Just weeks after the site for a proposed multi-purpose arena was rejected, members of the El Paso City Council have voted to commit additional funds to the search for a new location.
In the fall of 2016, the council gave its approval to build the officially named Multi-Purpose Cultural and Performing Arts Center near Duranguito. That decision prompted a series of lawsuits on the part of community activists and preservationists opposing any move to demolish that historic section of the city.
In January a majority of the council voted to abandon the site, noting in particular not just the long-standing opposition to the project but the millions of dollars in legal fees associated with putting the arena in Duranguito.
Now the council has tasked the San Francisco-based architectural and planning firm Gensler with reviewing other sites for the project, allotting $25,000 for the effort. The firm has to date received up to $767,000 from El Paso for a draft feasibility study pertaining only to the Duranguito site.
Now, although Gensler may survey a handful of new sites, it is understood that the firm will ultimately recommend just one location.
In a report submitted to the city earlier this year, Gensler listed the pros and cons associated with a 12,000-seat arena that would cost $386 million to build; an 8,000-seat indoor and outdoor facility with a $113 million price tag; and an 8,000-seat arena, also with indoor and outdoor seating, at a cost of $183 million.
Despite the Duranguito controversy, a recent online poll conducted by the City of El Paso indicated that 61% of respondents supported the general idea of building a new arena in the city.
By Garry Boulard
