This is from Helen Marshall:
Are We Ready to Re-Think?
The El Paso Inc just honored Woody and Josh Hunt, Paul Foster and Alejandra de Vega Foster, and, yes, Joyce Wilson as El Pasoans of the Year for making the baseball team and ballpark happen. The accompanying article asserts: “This year, the revitalization of Downtown that the city and business leaders had been trying to kindle since the 1980s has finally caught fire, evidenced by the new businesses, restaurants, apartment and hotel projects and the excitement.” For example, Joe Gudenrath, executive director of the Downtown Management District, says there was only one more event Downtown this year than last, but 60,000 more people attended.
Paul Foster sings Wilson’s praises: “Joyce was an absolute key part of the whole process, and I don’t think it would have happened without her,” Paul Foster told El Paso Inc. “She took a lot of bullets and a lot of criticism. “I think if people had it to do over again, they’d probably rethink some of that criticism. Joyce has great skills, and I think is largely responsible for the success of the whole project.”
And Josh Hunt assures us that “Once it was built, I think we were able to move past some of the more controversial aspects of the process.”
The following exchange with Josh Hunt is recorded:
It would be an expensive venture for MountainStar and for El Paso taxpayers if they had to pay all or part of the costs for the new stadium and the infrastructure to serve it. Critics of major league sports investments say the costs far exceed the benefits for a community. What would you say?
“I’d say very few of those critics are actually looking at the real numbers and the hard and soft values that come with ventures like this. First, I think El Paso and the borderplex can make this happen through many financial means, and not just taxes. . . Just for instance, the ballpark here was financed significantly through the hotel occupancy tax, which is charged to our visitors. I think there are a lot of those types of financing tools out there. I think there are a lot of other intangibles that need to be looked at, like business recruitment and retention, quality of life, jobs, economic development and broadening our tax base.
Go look at Denver. . .you can see what transformations have taken place in downtown Denver, which is now one of the most attractive places for young people to live. That started all the way back when they built Coors Field and followed that up with a downtown arena and then followed that up with a football stadium, all 100-percent publicly financed. It’s now one of the most livable downtowns in the country.”
This writer has been to a game, and, yes, it’s good to have baseball in El Paso. But I’m wondering if public confidence in civic leaders has recovered from the discovery that city manager Wilson and her Council allies called those opposed “crazies,” and deliberately schemed to bring about the destruction of City Hall to make way for the ballpark without any public discussion whatsoever. And I am waiting to read the names of all these new businesses and restaurants, and the surveys that identify the baseball team as the reason for building new hotels or apartments, or that identify the baseball team as the reason for attending a Downtown event.
Personally, I look now to see if there is anything happening in the ballpark when I plan to attend something downtown, and either don’t go or go much earlier than I would have planned to (which of course may mean I have to spend money in a restaurant, how clever of them!). I’m also waiting to see some honest accounting of the total expenses for the ballpark and how much is covered by the HOT.
As for public financing of venues in Denver – Denver is not exactly a parallel for El Paso. It is the state capitol, has a median family income of over $57K, and a very different downtown structure….
http://www.elpasoinc.com/news/el_pasoan_of_year/article_e99db9fc-8f79-11e4-9a75-bbd61883e3d2.html
elpasospeak 
The Inc.article is just another lie. Propaganda. Misinformation and disinformation. Bought and paid for. The good news is that hardly anybody reads the El Paso Inc. They were preaching to the choir.
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Thank you for bringing up the fact that Denver is not exactly a good comparison to El Paso. Neither is San Antonio or any number of other cities mentioned by supporters of the ballpark either before or after it was built. At any rate…now it’s a done deal and I guess we’re obligated to try and make it work. It’s just that I think they could have at least kissed us first…
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Although I disagree with EP Inc’s choice, it is (or was) a good publication that a lot of people read. It has more real news than the EP Times.
I am very disappointed they chose the Ballpark Backers over others who have worked for El Paso without personal gain. The editor of EP Inc was opposed to the ballpark but decided to defer to the pro-ballpark views of his daughter, who will eventually take over the publication. I am seriously considering not renewing my subscription because their choice appears political and we don’t need another El Paso publication that is under someone’s thumb.
The quotes that Brutus pulled show how the Ballpark Backers think in terms of financing and process. Being of a conservative nature, I totally disagree with this thinking.
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Well, The Inc. thought Bob Jones hung the moon, too.
