41] community and I am very thankful for and [13:44] to the Minneapolis Police Department [13:46] specialist to the officer who have shown [13:48] up here actually I told them "Show up [13:51] here from 7 to 9 i'll give you free [13:53] coffee." They've been showing up every [13:55] half an hour so [13:57] so I'm very happy for them being honest [14:00] um in in not just in uniform but with [14:02] the partnership that they gave us thank [14:04] you you represent your your presence [14:07] means safety but also trust that we need [14:10] it so bad we proud to work with you [14:13] alongside uh in North Minneapolis [14:16] this is only the beginning thank you [14:17] again for being part of this moment [14:19] colonial market is not just a market [14:21] it's a place where people can feel safe [14:24] so saying that I want to thank everybody [14:26] for being here especially the news media [14:29] because I know this being in the news [14:31] all over from good things to bad things [14:33] but what I can tell you is this is the [14:35] beginning of the North Minneapolis [14:37] making a change in general [14:42] john Pacheco is here he have something [14:44] special for me john thank you he said [14:48] "Daniel I'm going to bring you a sword." [14:49] So I didn't believe him you know I'm [14:52] John Pekco i'm president of the Latino [14:53] Chamber of Commerce here in Minnesota [14:55] here and uh I've been following this man [14:57] around opening this place that I I end [14:59] up buying him scissors just just for him [15:02] so we can open up over here and over [15:03] there uh he he's been doing wonderful [15:06] things across the city and some you [15:08] don't hear about and so I I actually [15:10] worked with the Wellington as well when [15:11] they first called and when Daniel called [15:13] said "I need to talk to somebody about [15:15] that that place at High Lake." Yes and [15:18] so anyway uh this is for you we'll cut [15:20] the ribbon later uh you wonderful [15:22] representation of the community of the [15:24] state of the of the Latino population [15:27] and everyone looked to you to lead and [15:29] it's been wonderful to watch you grow [15:30] watch you build this this little empire [15:32] you have here and again thank you thank [15:35] you thank you John [15:42] i'm sorry your name in uh my name is [15:45] Daniel Hernandez d A N I L Hernandez h E [15:49] R N A N D E Z as in zebra and you know [15:52] the owner i'm the owner yes okay yes yes [15:56] and mayor give you the microphone back [15:59] yeah happy to open it to any questions [16:01] you might have [16:05] i'll just note so you've seen the [16:07] success of this partnership now several [16:10] times over uh in that not only uh has [16:14] Daniel Hernandez partnered on this [16:16] project here on the north side but [16:17] there's another one as well on the south [16:19] side and so uh we've seen a a model for [16:22] success that has been replicated several [16:24] times over and to the benefit of people [16:27] here on the north side no other [16:28] questions i got a question yeah please [16:30] great um how how will this uh market [16:34] support the local economy here and how [16:36] will it create some jobs here i'm going [16:38] to let you take that one you got this [16:40] we're already creating jobs what are you [16:41] talking about we're already creating [16:43] jobs uh you know just being here we [16:45] already have I believe 20 people and [16:48] staff uh a lot of them are locally you [16:50] know from from from uh neighborhood [16:52] literally they walk through through this [16:54] place and obviously it is you know [16:56] tomorrow we have a big festivity we call [16:58] it the festival of opening the colonial [17:00] market from 12 to 7:00 p.m a lot of the [17:03] the vendors are locally from this area [17:06] we are not just you know bringing [17:08] opportunity we're also bringing hope to [17:10] this community [17:13] well may God bless this place may God [17:15] bless America thank you for all your [17:18] support [17:20] [Applause]