Wine Station Perpetuates Legacy of Community Engagement in Beacon Hill

by Alex Visser

As dusk consumes a Thursday night, music, conversation, and clinking of glasses fill a compact nook in Beacon Hill, where locals find comfort in serious political discussion between sips of cabernet.

At one table, a local prosecutor discusses racial profiling in police traffic stops, while another pair of friends rebuff the popular Hollywood trope of a โ€œwhite savior.โ€ ย ย 

The Wine Station brought fine grapes to the South Seattle neighborhood when it opened its doors last November, but for co-owner Luis Rodriguez, itโ€™s just another chapter in a long story of community engagement.

With his new wine bar, Rodriguez, who shares ownership with his wife Leona, andย Jaimรฉe Marsh, set out to bring the alcoholic beverage to what he said is not its typical demographic.

โ€œI wanted to make sure that people of color feel welcome around wine,โ€ Rodriguez said. โ€œWhen they go to another wine bar they feel comfortable and knowledgeable.โ€

Beacon Hill is one of Seattleโ€™s most diverse neighborhoods. According to 2010 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Beacon Hill population nearly 50 percent Asian, 21.7 percent white, 17.6 percent Black and 8.5 percent Hispanic.

Wine, Rodriguez said, is typically associated with upper-class whites, and people of color may be discouraged from partaking if they donโ€™t understand the drinkโ€™s many nuances and classifications.

In addition to a full range of wine varieties, the bar boasts a worldly menu of small plates inspired by dishes from India, Italy and Mexico. Adding even greater versatility is an upcoming morning operation in which the building will run a political bookstore.

Rodriguez already has an established presence in Beacon Hill as the owner of The Station coffee shop, which opened eight years ago in the same building that the wine bar now occupies.

The Station moved to a larger space across the street in February of 2017, but Rodriguez wasnโ€™t willing to sell his old building. Alongside coffee, The Station used to sell wine, beer and sangria.

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Wine Station co-owner Leona Moore-Rodriguez (left) speaks with a customer while her husband Luis embraces another. (Photo: DJ Martinez)

โ€œFor me, it was a no-brainer to open a wine bar,โ€ he said. โ€œTo me, the building already felt like a wine bar.โ€

It isnโ€™t just about bringing vino to a new neighborhood for Rodriguez, who said he also wants to create a safe space for political discussion in a diverse community. That word โ€œcommunityโ€ is the real key.

Growing up in Baja California, Mexico, coffee was an integral part of Rodriguezโ€™s life. From the age of 5 his father served him cafรฉ con leche, a coffee-milk hybrid that is popular throughout Latin America.

More important than coffee, Rodriguez learned from his father the importance of a supportive local community. Rodriguez said his father, who was affectionately referred to as โ€œDon Luis,โ€ knew everybody in his hometown, and knew that there was a responsibility to take care of one another.

In 1992 Rodriguez moved to Seattle with his brother Oscar, who two years later opened Java Love, a coffee stand in Beacon Hill. Rodriguez said there were coffee stands all over Seattle at the time, but none in Beacon Hill.

Java Love eventually changed its name to Baja Bistro before closing in 2009. With two young sons of his own, Rodriguez sought to emulate his fatherโ€™s legacy, and in 2010 he opened The Station in the hopes of fostering political discussion among local residents.

Referencing the drinkโ€™s history as a plant native to Ethiopia that eventually spread across the planet, Rodriguez explained that his passion for coffee is directly related to the diverse demographics that make up his clientele.

โ€œCoffee was something that belonged to black and brown,โ€ he said. โ€œWe build a safe space for a lot of people.โ€

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Luis Rodriguez during a light moment. (Photo: DJ Martinez)

Kisa Nishimoto, a longtime Beacon Hill resident, is the marketing and communications manager for the Rainier Scholars, an organization dedicated to helping low-income students of color achieve four-year college degrees.

Having frequented The Station for several years, Nishimoto was visiting the wine bar for the first time. She said Rodriguez and his businesses are ideal representations of the community discourse and accurately reflect the neighborhood they serve.

โ€œHe first and foremost is a community member that advocates and supports people in the community and people of color,โ€ she said. โ€œWhat Luis creates is a hub, a hub for people to come together, share ideas and celebrate their culture.โ€

While the new wine bar has taken over Rodriguezโ€™s old building, the coffee shop is thriving in its larger space in Plaza Roberto Maestas, and the addition of a light rail station across the street has also increased the appeal. Rodriguez said the best part of his businessโ€™ success is his ability to create new jobs in the shop and hire more employees of color.

Plaza Roberto Maestas, named after the late Seattle Latino activist, was built by El Centro de la Raza, a historic Seattle organization dedicated to lending a voice to the cityโ€™s Latino community. Miguel Maestas serves as the organizationโ€™s housing and economic development director and is Robertoโ€™s nephew.

Maestas said Rodriguezโ€™s businesses encourage a sense of familiarity and unity among Beacon Hill residents and perfectly match the plazaโ€™s intentions.

โ€œThey add a sense of community and bringing people together here on Beacon Hill,โ€ Maestas said. โ€œYou run into lots of people that they know.โ€

For now, the plan for Rodriguez is to focus on running his two shops, but he said somewhere down the line he hopes to open another business that canโ€™t be found in Beacon Hill: a Sunday brunch spot.

In the meantime, Rodriguez and his businesses stand as pillars of stability in a metropolis characterized by rapid development.

โ€œSo much change has happened in Seattle. I think itโ€™s important for business owners to preserve community,โ€ Nishimoto said. โ€œI think that we need more businesses that make that a priority.โ€

The Wine Station is located at 2533 16th Ave S Seattle, WA 98144


Alex Visser is a contributor to the South Seattle Emerald. His work has appeared in local newspapers in Seattle and across Washington state.