The Northeast El Paso land transfer with the company aiming to build an $80 million 12,500-seat amphitheater on 15 acres of city-owned property remains on hold, which could delay the anticipated March 2026 opening.
The land transfer between the city and Venu, formerly Notes Live, was initially pushed back to Oct. 29, but city officials Tuesday said they now expect the transfer to be finalized at the end of December.
“It’s a little bit of a delay,” Karina Brasgalla, the city’s interim director for the Economic and International Development Department, told the City Council on Tuesday. “We do not expect that this would impact any of the contractual timelines. We may miss the beginning of the 2026 season, but we’re still on track.”
Brasgalla said the delay stems from finalizing details for the title related to concerns over unexploded ordnance at the Cohen Entertainment District site that sits off Gateway Boulevard North and Cohen Avenue. She said while the unexploded ordnance is familiar to El Pasoans, Venu, based out of Colorado, wants to ensure it is not an issue for their financial model that relies heavily on investors.
“They need a very clean bill of title on the property,” Brasgalla said.
The item to discuss an update on the amphitheater was placed on the agenda by Northeast city Rep. Joe Molinar, who is running for reelection in the Dec. 14 runoff. Molinar has been a strong supporter of the venue partnership alongside city Rep. Brian Kennedy, who is running for mayor.
Molinar expressed some frustration with the delay.
“As you know it’s already been approximately seven months, and they were supposed to break ground – I believe during the month of August, and here we are almost three-and-a-half months later, and we don’t have any groundbreaking at all,” Molinar said. “The people of Northeast want an answer, but it also benefits the entire city of El Paso.”
The company did not give an exact date for a groundbreaking during its first news conference with the city in July.
“I believe the company had talked about wanting to break ground in August (but) we never had a groundbreaking deadline,” Brasgalla responded to Molinar.
Venu, a 6-year-old entertainment development company formerly named Notes Live, largely relies on a fundraising model that hinges on lifetime, high-income investors and expensive memberships. The company is owned by JW Roth, who plans to build amphitheaters nationwide.
“We are currently in the entitlement stage and are excited to bring this visionary project to life,” said Chloe Hoeft, Venu vice president of relations and philanthropy. “Once that step is finalized, we’ll hit the ground running with permitting, paving the way for construction.”
Hoeft did not say how the opening date would be impacted by the delay in finalizing the title, but said they expect to share a definitive timeline “soon.”
The El Paso location is not yet open for investment since the land deal needs to be finalized, Brasgalla said.
Brasgalla said other work being done behind the scenes includes a parking agreement that is under review with the city attorney’s office and the capital improvements department and the city has been coordinating with the Texas Department of Transportation to figure out access in and out of the property.
The company also announced Dec. 2 that it has partnered with three-time Super Bowl champion and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman. Aikman is also the founder of EIGHT Elite Light Lager.
The partnership involves the namesake of custom-built Aikman Clubs inside planned amphitheaters in Texas and Oklahoma. The clubs will offer premium seating and other high-end amenities to members and guests.
The company lists the Sunset at El Paso Amphitheater on a “coming soon” status.
The city and Venu in July entered a Chapter 380 incentive agreement that includes the city conveying 15 acres of land for the amphitheater.
The deal includes $31 million in incentives and tax rebates over the next 20 years as well as waiving 100% of development, building and permitting fees for the construction of the amphitheater, among other financial benefits.
The agreement also includes a no-compete clause that prohibits the city from building any other venue with a capacity of 4,000 or more people within 60 miles of the amphitheater – with the exception of the voter-approved Downtown arena.
But voters Nov. 5 halted plans to build the arena approved in 2012 under the quality of life bond.
If the city opts to revisit a future arena, Venu would have the “first right of refusal,” or the first opportunity, to develop and/or operate any voter-approved project depending on the procurement process.
Venu also has other planned amphitheaters in Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas.
The McKinney, Texas, amphitheater, which Venu entered a public/private partnership with the city of McKinney in March, is listed as “open for investment” and also lists the “Aikman Club” as open for investment.
The company opened its first venue, the 8,000-seat Ford Amphitheater, in Colorado Springs in August. It held a groundbreaking for the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, amphitheater in October.
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