Selena ‘Baila esta Cumbia' mural removed from 6th Street Historic District

AUSTIN, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - A tribute to the queen of cumbia Selena Quintanilla-Perez on East 6th street was displayed and painted over in less than a day.

Cynthia Rodriguez was excited to take pictures with the mural and was sad to see taken down. The mural was more than just a painting to Rodriguez it was a reminder of her childhood idol.

Rodriguez was an extra in the movie "Selena" and still listens to her music till this day.

“To some it’s just a painting but to others it’s a memory of someone we all loved and cherished,” Rodriguez said. “She touched a lot of people’s hearts.”

Dallas based artists Jeremy Biggers and Hatziel Flores were heartbroken to hear it was taken down.

The artwork costs more than $1,000 and the men spent hours creating their masterpiece.

"It's one of those things that you attach yourself to each piece so to see it come down myself and Hatziel were just devastated," Biggers said.

Gabriela Bucio, Manager of Mala Vida, said the piece was meant to be an overnight surprise for SXSW.

Unfortunately, the business did not have the permission or the permits from the city to paint the building so they quickly corrected their mistake. The historical brick structure was built in 1884.

Steve Sadowsky with Austin Historic Preservation said it was originally owned by the Walton family.

“They then sold it to the Joseph family who were Lebanese immigrants and there were a lot of Lebanese businesses down here at this end of 6th street in particular," Sadowsky said.

"This building is an individual landmark so it has extraordinary significance to the city it's architecture and its history," Sadwosky adds. 

In an effort to preserve the building's history and honor the history of Selena, Bucio is inviting the artists to paint on a different canvas in the city.

“We are very sad that we had to pull it down but we are going to relocate the mural to Gabriela’s," said Bucio.