A long-proposed expansion of El Paso’s Downtown convention center could be on the horizon after City Council this week approved the purchase of three properties across the street from the venue.
After the purchases this week, the city of El Paso now owns the entire block between West Overland and West San Antonio avenues and Leon and Chihuahua streets. City Council approved the purchase of two other properties on the block in April. In all, the city paid just shy of $8 million to acquire the five parcels that will be used to expand the Judson F. Williams Convention Center’s footprint. The city also owns the properties in the Duranguito neighborhood between Santa Fe and Chihuahua streets where it once sought to build an arena.
“Our convention center, while it does brisk business, we are starting to become less and less competitive with a lot of the needs and expectations of 21st century convention planners, meeting planners, trade show planners, et cetera,” said Ben Fyffe, the city’s managing director of quality of life…