As for Wilson, we hired a CM so there wouldn’t be the kind of back-room cronyism that has always defined El Paso and she pulls off the biggest crony deal in city history. Whether or not the city goes bankrupt paying for all this will determine her legacy.
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Guess Josh disagrees with the Federal Reserve, Brookings Institute and others.
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I saw the front page of El Paso, Inc. this week and just trashed the paper. It is obvious that the well-healed El Pasoans who supported the stadium and destruction of City Hall could care less about the average tax payer shouldering the long-term costs of the debacle. Joyce Wilson basically became the enabler for the Hunts and Fosters to now have a way of attracting people downtown in hopes of making their real estate investments downtown become a success. Ms. Wilson should have been looking out for El Paso’s taxpayers, but she caved to the desires of the rich. The HOT is not generating the dollars needed to finance the stadium and destruction of city hall, and the sale of bonds to finance the stadium have proven to be a flop as well. In the mean time, the Hunts and Fosters are smiling all the way to the bank and blessing Joyce Wilson for pulling all the right political strings to make their investment desires a reality.
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Joyce was brought in to advance this agenda from the beginning. No surprises here. We just got to listen to their little echo chamber again.
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Joyce Wilson’s personal emails to Woody and Paul are the only evidence taxpayers have to reveal their agenda. Unfortunately, Stephanie Townsend Allala did not get enough support from taxpayers.
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I’m sorry, but the grammar cop in me cannot let this pass without mention: desertratjim says, in part, “could care less about the average tax payer shouldering the long-term costs…” Jim, Jim, Jim. When people make statements like this, they are actually saying the exact opposite of what they think they want to say! The correct grammar is that the folks to whom you referred could NOT care less about us taxpayers. As I said, I’m sorry, but this kind of grammatical error hits me just like scratching one’s fingernails on an old blackboard.
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In the spirit of fun, I have to ask: Did Jim’s error literally “hit” you?
:- )
Hit, v. verb
: to move your hand, a bat, etc., quickly so that it touches someone or something in a forceful or violent way
: to cause (something, such as a ball) to move by hitting it forcefully with a bat, racket, etc.
: to touch (something or someone) in a forceful or violent way after moving at a high speed
.
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Please allow us to express our opinions and frustations.
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It would have been refreshing if El Paso Inc had taken the lead of a respected publication like Time Magazine, which also names a Person of the Year annually. Rather than continually cater to individual egos, however, Time has on occasion given its award to an entire class of people like The American Soldier or The Protester or even to a societal avatar like The Worldwide Web.
Inc should have named The El Paso Taxpayer as the 2014 person of the year. The El Paso Taxpayer (including hotel guests) are the people who are really making the ballpark and AAA baseball possible; and unlike the Inc award recipients, with no personal financial gain. No ballpark, no AAA baseball. No taxpayer-funded subsidy for Mountainstar, no ballpark.
2014 was also the year that El Paso Taxpayers stepped up to the plate on the Quality of Life Bonds, which the Inc also promoted for its own financial benefit. Taxpayers are making possible the downtown redevelopment, which Inc and the Times say made so much progress in 2014. Lest we forget, we have also been told that the ballpark paid for by taxpayers was the driver behind reported progress in downtown redevelopment.
So, where’s the praise for the community as a whole who made these things possible, rather than a few people whose businesses are being subsidized and made possible by the taxpayers who have the most money invested?
Where’s the “thank you” the taxpayers deserve?
One would think that the Inc and the Times would tire of continually interviewing and glorifying the same select few people over and over again, especially when they have nothing new to say and when all they do is promote their own personal agendas.
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Ahh the downtown redevelopment and how has it benefited the city’s general fund. It hasn’t. Taxes up. Fees Up. Services down and future Tax increases.
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Progressive government always needs more progressive taxes…
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Are those kind less than conservative taxes? 🙂
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Well, I am becoming very optimistic, no not because of the Joyce the Joker heist. I am becoming optimistic because I am starting to see comments by people that are aware of the shenanigans. As a pose to those pay homage to HFW gang.
Bragging about the stadium and it as a great investment is like the guy that can’t afford the new car because he doesn’t have a pot to piss. What is there to brag about? We have tourists that are very disappointed that our “old” but historical buildings are being destroyed to make room for the “other city” look. Notice how the big boys are buying downtown property, a little bit at a time? Not very discreet. The rumor, another parking garage ! El Paso the “Parking Garage city” of America.
Her legacy IS, not will be, as the person that went on a spending spree that will span several decades. Our grandchildren will inherit the massive debt !
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