Remember when the rationale for all those pricey public amenities was “to shift the property tax burden from residential to
Category: quality of life projects
Does This Sound Like El Paso?
From a 2009 El Paso Inc. interview with Woody Hunt: Q. How does corruption impact economic development? If the procurement
Retrovision: An Arena? Really?
This article originally appeared on January 10, 2017. Over the last twenty years, we’ve spent a lot of money on
Ballpark Numbers Updated
An alert reader sent me this spreadsheet which shows the actual numbers for the ballpark. Four years in and we’re
Will Tourism Save Us?
Besides call centers, the City of El Paso’s economic development policy seems to be solely focused on tourism as a
Rent Seeking
From Investopedia.com: What is ‘Rent-Seeking’ Rent-seeking is the use of the resources of a company, an organization or an individual
Retrovision: Commercial Property Tax Valuations Down
[Our shrinking tax base isn’t a new thing. This article originally appeared on August 5, 2014. Since then, our city
About That Children’s Museum
El Paso Community Foundation President Eric Pearson says the Children’s Museum is going to be an economic driver. From KVIA:
How Do We Evaluate Our Economic Development Policy?
Short answer: We don’t. I mean, except by the bank accounts of our community’s wealthiest citizens. They’re not going to
El Paso Then and Now
Perhaps they meant well. Maybe they were trying to seize the moment. Maybe they thought that the tide had turned,
That Crab Pot Analogy
Lately I’ve been hearing that crab pot analogy a lot. Paul Foster mentioned it in his TEDx talk, and Jim
Se Fueron de Rancho El Paso
City Government does what the rich folks want, and then tells the rest of us it’s good for us. It’s
All I Want is Good Government
That’s all I want. Government responsive to the needs of its citizens. All its citizens. Not just the campaign donors.
Surprise! We’re Poor!
According to this story in the El Paso Inc., jobs in El Paso pay only 72 percent of the national
Why They Need an Arena
Here’s some interesting history to go with the prior post about eight million dollars a year that the El Paso
Did You Feel That?
Was it a change in the weather, or is that what it feels like when the worm turns? Things are
We’re Going to Revitalize Ourselves to Death
It’s time to stop pretending like El Paso’s biggest challenge is downtown revitalization. Here’s MountainStar Sports Group’s Executive Director Josh
Judge Meachum’s Decision
On October 4, the Honorable Amy Clark Meachum of the 250th Judicial District Court in Travis County, Texas, ruled on
Hubris, and an Attack on Democracy
They felt the wind and thought it was their own breath. When El Paso blew up, say from somewhere around
Hasta La Vista
This just in, from the El Paso Times: AT&T is closing its East Side call center by the end of