Two out of three Downtown projects expected to be completed on time
A couple of big Downtown projects are nearing the finish line, but another has fallen behind schedule.
“It’s a really exciting time in Downtown El Paso right now,” City of El Paso Public Affairs Coordinator Martin Bartlet said.
With as many as 90,000 bowlers coming to town for the USBC Open Championships starting next month, the City is hoping to have more than $15 million in projects around the Convention Center completed in time.
“The center of the universe for the bowling tournament is going to be right here in front of the Convention Center,” Bartlet said. “So right now we’re on target to deliver these projects that are right along Santa Fe Street by the time the bowlers get here in early March.”
Progress on the pedestrian pathway and the new Ballpark entrance is expected to be be completed on time, by March 7, when the first of the bowlers arrive in town. However, the San Jacinto Plaza renovations are not expected to be completed on time. The original completion date is Feb. 28. The City is now saying it won’t be completed until May of 2015.
“San Jacinto Plaza obviously is the signature space in Downtown El Paso, so you only get one chance to do it right,” Bartlet said. “So, right now, the City is also investigating some possibilities of moving some of the infrastructure in the plaza below ground, some of the electrical work.”
“Aw man, it’s been taking a long time. I thought it should have been done a while back,” said El Pasoan Bobby Gonzalez, who works downtown and says he’s witnessed the slow progress on San Jacinto Plaza first hand. “I thought that was the whole purpose of getting it done so we’d be showing off El Paso (to the bowlers).”
