This is your weekly news roundup, which takes a quick look at some developments in government, politics, education, environment and other topics across El Paso.
El Paso to Receive $65 Million More for Cancer Center from State
The Texas House and Senate have passed the state 2026-27 budget, which includes $65 million for the first comprehensive cancer center in El Paso. The budget now heads to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk for approval. This would bring total state funding for the cancer center to $130 million.
“This investment is a major step toward closing the gap in access to care for Hispanic and rural patients, and toward meeting the rising demand for cancer treatment in Far West Texas,” state Sen. César Blanco, D-El Paso, said in a news release.
The cancer center is a joint project from University Medical Center of El Paso and Texas Tech Health El Paso. Planned services include chemotherapy, radiation, imaging and a pharmacy, in addition to research activities.
Originally slated for a 2026 opening, the cancer center is now targeted to break ground this fall on the corner of Rosa Avenue and Rick Francis Street, spokespeople forTexas Tech Health El Paso told El Paso Matters.
The cancer center’s price tag for construction and equipment will range from an estimated $120 million to $150 million, Texas Tech Health El Paso President Richard Lange said last year, adding that the university would foot the remainder of the bill, if needed. Texas Tech Health El Paso could not provide an updated cost estimate Thursday afternoon.
State Lawmakers Approve $10 million for El Paso Downtown Deck Park
El Paso appears set to receive $10 million from the state government to pay for construction designs of the proposed deck plaza, a park that would cover Interstate 10 in Downtown and span the length of five blocks.
The Senate and House approved a two-year, $337 billion budget for the state. Gov. Greg Abbott still has to sign the budget before it takes effect in September. The $10 million allocation was spearheaded by state Sen. César Blanco, D-El Paso and supported by state lawmakers in both bodies – a significant move to direct state dollars to advance the project.
The state allocation is a small sliver of the expected $207 million price tag – a figure many skeptics say is an underestimate of the actual construction cost.
The thinking among backers, such as the Downtown Deck Plaza Foundation, is that having construction documents ready will make it more likely that the deck park will get further support from state and perhaps federal lawmakers.
The goal is to fund the project with outside dollars so that elected officials in El Paso don’t have to sell bonds repaid by taxpayers to pay for the park’s construction.
But whether that will prove possible is still far from clear, and the timeline to advance the project is short. Supporters of the deck park must have tens of millions of dollars in funding ready to go within the next year, before the Texas Department of Transportation begins its own major project to widen I-10 in Downtown. Private donors have so far committed to put up $25 million.
City Renews Contracts for Hotel Occupancy Tax Audits, Collections
The City Council on Wednesday issued a new contract with the firm that conducts audits and manages the collection of the city’s hotel occupancy taxes.
Hotel occupancy taxes are imposed on guests who rent hotel rooms or other short-term lodging for under 30 days. The city collects 6% of the cost of the room for tourism related expenditures such as promotions and advertising, convention center funding, and arts, museums and historic preservation. Voters in 2012 approved a proposition to impose an additional 2% in HOT tax for Southwest University Park.
Avenu Insights & Analytics based in Virginia, which has worked with the city since 2015, will be paid about $120,000 for a three-year term with an option to extend another two years for a total of about $300,000. The firm conducts audits of about 20 hotels per year for the city’s Internal Audit Department to determine whether the appropriate amount of hotel taxes were collected. The city has about 105 hotels.
The firm will also be paid about $98,000 for an initial three-year term to review the collection of hotel taxes by the city’s Office of the Comptroller. The contract may also be extended another two-years for a total amount of about $163,000.
The firm’s August 2024 review of 19 area hotels found that 14 owed about $1 million in hotel taxes combined.
The city collected about $20 million from its Hotel Occupancy Tax revenues in 2024 and about $22 million in 2023, according to the latest Annual Comprehensive Financial Report.
EPCC Swears In Newly Elected Officials, Selects Officers
One new and two incumbent members of the El Paso Community College Board of Trustees were sworn into office during the board’s monthly meeting May 28 at the EPCC Administrative Services Center, 9050 Viscount Blvd.
Incumbent trustees Carmen Olivas Graham and Jesus Mendez, who represent districts 5 and 4, respectively, and Diana Yadira Mooy from District 6 won their elections May 3. The term is for six years.
Judge Anna Perez of the 41st District Court of Texas administered the oath of office to Mendez and Mooy, who are EPCC alumni. EPCC Board of Trustees Chair Brian Haggerty oversaw the swearing in of Olivas Graham.
The board appointed Mendez, who represents Central/South El Paso, in 2024 to fill an unexpired term. This was his first election to a full term. He earned a welding certificate from EPCC and used it to become a successful businessman. He owns and operates Winsupply of West El Paso.
Mooy, an El Paso native, attended EPCC for one year before continuing her higher education journey. The lifelong educator has been associate superintendent of Technology Information Services with the Ysleta Independent School District since October 2024.
Olivas Graham started her fourth term on the board as the representative of District 5, which encompasses parts of the Eastside. After the swearing in, the board voted on its officers.
Haggerty, board chair since 2019, was elected chair again. His District 2 represents the Northeast. Bonnie Soria Najera, the board’s secretary, was elected vice chair. She represents the Lower Valley in District 7. Olivas Graham, who had been vice chair, was elected secretary. In each case, the board voted 7-0.
The post $65M boost for El Paso cancer center, Downtown deck plaza gains ground in state budget appeared first on El Paso Matters.
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