A dozen buildings in the historic El Paso neighborhood of Duranguito will be put on the market now that that part of town will not be the site of a proposed multi-purpose arena.
In January members of the ElS Paso City Council voted to abandon the Duranguito site after six years of litigation in a variety of courts challenging the project.
Now city officials have announced that structures in the neighborhood earlier purchased by the City of El Paso will be sold, with revenue expected to go to the building of the arena somewhere else in the city.
To be funded out of a $473 million Quality of Life bond approved by El Paso voters in 2012, the officially named Multi-Purpose Cultural and Performing Arts Center came with a $189 million price tag.
Due to the costs associated with the prolonged litigation and a price increase in construction materials, it is thought that the arena may well cost more than $230 million to build today.
El Paso Mayor Oscar Leeser recently indicated that he is committed to seeing the arena through to completion. The project now may also include a 250-room hotel, and both residential and retail space.
A new plan for the arena, and where it may be built, is expected to be presented to the city council sometime in April.
By Garry Boulard
