Oilman fighting to save Duranguito says love affair with El Paso dates back decades

One of the richest men in the state of Texas is helping to finance an El Paso historian’s fight to save the Duranguito neighborhood.

Oilman J.P. Bryan has a number of homes in cities across the state, but El Paso is not one of them. So what is his connection to the Sun City?

Bryan has deep ties to historical preservation efforts across the state and is financing Max Grossman’s fight against the city of El Paso as it tries to build a multi-purpose entertainment venue downtown.

But Bryan’s love affair with the city’s art and architecture dates back to the 1970’s.

It all started when the oilman bought and restored the Gage Hotel in the west Texas town of Marathon after learning it was designed by the famed architect Henry Trost. It is now an upscale destination in the Big Bend area. According to Texas Monthly, Bryan also bought property near the hotel to transform it into shops.

“I first got I would say deeply immersed in El Paso when I was restoring the Gage Hotel,” Bryan said. “I came frequently to El Paso to acquire artifacts and things to furnish it. I became very taken with culture, frequently went across the river to eat and dine with friends and stayed at the Paso del Norte Hotel.”

Bryan’s love of art and architecture led him to support El Paso groups tied to Trost and artist Tom Lea. The 77-year-old said it was El Paso mayor Dee Margo’s wife, Adair, who asked him to become a board member of the Tom Lea Institute. Adair Margo is the founder and president of the Tom Lea Institute.

“I contributed over $200,000 dollars to Tom Lea,” Bryan said.

An honorary life member of the Texas State Historical Association, Bryan and his wife, Mary Jon, assembled one of the world’s largest collections historical documents, artifacts and artwork related to Texas and the American West. The collection is housed at the Bryan Museum in Galveston.

Bryan has now turned his preservationist eye to the Trost buildings in El Paso.

“I defy anybody to contradict this statement. El Paso is heir to some of the finest architectural structures, classic architectural structures in the United States as much as any city in this country,” Bryan said.

The site the City has designated for the arena includes a 1930 Trost-designed fire station at the corner of Paisano Ave. and Santa Fe St. None of the buildings in the area have historic designations, however.

“Trost was a genius in terms of classical design and there are 150 Trost in downtown El Paso or in the city of El Paso. And properly promoted, advertised and preserved, you would have people coming from all over the world to view them,” Bryan said.

Bryan was in El Paso as recently as April, when he was the keynote speaker at an event hosted by the El Paso Pan American Round Table. According to the El Paso Inc., “Its mission is to ‘provide mutual knowledge, understanding and friendship among women of the Western Hemisphere’ through educational forums, lectures, study groups and community involvement.”

There, Bryan spoke of preserving Texas history. He was photographed with Max Grossman and his wife, Malissa. Another photo shows Bryan posing next to Adair Margo, an arts collector and advocate, along with other attendees.

That was days before the City filed its case in Austin asking a judge to validate its intent to build a new facility in downtown El Paso with funds from the 2012 Quality of Life bonds. Judge Amy Clark Meachum ruled the city can build the facility, but it cannot include sports. The City announced it is appealing the decision.

El Paso Mayor Dee Margo said having outside money meddling in local affairs is “a real concern for us.”

“I just don’t think people fully understand: Grossman’s litigation is being paid for by outside people, not El Pasoans,” he said Tuesday. “He has no financial resources. It’s being paid for by an oilman outside of Houston that is trying to determine what is best for our community.”

Max Grossman also reached out to ABC-7, snapping back at the mayor’s accusation.

“The Mayor’s attack against my character rises to the level of defamation as it has no basis in fact,” said Grossman, in a written statement.

Grossman also criticized the mayor’s choice of words.

“I have absolutely nothing against Mr. Margo personally and have no comment to make about his character and integrity except to say that it is unbecoming of a mayor to publicly attack the character of a fellow citizen simply because he is availing himself of his legal rights as a taxpaying American,” the statement read.

ABC-7 also contacted City Council Representative Dr. Michiel Noe, who was taken aback by the news.

“It’s a little bit depressing that outside influences can cost our taxpayers so much money,” Noe said. “People think they know what’s best for our city.”