MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in El Paso, TX

The city of El Paso, a West Texas way station long accustomed to migrants arriving from Mexico, has begun to buckle under the pressure of thousands upon thousands of people coming over the border, day after day.

The usual shelters have been filled. So too have the hundreds of hotel rooms wrangled by the city to house migrants. A new city-run shelter opened over the weekend in a recreational center, and rapidly filled all of its roughly 400 beds. Another shelter is planned in a vacant middle school.

Mayor Oscar Leeser said over the weekend that the city had reached a “breaking point” and was no longer able to help all the migrants on its own. He welcomed the buses, chartered by the administration of Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas, that once again began carrying hundreds of migrants out of the city to Denver, Chicago or New York. The mayor said he was seeking millions of dollars in additional aid from the Biden administration.

The strain felt in El Paso, a traditionally welcoming border town, reflected a situation that has become increasingly untenable for communities up and down the U.S. border with Mexico. After months of relative calm, a new wave of migrant arrivals, mostly from Venezuela but also from other countries in South America, Africa and elsewhere, is taxing the available services in cities and small towns from Texas to California.

In San Diego, the county board of supervisors declared a humanitarian crisis on Tuesday, and city officials said the available federal resources were insufficient to handle the migrant influx. Among other things, the board requested federal personnel and money to help migrants reach their final destinations and avoid having to release them into the streets.

So many migrants have arrived in Southern California in the latest influx that border agents have begun dropping off some of them as far north as Oceanside, Calif., more than 50 miles from the border, to ease pressure on shelters and services in San Diego.

Most of the migrants have pending deportation hearings. But their first court dates may be two years away.

In the past, many arrivals crossed the border with a specific destination in mind, because of family or other connections in the United States. But that has begun to change.

“They’re arriving here with no idea where to go, and with no resources to get them anywhere else,” said Melissa M. Lopez, executive director of Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services in El Paso, which provides legal support for migrants.

As a result, migrants have been sleeping on sidewalks in El Paso, near overcrowded shelters that are some distance from the heart of downtown. Residents of neighborhoods that are unaccustomed to migrants say they are suddenly encountering strangers, many of them carrying plastic bags stretched thin with clothes, near hotels where the city has managed to find rooms for them.

In San Jacinto Plaza in the city center, scores of men sprawled out on benches or sat talking near the marquee tourist hotels on a recent weekday — a notable change from prior surges, when migrants largely remained near shelters. Noticeably absent from the plaza were El Paso residents.

Judith Camacho, a 25-year-old Venezuelan who had crossed the border from the Mexican city of Ciudad Juárez several days before, said she empathized with the diners at an upscale restaurant across from the plaza as she walked by with her husband and two young children.

“I feel terrible for me and my family to be seen like this,” said Ms. Camacho, adding that she had been trying to get a hotel room from the city, to avoid having to stay on the street. Restaurant patrons occasionally glanced through the large glass windows facing the sidewalk, pausing their conversation to watch migrants standing idly nearby.

Like most of the people who make the long trek to the border and cross illegally into the United States, Ms. Camacho hopes to make it eventually to a major city like Chicago or Washington, where she has heard there are opportunities.

“We know they’re coming to the United States, not to El Paso,” Mayor Leeser said at a news conference on Saturday.

Over the weekend, federal border agents were holding about 6,500 migrants at the local processing facility in El Paso, Mr. Leeser said, a sharp increase from several weeks earlier that caught the city by surprise.

By Wednesday, the city’s data showed that the number had grown to 7,600 in the custody of Customs and Border Protection, and more than 1,000 were being released into the city each day.

A spokeswoman for Mr. Abbott said that 15 buses had been chartered by the state in El Paso in the last week, and had transported 640 migrants out of the city.

El Paso officials have been adamant that all the migrants who are released into the community would be offered places to stay, avoiding the kinds of street releases that have been seen in other areas along the border, and city statistics show they have largely met that goal.

But even with accommodations arranged by shelter operators and the city, some migrants have opted to stay on the streets. Some expressed distrust of the government and bristled at not being able to come and go from shelters as they pleased.

“There are times when they let you in, but they will not let you out,” said Renzo Campos, a 22-year-old man from Venezuela. A fellow Venezuelan standing with him, Carlos Matos, 26, said he had spent time in a shelter and did not want to go back. “God will sustain us out here,” he said.

The men said they were waiting in El Paso because they were not sure where else to go. They and others said they had come to the United States to work.

