Steve Kaplowitz, a popular radio host and one of the foremost sports experts in Texas, published an opinion essay on the “Arena” four days ago on the ESPN El Paso webpage in which he states that “it is time to come to grips with the realization that this project will never be built in downtown El Paso with public funding.”
He argues that the nearly $800,000 the City recently earmarked for a California firm to conduct yet another feasibility study is a tremendous waste of taxpayer dollars.
He claims that “new arenas carry a $400 to $500 million price tag.”
He opines that spending what is left of the $180M in QOL bond money to upgrade the Convention Center “will be able to generate more dollars than any minor league sports franchise could.”
He concludes that “It is not in the best interest of anyone to build a MPC in downtown El Paso.”
I swear to you that I did not write this and that I was not contacted by Mr. Kaplowitz, but I agree with every single word and could not have said it better myself. In fact, these have been my talking points since 2017!