It is great to read in today's El Paso Times that City Hall is on the move literally.
El Paso is doing something right.
A lot of other cities get hoodwinked by professional sports owners. Sport owners like Jerry Jones will promise the moon and stars to city councils across the country if only they can get their imperial palace built with some help from city coffers. The cities, partly because of the image of losing out to another city, will dole out the cash.
But as we have seen in these cities, a lot of these deals do not pan out. The moon and stars promised never show up. For someone like Jerry Jones, that is okay. Jerry Jones does not want you to eat and drink overpriced shitty wings and beer at the Hooters next to the stadium. He wants you to eat and drink arm-and-a-leg overpriced shitty wings and beer in HIS stadium. For many sports owners, the professional team is their primary business, and they want as much revenue coming into their business, not to the businesses next door.
That's not the case with Woody Hunt and Paul Foster. There are interested in something more valuable than wings and beer. They are interested in real estate, which is why this deal will work for El Paso. There are adding value to where none existed before...downtown El Paso.
Yea, yea, I know. These guys are "greedy developers". Well, that home you are in and the office you work at were built by "greedy developers", and you seem to be doing just fine.
Yes, Hunt and Foster are going to make money. So what? It is with that money they can cut checks for $50 million to a medical school. It is with that money they make they can afford to relocate their corporate headquarters to downtown.
We are not dealing with Russian billionaires (Brooklyn Nets) or Arkansas wildcatters (Dallas Cowboys). We are dealing with folks who have skin in the game, when never had to put it in to begin with...folks that have a track record of service and charity to their community. These guys can make a lot more money going a different direction, but they are choosing a rather difficult path to make money (probably less than they could have otherwise made) so that they can help their community in the process.
My only issue is: why did we get the Padres' farm team? The Rangers' farm team would have been a lot better. Get some real talent up in here. But as they say, "Las dos glorias nunca van juntas."
Bravo! Well said...
Posted by: SmartSpicStillStuckInEP | 01/25/2013 at 10:11
You know the naysayers are going to attack you because you make too much sense! Thanks for a great perspective.
Posted by: Josie | 01/25/2013 at 21:36