San Jacinto Plaza renovations could include turning streetcar into a caf

The El Paso Committee who helped draft the redesign of San Jacinto Plaza hopes the City will be able to purchase and retrofit an original streetcar into a caf.

The redesign, approved by El Paso City Council, includes plans for a trolley car-turned-cafe in the middle of San Jacinto.

But the city hasn’t been able to negotiate the purchase of the streetcar from a private owner and the city’s eight streetcars have been set aside for the proposed trolley system.

Former city planner, Nestor Valancia, who led the San Jacinto committee that suggested the streetcar idea to the city, hopes the city will acquire an original streetcar and not a replica or a fake one.

“All of this is part of the fiber of the city. Children have the right to touch it and feel it. Actually see the wheels and rail,” Valencia said on Tuesday.

Valencia said the early history of the park, the city and trolleys are all inter-related. For example, 1883 was the same year the streetcars started running and the city put in alligators at San Jacinto plaza. Riding the trolley to the el paso’s version of central park was common custom.

San Jacinto was platted, or planned in 1859, but wasn’t built until 1870. It’s the oldest shared space in the city.

Leasing is not an option, for the city, according to a statement by Spokesman Martin Bartlett. “Because of the extensive upgrades which would be required to meet building codes, health and safety codes, and the Americans with Disabilities Act, the city will not entertain the option of leasing the trolley.”

The city estimated it would cost $1.6 million to restore a streetcar for it’s original purpose but it’s unclear how much more it would cost to retrofit it into a cafe.