MCAD, Parks, and Libraries to Merge?

That’s the latest rumor to emanate from the bowels of City Hall.

According to the rumor, the City of El Paso is looking to streamline some of its operations by merging the Museums and Cultural Affairs, Parks and Recreation, and Libraries departments.

And, according to the rumor, the new organization will be headed by Bryan Crowe.

He’s not even an employee of the City of El Paso. Mr. Crowe is on the payroll of ASM Global.

When Mayor Dee Margo asks, “What do you want me to cut?” the answer isn’t the bloated vanity projects that have blown up the city budgets for the last 8 years.

The answer is the public services that many El Pasoans depend on. Museums, cultural affairs, parks and recreation, and libraries.

Neo-liberalism has trickled down to our municipal government.

Welcome to the future.

3 comments

  1. And, there is a major dumb shite over on elpasospeak who constantly whines about how Democrats are to blame for everything that is wrong with El Paso. You just cannot make this shit up.

  2. This explains the sudden resignation of the Parks Director, Tracey Novak. The story around City Hall is he was being bullied by Deputy City Manager Tracey Jerome. She has a history of bullying City Staff, especially Department Heads. Novak didn’t or couldn’t work under this type of management. Novak was an excellent Parks Director. He did some amazing things with limited staff and budget. He was the secret to the success of the costly Spray Parks. Novak made them work and operated them as a free activity for the citizens. Novak was working with Jerome on the new Water Parks. The City plans to charge admission to those Water Parks. City is hiring 100s of staff. Construction costs is climbing. Novak was working with Jerome but the bullying would not stop. A person can only take so much.

    Now Tracey Jerome has a history of being a tyrant. She was responsible for forcing Mr. Pumphises to leave as Library Director. The wrongful termination lawsuit is pending. Jerome was given the job to make the Street Cars profitable. We know how well that is going. Even with free rides, people still are not riding the Street Cars. She has pissed off Street Car Staff with her bullying. Wonderful lady.

    Now she is taking her talents to Museums. Why would she or Tommy Gonzalez have anything against Ben Fyffe. Mr. Fyffe is a talented manager. Yes he had some issues a few years ago but he has cleaned those up. Why pass him up? Word around the water cooler is all because of his sexual orientation. Gonzalez is bothered by that segment of our community. Bullies hang around with bullies.

    When is the Mayor and City Council going to realize what type of City Manager they support? November is 9 months away and elections are coming. Time for a management change.

  3. Here’s the City’s answer to the rumors mentioned above (See below my name below). The only thing I would differ with “City Haller” on is Ben Fyffe.

    From my experience, Fyffe was just as bad as Jerome, and was I heard actually appointed as an Interim Director for the Dept. of Parks & Recreation soon after Tommy Gonzalez and Cary Westin rewarded Jerome with her second promotion in less than a year to become the Deputy City Manager for Quality of Life for all of her great work (sarcasm intended), putting her over Museums, Libraries, Parks & Recreation, the Zoo and contractual oversight with the private company that manages the City’s Tourism Department.

    Bryan Crowe cannot be hired as a City Department Head as long as he works for the private company. (The City appointed him once before, and then had to retract the appointment when someone cried foul–yes, Crowe would have gladly become another one of them–he’s the type for Tommy G’s “Team El Paso” bullshit at the City Manager’s Office. He and Fyffe are big buddies, made from the same cloth).

    Mark Pumphrey, Former Director of Libraries, City of El Paso, May 18, 2020
    (Forced to “retire” on my 66th Birthday, August 6, 2019, by Cary Westin and Tracey Jerome, with Tommy G’s blessing).

    City names new managing director
    El Paso Inc. staff Mar 14, 2019
    Jerome
    The city of El Paso has named Tracey Jerome managing director for museums & cultural affairs, libraries services and tourism. Jerome continues to serve as director of MCAD. She joined the city as director in 2015. She has a master’s degree in art history from Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London, a master’s in historic preservation from Eastern Michigan University and a bachelor’s in government from the College of William & Mary.

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