El Paso Chihuahuas & New Development in the Northeast

El Paso Chihuahuas & New Development in the Northeast

Hi and welcome to Living in El Paso, Texas. My name is John Peña. I'm a real estate agent here in lovely El Paso, and yes, it does rain here. We only get about 10 inches a year, but this is proof that it does rain, and it was a nice welcome surprise. It's nice because it brings some of the dust out of the air.

Another welcome surprise in this episode: going to a Chihuahuas game, learning about a big, fancy new development happening in the Northeast, and learning about one of the biggest players in El Paso.

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In this episode I'm going to start to play around and see if this format might work. What I'd like to do is tell you about things happening in El Paso: current events, different opportunities you might be able to take advantage of, just so you can get an idea of what El Paso is all about, what's happening in the city, and what the developments and upcoming things are. And trust me, there's a lot going on. El Paso is really booming, there's a lot of excitement, and there's a lot of work for people. It does really seem to be that up-and-coming place. We're obviously not the only up-and-coming place here in Texas, but we're certainly making a pretty strong showing. So in this episode we're going to talk about some of the things that are going on recently and some of the things that are about to happen in the near future.

El Paso Chihuahuas

First off, we're going to start with baseball. I would not be a good baseball player. Several years ago I used to have great eyesight, and now if I need to read anything, like at a restaurant, I have to get out my reading glasses. So I'm that guy who says, let me grab my readers. A fastball coming down the pipe? No, I am not going to see that. These guys, though, the El Paso Chihuahuas, they are going to see it. So I want to tell you a little bit about this, and show some footage from a recent game. We went about a week or two ago. It was such a pleasant experience, and I think our tickets cost $15, more or less. So here's a little bit of information about the El Paso Chihuahuas.

That's the reason for the name Chihuahuas: it's a reference to the Chihuahuan Desert. The Chihuahuas are a minor league team in the AAA West and the AAA affiliate of the San Diego Padres. Before they came to El Paso, they were actually in Tucson, where they were known as the Tucson Padres. The stadium you're seeing here is Southwest University Park, which was finished in 2014, the same year the Chihuahuas moved here. We also have a minor league soccer team called the Locomotive, and we have concerts here too. It's a really cool venue, an outdoor space, and we saw a concert here before COVID that was fantastic. There's even stuff for the kids, a little water park. The mascot is Chico, a tough-looking Chihuahua. Tickets start at about $13 and go all the way up to about $240, because there are some pretty awesome rooms and spaces you can rent out. The colors are black, red, tan, and white.

Paul Foster

This gentleman on the screen is named Paul Foster. He owns part of the Chihuahuas, part of the Locomotive, and a number of other things I'll mention briefly. He's a pretty big player in El Paso and has done very well for himself. According to Forbes, he got his start as a teen in the oil fields, welding pipes, digging ditches, and cleaning tanks. Great story about putting in the hard work, and everybody has an opportunity to build significant wealth.

The footage you're seeing now is from a recent visit that Leah and I took to the Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park. This is not the Hotel Paso del Norte, which was also great, we went there for New Year's. This is a different space, also downtown, also recently renovated, and absolutely gorgeous. We're hoping to make a video featuring this space soon.

Mr. Foster also owns a private jet terminal at the airport, so this gentleman has done very well for himself. What I think is fantastic is that he's reinvesting into our community. Of course he's a businessman, and businesses are meant to make money, but what he is doing with some other partners is announcing the development of an area in the Northeast called Campo del Sol.

Campo del Sol

They're going to be breaking ground on a large residential community in Northeast El Paso. This community is supposed to have about 9,500 homes and multifamily units. There will be 135 acres of parkland and walking trails, 300 acres of commercial development, all located on 2,300 acres in Northeast El Paso, near Painted Dunes Desert Golf Course.

The footage you saw a moment ago was me driving around the Northeast trying to figure out where this area might be, and I had, dare I say, limited success. I did find Painted Dunes Golf Course, so I thought I'd show some of that footage, since Campo del Sol is going to be somewhere close to it. I heard some gentlemen there ordering nine rounds of golf, and the total came to $7.50 per person for nine holes, which is pretty reasonable. It looks like they also have events here, so if you're into golf, we do have a number of golf courses to satisfy those needs.

Back to the development. According to Mr. Foster, this master plan community is very unique to El Paso, and they intend to make it first class in every way. The first homes are supposed to be available spring 2022, ranging from entry level to move up, and built by the area's top builders. If you caught our last parade of homes videos, hopefully you'll agree that we have some pretty awesome builders here in El Paso, and they're very busy. A percentage of the homes in this area will be available for rent, to accommodate the flexibility and low-maintenance lifestyle of renting that may appeal to millennials. I love that, a low-maintenance lifestyle.

Phase one is going to include 2,500 homes, a 10-acre park, walking trails, a four-acre resort-like area with a lazy river, a kiddie splash pond pad, a pool, grass areas, and a food truck area. Campo del Sol will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue, which will stimulate other growth and development on the north side of town.

What I really like about this development is that the Northeast was one of the areas to develop first in El Paso, so there are a lot of older homes in this area. It's right off of 54, just east of the Franklin Mountains. Some of the area looks a little rundown, and some of the homes are much older, most likely lower-income housing. The Northeast is beautiful, that's very true, but I think this push will generate a lot of new energy, activity, and momentum for the Northeast.

Wrapping Up

The footage you're seeing now is from over on the west side, down by the New Mexico border, at one of the wineries, just to show that life is starting to come back to normal. People are getting back to it, and summer is here, so we're really excited about that.

I'd be curious to see if you're interested in these types of episodes, where maybe once a month or so I talk about what's new happening in El Paso. Some people have asked what there is to do in El Paso: go to a Chihuahuas game, go to a Locomotive game, go to the winery when they're having some kind of event. I wanted to start showcasing what life in El Paso is really like, which is of course the name of the channel, Living in El Paso.

Just a note for those of you sticking around to the end: if you're considering the real estate market, it's June and school is starting to get out. Hopefully more folks will put their homes on the market, which would be great, since it would increase inventory. Unfortunately the seller's market is still pretty strong, and people are having to overpay, over asking, to secure an executed contract. But the weather's getting nice, we're even getting a little rain, and you can tell the kids are excited to be getting out of school. Hopefully the parents are excited too, with some vacations planned.

If you have any ideas for stories or events relevant to people who live in El Paso or might be considering a move here, I'd love it if you'd reach out. You can leave a comment, or even better, email me at john@penaelpaso.com. Thank you so much, and we'll see you next time.