EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Demolition of the notorious former Valley Theatre/Naked Harem site in South-Central El Paso will begin next week, even though funding for the project was defeated during the Nov. 5 general election, El Paso County said.
El Paso County voters approved three of five County general-obligation bond questions. But included in the two that were defeated was money for County annex projects, including funding to convert the Naked Harem site into a wellness center.
The County said that it had previously obtained some funding for the Corbin Sambrano Wellness Center project. This included money for environmental analysis, demolition and design, which is already underway, the County said.
The County said it will continue to work with the local community to identify resources that can be used to “re-purpose the site once demolished.”
The County calls this a “colossal restorative justice project” that will transform a site that had been a “blight on the community in recent decades.”
According to past reporting by KTSM, the former Naked Harem strip club was shut down in 2006 after its owners were accused of using the business to promote prostitution among underage girls.
“This redevelopment reflects the community’s commitment to restoratively transforming the area into a positive, uplifting development,” the County said in its news release.
Joel Bishop, deputy chief administrator for El Paso County, said the County will continue to seek grants and funding to re-purpose the site.
Demolition is expected to take four to eight months to complete, the County said. The County said that there is significant environmental remediation work that needs to be done on the site, including asbestos removal, making demolition complex.
The two smaller sites on both sides of Corbin Place will be demolished first, the County said.
The County will formally announce the demolition of the old Valley Theatre/Naked Harem in the coming months.
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