Fake News

To hear him tell it, he’s a victim. From the El Paso Times story about the money the City has spent on legal costs to put that arena in Duranguito:

“The legal expenses related to land acquisition were planned and budgeted, what wasn’t planned and budgeted are the litigation expenses,” Mayor Dee Margo said.

Remember when Mayor Margo and City Council decided to jack our property tax rates, right after he and half the Council got elected? From the August 7 issue of the El Paso Inc.:

“I don’t like any of the numbers,” [Mayor Margo] said in an interview with El Paso Inc. last week. “I don’t like the budget. I don’t like the required tax increase at 3.93 cents.

“I find out once I get here it had already been preplanned from prior councils and was projected in last year’s (budget) as well.”

And now:

“That is an unnecessary wasteful expense driven by the other side that keeps continuing to file litigation and postponements that started this whole issue to begin with. That’s what drives that (cost) there’s nothing we can do other than respond,” Margo added.

So now Mayor Margo doesn’t have a choice but stick it to the taxpayers again.

“My position is that I feel like I have a fiduciary duty as the elected mayor of this community on behalf of the voters and taxpayers and residents of El Paso to fulfill what their wishes are and have been expressed in a referendum,” Margo said.

Wait a minute. Judge Amy Clark Meachum already decided that the city could build a performing arts center. But the City wants to build an arena, so the City decided to appeal.

Now who’s filing litigation?

But I want to be fair about this. So I propose, if Mayor Margo really wants to fulfill the wishes of voters and taxpayers and residents of El Paso, we should put it to a vote. Just that $180 million arena, in Duranguito, without parks and libraries and the digital wall on the ballot.

Come on. An election only costs a couple of hundred thousand. We could put this issue to rest once and for all.