Economic Summit Highlights Plans For Sun City’s Future
EL PASO, TX. – Hundreds of El Pasoans attend a conference to map out the city’s future. Wednesday was the first day of the two-day El Paso Regional Economic Summit which aims to turn dreams into reality.
The summit is the brainchild of Mayor John Cook , who tells ABC-7 that the city hasn’t hosted a summit like this since 1998. During that summit Mayor Cook says a lot of good ideas emerged and now it’s time for more ideas and more action..
Wednesday’s seminars focused on economic drivers like the military, tourism and transportation. Business and community leaders outlined their strategies and brainstormed with interested citizens in the audience.
The military seminar centered around the 11,500 new soldiers expected at Fort Bliss. A majority of them will live off-post and panelists say El Paso can and will meet the demand for housing and schools.
The military panel also talked about how the influx of troops will affect local businesses and how business owners can make the most of the opportunities. Another issue that was discussed was finding jobs for military dependents and helping them learn Spanish so they’ll be more attractive to employers.
The tourism panel talked about ways to bring out of town dollars to the Sun City. The Convention and Visitors Bureau says it award winning “Do Texas Different” campaign is working and the city has a hotel occupancy rate of 73%-the highest in the state.
The El Paso Hotel Association says their working to bring back Amigo Man, the longtime city mascot who burned out in 1999.
Members of the audience chimed in with ideas for tourist attractions ranging from an annual “Latino Rock Festival” to a Star Trek-themed restaurant honoring the late Gene Roddenberry.
Turning all the talk into action is the major challenge of the summit. Mayor Cook plans to create a six member cabinet for each of the major economic drivers to make sure ideas are followed through upon.
