Where El Paso mayoral candidates stand on arena, Duranguito, deck park

One of the big decisions the new City Council will face over the next few years hinges on voters this November: Whether or not to move forward with building a Downtown arena or other big-dollar entertainment venues in the city.

The Nov. 5 ballot asks city voters whether to revoke the city's authority to issue the remaining bonds for the multipurpose center: If the proposition passes, it stops the arena from being built with the bonds approved in 2012. If it fails, it allows the city to issue the bond and move the project forward – if the council approves doing so.

And while the mayor can only vote whether to break a tie or veto the council's vote, he or she can influence and lead the council in its decision. The next mayor's views on the arena could also impact the future of Duranguito, the Downtown neighborhood where the arena was planned to be built before the site was scrapped in January 2023.

Five of the eight mayoral candidates say they'd support building an arena, with the others saying they oppose such a venue.

Another big-dollar project that the next mayor could greatly influence is the proposed Downtown deck park that would span about five blocks over Interstate 10. The City Council in September agreed to contribute $750,000 to help get grant funding for a detailed construction design through the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The mayoral candidates include businessman Renard Johnson, magazine owner Elizabeth Cordova, restaurateur Marco Antonio Contreras, mediator and consultant Ben Mendoza and Army retiree Steven Winters, as well as city Reps. Cassandra Hernandez, Brian Kennedy and Isabel Salcido.

Here's where the candidates stand on these issues, our third installment talking to the mayoral hopefuls:

Downtown arena, Duranguito

The $180 million arena, part of the larger $473 million quality of life bond, was intended to be a 15,000-seat venue built Downtown to accommodate sports, concerts and other entertainment events. A specific site had not been identified, though several sites had been studied and considered.

The arena got tied up in legal battles starting in 2017 after a previous city administration voted to build it in the Duranguito neighborhood. The litigation ended in 2023 after the City Council, in part, agreed not to build it on that site.

In February, city staff and an outside consultant proposed building the venue in the Union Depot area and developing it as an 8,000-seat indoor/outdoor amphitheater. The plan was mostly abandoned as the city instead signed a contract with a developer for a 12,500-seat amphitheater in the Northeast that has already faced its first delays.

Hernandez, 37, has long supported the arena and voted against taking the bond revocation proposal to voters. She also voted against moving the project out of Duranguito.

"If the voters give us a mandate to move forward with the arena, then I will be very quick as mayor to put forth a blue ribbon committee and appoint private and public members so they go back and have a conversation about what the future of the site will be," Hernandez said.

She said she wouldn't want another feasibility study, and instead would look to create public-private partnerships.

Hernandez said she would also look to the community to determine what should become of Duranguito, where the city bought several properties it's now put on sale.

"The public is very protective over that site. I do believe that it should be a public engagement session on how we're going to address the space," she said.

Kennedy , 68, one of three city representatives who led the effort to take the bond revocation to voters, said building an 8,000-seat amphitheater in Downtown as was proposed for Union Plaza could be viable if voters decide they want the city to move forward with it.

"We have to keep everybody involved and see what it's going to take," Kennedy said. "If (voters) want this to go forward, what we have proposed behind Union Depot is all we can afford to build with what we have left."

He said if voters want the city to go back to square one and revoke the bonds, they can begin discussions on whether a future arena is supported.

Kennedy said Duranguito would lend itself to being rehabilitated as an "Old Town" as part of a more walkable Downtown initiative to encourage people to spend more time there.

Johnson, 58, said it will be his job to make sure the city builds an arena if voters turn down the proposal. But, he said, the city would need to find more money to complete it without again going to taxpayers.

"We have to go out and make sure we do the public-private partnership, we find additional funding, we find sponsorship dollars, we find naming rights – we do everything we can to make sure that all of this doesn't fall on the back of the taxpayers," Johnson said.

He said part of quality of life is having a venue that can hold concerts, live entertainment and conventions.