A block away, Diana Barrientos sat on the sidewalk with her back against the wall of a downtown hotel and her year-old son on her lap. She and her husband had turned themselves in to Border Patrol agents at the border wall, and spent six days in detention before being released on Tuesday. They had run out of money, but were hoping to find a free bus ride out of El Paso. “God willing, we will make it to Chicago,” where she has friends who have agreed to help her, she said.

Ms. Camacho, the mother of two who was outside the restaurant, said she, like many other newly arrived migrants, had tried to register in Mexico for an appointment with a U.S. border officer to gain permission to cross legally, but ran into delays on the U.S. government app. Out of money and fearing for their safety in Juárez, she and her husband decided to cross the Rio Grande illegally.

As they went to the river, she and her family were “chased by a truck full of men in Mexico who wanted us to pay them to cross,” she said. “We were running away, my husband fell into the river, and I almost fell with my daughter into the water.”

Once they reached the U.S. side, they laid blankets over the spiky concertina wire coiled along the riverfront, pushed through the wire and surrendered to Border Patrol agents, who processed and released them.

Like many Venezuelan arrivals, she and her husband have no relatives or connections elsewhere in the United States.

As she spoke, the door of a downtown restaurant opened briefly, as patrons filed in and enticing aromas wafted out into the street.

“Mom, I’m hungry,” her son said.

“I know,” Ms. Camacho replied. “We’ll eat soon.”

Miriam Jordan contributed reporting.

TXDOT is looking into installing a second runaway ramp for truckers in the median on Loop 375.

EL PASO, Texas [KFOX14] — The Texas Department of Transportation reopened the I-10 freeway on Friday after a major crash occurred on Thursday.

The crash occurred on Loop 375 Transmountain when a semi truck driver lost control of his truck and flew over a barrier before landing on the I-10 freeway.

The major crash caused I-10 to be shut down around 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.

RECOMMENDED: All lanes open after crash on I-10 east and west at Transmountain ; 1 person seriously injured

Jonathan Concha, West Area Engineer with the Texas Department of Transportation said on Friday, that crews were working on repairing the damaged barriers.

“When the crash occurred, the truck actually broke through some of our barriers, so we’ve been working to get the barrier replaced,” Concha said.

Concha added TxDOT is designing plans for a second runaway truck ramp on Loop 375 at Transmountain due to other major crashes previously happening in the same area.

“We are unable to place that on the right side due to limited right of way but we do have an area identified in the center median at this time.”

Concha also explained the current construction configuration of one lane is necessary to complete the current phase of the project.

“This is needed so that we can reconstruct the main lanes of I-10, currently we have the center portion construction, so we’re working on the outside lanes and we’re also working on reconfiguring the exit and on-ramps for I-10,” said Concha.

Another solution TxDOT is considering is installing a temporary exit ramp at Transmountain.

“Depending on the location of a crash, we would be able to use that as an alternative to be able to get folks off of I-10 and back onto the frontage road,” said Concha.

Truckers can avoid driving on Loop 375 by taking alternate routes such as the Loop 375 Cesar Chavez to the Border Highway to go around the mountain rather than trying to come over it or they can head north on US 54 to Martin Luther King and then travel 404 to get back onto I-10.

The turnaround at N. Desert Boulevard and Transmountain will remain closed for the weekend as crews repair the corner of the turnaround bridge.

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EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — Six of seven Ysleta ISD high-school marching bands remain in the chase for a UIL state championship following Saturday’s regional contest.

These bands earned the highest score – a Division I “Superior” rating – and qualified for the next level of competition.

Bel Air, Del Valle, Eastwood, Hanks, Parkland, and Riverside high schools earned ratings of “Superior” while Ysleta High School earned a rating of “Excellent” at the UIL regional contest held this past weekend at the Socorro ISD Student Activities Complex.

The six bands that earned “Superior” ratings will now go on to compete at separate Area competitions in Class 4A, 5A, and 6A this month, as listed below:

Riverside: Led by Drum Majors Felipe Ortiz and Joshua Lopez and Flag Captains Karen Aguayou and Alexa Perez, the Ranger Marching Band will perform its show, “Aurora,” under the direction of Jason Lauturner, Sean Kilkenny, J.C Pineda and Moises Espino, and Flag Director J.C. Pineda at the Class 4A Area contest taking place Saturday in Abilene.

Eastwood: Led by Drum Majors Edgardo Malave, Joan Manquero, Carlos Vota and Alexander Webb, & Flag Captains Victoria Vitela, Victoria Gonzalez and Ivana Morales the Trooper Marching Band and Visual Ensemble will perform “When One Door Closes” under the direction of John Matthews II, Art Avila, John Oman and Cheryl Tomczuk & Flag Director Ymalay Vega at the Class 6A Area contest taking place Saturday at the SAC.

