County Commissioner Conflict Of Interest In Farah Demolition? Attorney Says No

EL PASO, Texas – When the old Farah plant came tumbling down over the summer in east El Paso, trucks moved in to haul away the mess.

A viewer sent ABC-7 video showing a brown truck scooping up and taking away debris. ‘Socorro Iron & Metal’ was written on the side.

That just so happens to be the scrap metal family business of El Paso County Commissioner Willie Gandara, Jr.

Farah is being redeveloped as a mall called ‘The Fountains’ and the developer is getting help through tax abatements from the county.

In fact, this past June, commissioneres revisited the topic and voted to give the developer, Regency Centers, extra time to get the project done on the condition the demolition begin sooner.

The vote was split three to two with Commissioner Gandara voting in favor of the speedier demolition.

So is this a conflict of interest?

Gandara directed ABC-7 to his attorney, Joe Spencer, who quickly said no.

Spencer said Gandara won the contract from the Regency.

“I could see a problem if (Gandara) had this contract prior to the vote, but that’s just not the case,” Spencer said.

“His family owns scrap metal, they’ve been in the business over 30 years,” he added. “He put in a bid well after the contract had been awarded, he bought the scrap metal as everyone else was eligible to do so.”

Commissioner Dan Haggerty, who owns his own real estate company, told ABC-7 mixing county and personal business can be tricky but said if Gandara was the most qualified for the job, there should be no issue.

“It’s tough being an elected official,” Haggerty said. “You gotta watch everything you say, everything you do.”

The Fountains is slated to open in 2015.