As far as Duranguito, Johnson said the city needs to find balance between preserving some of the history and a new development.

"It's becoming an eyesore," Johnson said, adding he would also look to public/private partnerships to develop the area.

Mendoza, 69, said the city should abandon the arena idea regardless of the voters' decision.

"We can't afford it," Mendoza said, adding he would veto any council action that supported it. He did not say how the city should address Duranguito, but said it should be discussed.

Cordova, 57, said she did not have a plan to address the Downtown arena, but said the city could look to partner with business owners in Ciudad Juárez.

"I don't claim to know all the answers, but I can set up a team of experts that can guide the city, that can guide me and the district representatives to make sound judgment decisions for the city," she said.

Winters, 57, said he supports building a Downtown arena, even if it means starting over with a new plan and bond, but having the developer pay a larger portion of the project than taxpayers.

"Maybe we can come up with something else that they might want, or maybe we can go out there and spread a message to get them to understand why maybe this type of project is worthwhile," Winters said, adding an arena could draw tourism and sales tax revenue.

Winters said he doesn't have a specific plan to address Duranguito.

Contreras, 50, said the city should preserve Downtown and Duranguito and keep them "historic." Without giving specifics, he said an arena could be developed outside of Downtown.

"Let's not destroy the things that we have here now, and let's focus on where we can build better," Contreras said.

Salcido, 39, did not respond to an interview request by El Paso Matters to discuss her views on the Downtown arena and deck park projects.

Salcido voted against moving the proposed arena out of Duranguito and also voted against placing the bond revocation proposition on the ballot.

Salcido supports the arena and said public-private partnerships for its development could revitalize Downtown, create an entertainment hub that attracts visitors, supports local businesses, generates jobs and enhances the city's cultural scene, she said on her El Paso Matters candidate questionnaire.

Downtown deck park

City leadership, including the mayor, could heavily influence whether the proposed $207 million Downtown deck park becomes a reality. Although it's not a city project, the city could invest in it.

The City Council's vote to contribute the $750,000 to the deck's design signaled some support for it, with Kennedy, Hernandez and Salcido voting in favor of it. The county government also agreed to contribute $1 million toward its design.

Kennedy said he is on the fence about the deck park because the details of cost and who would be tasked with maintaining and funding it are not yet clear.

"I am not a fan of laying taxpayer money out for what goes on the deck park, but I think that that has to be a conversation with a couple of public entities and private entities (involved)," he said.

The nonprofit Paso del Norte Community Foundation developed the Downtown Deck Plaza Foundation that has been working on the idea since 2018.

"There's a vision, but there's not a plan," Kennedy said. "I keep telling people that it's great to have a vision, but it's better to have a plan and right now we have a vision with no plan."

Johnson said he would not want the deck park to fall on the backs of taxpayers, but does support the idea.

"Anytime you have the opportunity to have more open space, more green space, more entertainment – that is good for most cities," Johnson said, adding there are still a lot of unanswered questions about it.

He said, like other initiatives, he would look to public/private partnerships as a way to fund any city portion of the development if it comes to fruition.

Hernandez said she supports the deck park and thinks it will increase the taxable commercial values in Downtown and in the region.

"As mayor, I will ensure the success of this – I will make sure that the city has some part in this," she said, adding the city should be working with the county. "It's really important that we unite, and I do believe the city should play a bigger role when it comes to financial tools that we can provide to the foundation and possibly to the county as well."

Winters said while he supports the deck park, the goal should be to have the state or federal government pay for it.

"We can figure out everything that needs to happen on top (of the deck) that's going to be part of the revitalization of Downtown," Winters said. "I think we can do big things."

Cordova, Mendoza and Contreras said it is not a necessary project and the city should not pay for it.

Early voting begins Monday, Oct. 21 and ends Friday, Nov. 1. Election Day is Nov. 5. A runoff would be held Dec. 14, and the next mayor would be sworn in in January alongside six city representatives.