Tear down city hall, we need the site for a new ball park.
It will only cost $33 million. See True cost of the moves.
We know what we are doing. We will move into a few other buildings downtown. See City hall relocation.
We don’t have time to get competitive bids on this work. Trust us we know what we are doing. See Favoritism and then how the went back for more money in Competitive Bidding? — Baloney!.
The cost of the city hall move is now well over $70 million and climbing. See Sold Out.
My office must be bigger than yours
This January 13, 2013 article in El Paso Inc told us “… the biggest office will be the mayor’s – until you count the executive bathroom with the gold-colored lavatory and shower in City Manager Joyce Wilson’s office.”
Do it over, tear it down, spend more
Now we see this article in El Paso Inc., the reporter’s First look inside new City Hall:
“It turns out that the City’s finance offices and desks were vacant because the staff was moved to the Wells Fargo Bank Building. That’s because the northeast corner where the mayor’s offices were set up weren’t large enough (emphasis added) so they were moved to the southwest corner where finance was to go.
The mayor’s former offices weren’t big enough for the finance staff, so they were moved to the bank building until the area is redesigned. To make room for finance, the internal auditor’s offices have been moved.”
We don’t know who designed it but we do know that the city manager thought it was ok or else she would not have allowed construction to start.
We had to overspend to build it in a hurry, then tear it down and build it again before we even moved in because the mayor’s office was not big enough. In addition we have the expense of housing city finance in leased space in a bank building.
Admitting failure
The Inc. quoted the mayor: “The only criticism I have is that with a fragmented City Hall, people aren’t sure where to go for what.”. Then further, “I’m not even sure where everybody is. It used to be easy when all you had to do was get on the elevator and push a button.”
No kidding!
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
Before you vote for mayor ask yourself can your candidate understand governmental accounting. If they have no formal education they cannot get the help they have in their own business. They will be following Joyce and the current regime. As far as I am concerned Gus Haddad is the only one who has that experience and will stand up to Joyce. Governmental Accounting is a different animal . You would not ask an orthopedist to do brain surgery. Nothing will change unless you have a strong mayor who can stand on his own and not be given figures by Joyce and her crew. I voted today and voted for Gus and NO on all propositions.
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The story about the confusion over office space at the new city hall is that the mayor decided — after the fact, after agreeing on the plans — that his offices were not big enough. The floor had to be reconfigured. That is why he was the last to move in. His office had to be built twice.
Also dissatisfied over the size of her office was Acosta. I was hoping someone would run against her with the slogan that you don’t need a big office to represent the people — you need a bigger mind. Evidently all representatives have smaller offices than the giant ones they had at the old City Hall but Acosta was the only one who was insulted by that. The City manager had to promise that she could have Ortega’s office after the elections. His office turned out to be 1 foot bigger than hers.
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