El Paso Mayor John Cook said Friday that the city manager's plan is to split City Hall into at least four different buildings.

Plans to buy three new buildings are on the City Council agenda for Tuesday's meeting.

If plans to build a baseball stadium and demolish City Hall continue, the city plans to move into three new buildings and keep the tax office in the Wells Fargo building downtown. Cook said that there are plans to hold City Council meetings in the downtown public library.

"If you really consider what we have on Yarborough, there's five (locations)," Cook said. "We have all of the transportation folks out there. This is not in the public's best interest."

The old warehouse building at 801-811 Texas St. could be bought for $2.3 million. Then taxpayers would put another $10 million into bringing it up to code. That building would be used for the city's Development Services. 

The Luther building at Mills Avenue and Campbell Street downtown would be bought for $17.5 million. Cook said that building would be used for the city's Fire Department and Information Technology.

Cook said that there's a third building in the plans, but that City Manager Joyce Wilson will not tell him which building it is or how much it will cost.

Cook said he's not happy about the secrecy or the plans, but not everyone wants to hear opposition from the mayor.

"You know if Eddie (Holguin) does it, Eddie's against everything, so it doesn't lend a lot of credibility," Cook said. "If Carl (Robinson) does it, it's because Cohen stadium is in the Northeast, so they look at that (and say), 'That's why Carl's against it.' But if the mayor's against it, it's because maybe it is a stupid plan."

KFOX learned from a source that the mystery building might be the El Paso Times building. The El Paso Times building sits across the street from the Luther building.


Cook said although there are petitions circulating to stop these changes from happening, none of them will hold up in court because of technicalities.

Cook also said that these relocation plans are going to cost taxpayers too much money, and the current City Hall is worth more than advocates of demolishing it are expressing.

"Of course it needs work, but we've gone through and remodeled almost every floor in the building," Cook said.

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