Fighting to protect sites such as Duranguito, one of El Paso\u2019s first neighborhoods, which was saved from demolition by a coalition of grassroots, historians, and a broad spectrum of El Pasoans.<\/p>\n
Successfully nominating the Segundo Barrio Historic District<\/a>, which received federal recognition in 2021; and work is under way to designate a Downtown El Paso Historic District.<\/p>\n Work under way on Countywide Historic Assets Master Plan (CHAMPS).<\/p>\n Created position of Heritage Tourism coordinator under the Economic Development Department; approved a Hotel Occupancy Tax policy in 2020 to allow for the use of funds towards historic preservation and projects that promote the county’s history; and placed Heritage Tourism in county strategic plan.<\/p>\n Saved the historic County Coliseum from destruction during the evaluation process for a nearby federal project that threatened to take the property.<\/p>\n More: El Paso’s Concordia Cemetery selected Best Historic Cemetery by True West magazine<\/a><\/p>\n Telling our stories is not just the right thing to do for our community. Heritage tourism is a sustainable and economically valuable enterprise;\u00a0heritage visitors spend an average of $30 more than other travelers<\/a>, and the money typically circulates through local and small businesses. For example, during\u00a0the Smithsonian\u2019s Museum on Main Street exhibit titled Crossroads: Change in Rural America, which included six weeks of supplemental programing around\u00a0the Mission Trail<\/a>, foot traffic on event days increased by 61 percent over 2024 and 154 percent over in 2023.<\/p>\n Some of this history is challenging. For example, I-10 and the\u00a0Chamizal Settlement resulted in mass displacement<\/a>, and parts of our community have suffered disproportionally from these huge projects. Very few people know about the historic black community in El Paso,\u00a0which was torn apart when I-10 came through<\/a>. El Paso County has supported the Black History Tours, which tell the story of the community and its social and economic life and draw people from all over the country.<\/p>\n The El Paso County Historical Commission<\/a> has done a great job in initiating and supporting efforts, especially when it comes to identifying and pursuing historical markers, and the commission\u2019s Heritage Tourism Committee in partnership with The El Paso Community Foundation, Eastside Central Coalition, El Paso Museum of History, and the McCall Community Center created\u00a0 amazing brochures for the Black History Tours<\/a>. The County has worked with people and organizations throughout El Paso, from the Concordia Heritage Association to the Eastside Central Coalition to Destination El Paso to the San Elizario Genealogical and Historical Society to Preservation Texas.<\/p>\n My office also initiated the Corazon Historia Raices series of presentations and walking tours in South-Central El Paso, which contains the county\u2019s historic assets such as the\u00a0Concordia Cemetery<\/a>\u00a0(where 60,000 people are buried, including\u00a0Buffalo Soldiers<\/a>, Jewish and Masonic sections, and the\u00a0only Chinese Cemetery in Texas<\/a>), the El Paso County Coliseum and its surrounding campus (where Italian POWs were held, braceros processed, some of the first desegregated dances in El Paso took place, and the\u00a0Raza Unida convention<\/a>\u00a0took place in 1972), and Ascarate Park, a Civilian Conservation Corps project that was once part of a 1750 Spanish land grant to the Ascarate family.<\/p>\n All of this together is the history of El Paso del Norte. At a time when the concept of a multicultural America that was built by people from all over the world is under attack by an administration whose featured policies are cruelty towards immigrants and book-banning in education, El Paso\u2019s story and the story of other border communities is more important than ever.<\/p>\n Understanding the true breadth of our country\u2019s history, and how it relates to the present, starts with understanding places like El Paso. Recognition by organizations such as\u00a0Preservation Texas<\/a>\u00a0helps us share that mission.<\/p>\n It is a privilege to be able to honor and uplift all of the histories that make up the story of El Paso, and to be part of the movement that is creating a new, inclusive, and economically secure future for everyone.<\/p>\n County Commissioner for Precinct 2 David Stout is the El Paso.<\/p>\n David Stout is County Commissioner for Precinct 2.<\/p>\n![\"County](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/6bdb6e17d11351c92bf051be63dc693d.jpeg\"\/)
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