Back in 2013 we were told that our debt costs relating to the ball park were going to be $17 million more than the numbers we had when the election was held.
The reason? Bond buyers thought our deal was too risky and they wanted more money in return for their risk.
Well as it turns out the real number was $27.5 million.
According to the Times the Downtown Development Corporation (city council in sheep’s clothing) was never told about the extra $10.5 million.
How convenient. Those bad former city employees did this to us. Never mind council’s responsibility to see to it that our money is managed well.
Now we are being told that general fund money will be necessary until 2023.
That isn’t the half of it. The city’s chart printed below shows that we are not even going to make principal payments until 2023. Then we will have to make a $17.6 million dollar payment against the principal. Where will that money come from? If they take it from the general fund they will be using property tax money and Texas law does not allow that. Will some future council have to levy some new fee? Will there be a bond election to issue debt to pay debt?
Will the perpetrators ever be punished?
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
Maybe it’s time to recall the Mayor for starters. Then Niland would be next right after she gets elected!
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And the local media should be held accountable for failure to do their job…We should not be told how crappy the deal was a year or more after it happens.
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Recalling this mayor doesn’t excuse the previous one, or the previous City Council that did this to us. We crazies were shouted down, because everybody wanted to get on that money wasting band wagon. Now, we are all going to pay even more for those rich guys that own us. Oh, the irony.
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They will be punished by being re-elected by the punished. True El Paso logic. All these facts being presented will be ignored on Election Day as the punished continue to sit back with their beak wide open, just waiting for the worm.
Perhaps the problem is the exposure is too much to bear so we have the “three monkeys”.
We deserve better ? We’re getting exactly what we deserve for re-electing the same people over and over !
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No. Not only have the perpetrators not been punished, they have been rewarded with new jobs probably obtained in part through the influence of the people whose bidding they did while holding city jobs or offices. Culpable current members of council are being rewarded with big campaign contributions for the current election cycle.
The former city manager who spearheaded this financial irresponsibility has even now been named to a committee in an effort to give her continued influence over future policymaking. The council member who named her continues to rack up big campaign contributions from developers.
There is a saying that “Trust is built with consistency.”. If that’s true, we’ve learned that we can trust local leaders to do the wrong thing.
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Where will that money come from?
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Well, if you believe the Horde (Niland, EPTimes, MSSG, Wilson, Carmen, Ortega et al), it will come from all the prosperity and fees and sales taxes and property taxes created by these projects. The trolley itself will have a 10:1 return that means about a billion dollars in new property value. Just think of the tax revenue from that.
Jeez, you people just don’t get it.
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Now the lunatic fringe that supported this hog wash are back handedly complaining that the crazies were right but it’s the crazies failed it has turned out his way. Really!
Also we are once again the crazies because we will not come up with a solution to fix the problems.
There is not fixing stupid once it has been done. All that can be done is to try and clean up the mess.
The lunatic fringe that supported this are complaining that we just do not get the numbers. Ok your numbers are a constituently in state of flux. In the short time this has been going on there has been three different projections made and none have or are meeting the projections. Then again the lunatic fringe want you to believe that the projections can be trusted for 10,20,30 years out when they can’t even get them right two years down the road. Call me crazy but you have some that are being psychotically delusional on this.
To David K and others out there that support this here is your solution you wanted.
Raising taxes and appraisal values with out triggering a vote by the people. Cutting staff, services and reallocating funded projects dollars into the general fund to cover short falls. Yep you are going to hear that this will not happen but we only have to look back to the passed track recorded, over the last decade and a half, of the City and it’s CC to know they will when they are forced to cover their screw ups.
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David K is a paid oral gun. He was rabidly for this and personally attacked anyone who opposed this and continues to do so, now also blaming the crazies as being f***** stupid to vote for it. Why? Like Niland, his family is beholden to the oligarchs that profited from the raping of the El Paso taxpayer. They hope to live quite well off the scraps that fall when the oligarchs are dipping their fat snouts in the public trough. Their mission is to perpetuate the corruption. After all corruption is not limited to that which outright breaks laws.
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Everyone, including the past Mayor Cook, who, after much thought, broke a tie to create this mess,
needs to be held accountable for lieing to the public and
causing financial meltdown of the city.
People need to be sued.
People need to be arrested.
People need to go to jail.
Everything mentioned in these comments were mentioned on every board, every El Paso Times comment section, as well as personal emails to those involved.
They voluntarily ignored the viability of the baseball stadium project.
They have no excuse for not questioning the numbers and projections given to them.
It was their responsibility to check to see if they were given correct numbers.
When you accept a public position, you accept the responsibility that goes along with it.
If they knew, (and they DID KNOW) that there a possibility that Property Taxes could or would be used to cover losses on the baseball stadium project, the State of Texas needs to arrest them.
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homeowner777
That would meaning that your DA would have to start charging and having to arrest his own political cronies in El Paso and that is not going to happen even if there was video and witnesses to prove what happen.
It is just the way El Paso works.
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Stephanie Townsend Allala made this argument many times and spent her own money to sue the City. Unfortunately she did not get enough support from taxpayers.
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The fix is in. First, Niland names former city manager Joyce Willson to the charter advisory committee. Now, the mayor names former mayor Joe Wardy, under whom the city hired Wilson as its first city manager. You’re stuck with the city manager system and whatever else the current city council wants changed or unchanged. It’s no coincidence that the same people keep getting named to boards and committees, and it has nothing to do with others being unwilling to serve. It’s a small club.
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This report today 4-14-2015, from the Washington Times . .
(and several other News agencies are picking it up.)
That ISIS has been reported to be within 8 miles South of the El Paso downtown and Anapra border, in Mexico.
Will this keep people from attending baseball games. . . downtown . . . in the dark?
The baseball thing is a losing game for the city when the stadium is FULL . . .and now what if no one goes? Who will pick up the bill if people do not/ will not/ go downtown. . . in the dark . . . to watch baseball, 100 yards from Mexico?
Who will pick up the bill when 100% of the cost of the stadium is lost?
(Oh yeah, That’s right . . . .The Fosters and Hunts would NOT sign any kind of personal guarantee of payment.)
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No, we won’t get off that easily. It will be like a slow train wreck lasting years. When it all implodes, no one will remember who to blame. Some fools think there is a rational universe around us.
Allahu Aqbar or whatever.
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How about “vengeance is mine, saith the Lord?” Let’s leave religion out of this.
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This “rumor” about the ISIS camp is right up there with Governor Perry’s false statement that car bombs were exploding in El Paso. It’s a political ploy to justify the spending of hundreds of millions of tax dollars by Texas to “secure the border.” Let’s not give it legs on this blog!
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