A plan to demolish the historic El Paso County Coliseum in order to make way for the upgrade of a nearby bridge appears to now be inoperative.
Reports published earlier year indicated that the building, located at 4100 E. Paisano Drive, might have to be leveled owing to the modernization of the International Bridge of the Americas.
In April of 2023 it was reported that the U.S. General Services Administration, in charge of the roughly $700 million bridge project, was contemplating getting rid of the more than 80-year-old facility, which is several miles to the east of the structure.
In an announcement, David Stout, a member of the El Paso County Commission, said the GSA news means a proposal to upgrade the coliseum can now be included as part of a bond package to be voted on by county residents in November.
The GSA has announced that it plans to soon present several alternative plans for the bridge’s modernization.
Opened in the spring of 1942, the coliseum was built via a grant from the New Deal’s Public Works Administration, and has long hosted a wide variety of concerts, flower shows, and ice capades, among dozens of other events.
The GSA, which will be accepting written comments on the bridge project until July 28, has indicated that it would like to see actual work on the structure begin in the spring of 2026.
By Garry Boulard
