Celebration of Lights staying at Cleveland Square this year due to San Jacinto Plaza delay

The newly renovated San Jacinto Plaza was initially scheduled to be completed last November.

Then after numerous delays, this year’s Celebration of Lights was supposed to be the grand unveiling — just in time to mark the 100th anniversary of the plaza.

On Thursday, the City announced the Celebration of Lights would be held at Cleveland Square for the third year in a row.

City Rep. Dr. Michiel Noe told ABC-7 on Thursday that he’s been told by City staff that the plaza is only four months behind schedule.

But in an ABC-7 special report in May, the City said it was six months behind schedule and it is now a year overdue from the original completion date.

City Reps Peter Svarzbein and Carl Robinson told ABC-7 Thursday afternoon they didn’t know about the decision to return to Cleveland Square again until ABC-7 told them about it.

“It’s just really, you know, disappointing … And you can see that people here are not happy with it,” Svarzbein said.

Robinson said, “I now many of us were looking forward to having that done but unfortunately it’s not ready.”

While Robinson and other city representatives say they are holding out hope for San Jacinto Plaza to be finished in time for the Celebration of Lights to be held at the plaza this year.

The city representatives are even going as far as saying both parks could be lit up with lights.

City spokesman Martin Bartlett said not to count on it and that at some point a decision had to be made, and it has been made.

It is not immediately clear if there will be a holiday light display set up at Cleveland Square leading up to and after the Celebration of Lights.

Earlier this week, the City Attorney Sylvia Borunda-Firth said the City expects the San Jacinto Plaza project to be done by the end of this year but could not say whether the plaza would be ready for the annual tree lighting ceremony.

This summer, the City put out a request for proposals for a company to install the holiday light display at San Jacinto Plaza from a part of November and through December.

The contract was supposed to be rewarded in mid-August but it is unclear if it was awarded or rejected because the City’s website does not state it one way or the other.

Novak told ABC-7 in late July that the request for proposals was seeking a themed approach, possibly Victorian style, with all white lights.

“We look at this as an opportunity right now to be able to go in another direction, that perhaps can save the city some money, as well as a better design overall,” he said in July.

Borunda-Firth and the contractor, Basic IDIQ, are going to start figuring out how much the contractor owes the City because of the delays with San Jacinto Plaza.

El Paso City Council voted Tuesday to give Borunda-Firth the power to figure out, along with the contractor, how much money the contractor will pay the city.

The City is charging the contractor, $1,000 a day since may because the project is so late. But the contractor can dispute the amount.

For example, it can point out days the weather delayed work. The contractor can also say some of the delays are due to the City’s orders.

“Remember when everyone was waiting for the infamous cable, well the cable is here,” Borunda-Firth said Tuesday. “We had some issues with the welding being redone. There is a lot of activity if you go out to the ‘Placita”‘now. But we need to keep them moving. Keep them on track and make sure we bring the project through completion.”

2015 Celebration of Lights Event Information
The evolve Federal Credit Union Celebration of Lights Program starts at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, December 5, 2015 at Cleveland Square Park, 510 N. Santa Fe Street.
4:30 p.m. 1st Armored Division Band
5:00 p.m. St. Anthony’s Seminary Franciscanos Choir
5:30 p.m. Holiday Lighting Ceremony
5:55 p.m. Celebration of Lights Parade

Guest Speakers will be Mayor Oscar Leeser; Major General Stephen Twitty, 1st Armored Division and Fort Bliss Commanding General; Tracy Novak, El Paso Parks and Recreation Director; and Ken Walters, President and CEO of evolve Federal Credit Union.

“This is the third year with the event at Cleveland Square Park and although traditionally held at San Jacinto Plaza, over the course of history the municipal celebration of the holidays has been held in the downtown area in various locations since 1915 marking this as the 100 year celebration,” Tracy Novak, director of the City of El Paso’s Parks and Recreation Department said in a statement.

Last year, more than 67,000 people attended the celebration.

“evolve Federal Credit Union is proud to sponsor such a wonderful family event as the Celebration of Lights with events starting at 4:30 p.m. Come early and get your seat reserved for the parade and from everyone at evolve FCU, Happy Holidays,” said Ken Walters, President and CEO of evolve Federal Credit Union.

Timeline Of San Jacinto Plaza Renovations, Delays

San Jacinto Plaza was supposed to be the centerpiece of the 2012 Quality of Life bond projects.
The bid and contract are 971 pages, which ABC-7 got through an open records request.
The original “construction” budget for San Jacinto Plaza was just over $4.5 million.
The City, as of May, was now more than a quarter of a million dollars over budget.
The entire San Jacinto Plaza project has a budget of $6 million, including marketing and other costs beyond construction.
ABC-7 I Team found 22 change orders, 17 of them approved since December, when El Paso City Council adopted new strategic goals, like promoting the visual image of El Paso.
It was originally supposed to be finished by November 2014.
That was then pushed back to March 2015.
In May, City Rep. Cortney Niland said “unfortunately, at this particular time, it’s not quite ready.”
Events planned for a finished plaza were impacted, including The Mariachi Loco and Neon Desert Music festivals were moved to around the plaza.
City in May stopped announcing the project’s end date
Completed features include splash pad, tree lined walks and brickwork on three sides of the site.
Still remaining is work on the Oregon Street side and a 40-ton canopy that will cover the center of the park, where the refurbished “Los Lagartos” statue will sit.