The following four Ysleta ISD marching bands will compete at the Class 5A Area competition, which takes place Saturday, Oct. 28, at Del Valle High School’s Conquistador Stadium:

Bel Air: Led by Drum Major Larissa Guerrero & Flag Captains Gianna Lopez, Faith Velazquez and Sofia Sanchez, the Big Red Pride Marching Band will perform “Gilded Embrace,” under the direction of Adam Castaneda and Gaby Tellez, and Flag Directors Danielle Apodaca and Jesie Garcia.

Del Valle: Led by Drum Majors Itzel Soto, Aislynn Quezada, and Peyton Savedra, & Flag Captains Mya Rivas and Abigail Forkin, the Del Valle High School Band will perform “Nevermore” under the direction of Keith Morales, Diego Calderon, Robert Hayden, and Shawn Morales, and Flag Director Azucena Garcia.

J. M. Hanks: Led by Drum Majors Leah Dressen, Alexa Perez and Daniel Alvarez, & Silhouettes Dance Team Captains Danika Murphy, Yazmine Alba, Julie Flores, and Bella Licon, the J. M. Hanks High School Band will perform “Start Your Engines,” under the direction of Horacio Gomez, James Cordova, Luis Ibarra and Calvin Edwards, & Silhouette Director Kristal Nance.

Parkland: Led by Drum Major Angeliza Coleman & Flag Captains Kailey Santos Aguilar and Mia Tellez, the Parkland Matador Band and Guard will perform “Metamorphosis” under the direction of Rebecca Rodriguez, Homer Pardo, David Alvarado & Adrian Flores, & Flag Director Gaby Cardenas.

RECOMMENDED: Socorro Independent School District hosts 30th annual Marchfest featuring local high school bands

RECOMMENDED: Border patrol discovers 42 migrants stashed inside a motel in east El Paso

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Airbnb and Vrbro rental owners in El Paso have taken a sigh of relief because city officials decided not to regulate or tax short-term rental properties — at least for now.

However, at least one City Council member, South-West City Rep. Chris Canales, thinks some regulations, including a limit on short-term rentals in neighborhoods and taxation, are needed. He plans to bring proposals forward in the near future, he said.

The rentals, which the city defines as a dwelling rented for less than 30 consecutive days, are largely used by visitors, but El Paso residents also rent them for various reasons.

Many of the Airbnb and Vrbo listings, numbering about 1,900 in El Paso, are rented by people tied to soldiers at Fort Bliss, an industry expert said.

Heidy Seoenz, an owner of short-term rental properties and president of the newly formed El Paso Short Term Rental Alliance, said it's a "good surprise" that City Council chose not to regulate the industry and instead gave it the opportunity to work with city officials through the so-called pilot program focused on collecting and analyzing complaints filed against short-term properties.

New York regs drop thousands off Airbnb

"I know that multiple cities didn't get this opportunity" and litigation has resulted in Austin, Dallas, and other places, Seoenz said.

In New York City, thousands of short-term rental listings were dropped off the Airbnb platform in early September after new, strict regulations were put in place, the online news publication Wired reported. A New York Supreme Court judge dismissed an Airbnb lawsuit against the rules, allowing them to go into effect.

Airbnb officials, in a June press release, said the new regulations "effectively ban short-term rentals in New York City and are a stark contrast to cities around the world that have enacted fair and balanced short-term rental rules."

El Paso short-term rental operators made it clear early this year at more than a dozen public meetings that they wanted no regulations. Little support for regulating the industry in El Paso was found at the meetings. And 75% of 960 responses in a city survey were against regulating the rentals.

311 hotline to collect rental complaints

El Paso's yearlong pilot program will collect complaints, concerns and issues from El Pasoans about short-term rental properties filed through the city's 311 citizens' hotline, website and phone app. City officials have not said if they plan to publicize the program.

The 311 website highlights 13 issues to report — from weeds to traffic signals. But it has nothing about reporting problems or issues with short-term rentals.

Some past complaints were about big parties in short-term rentals. Both Airbnb and Vrbo now have no-party policies. And Seoenz said if an Airbnb or Vrbo operator in El Paso has parties, the rental alliance will help get them delisted from the rental platforms.

After a year of collecting data through 311, city officials will bring the matter back to City Council with city staff recommendations.

"Some would look at it (pilot program) and say, well you're really not doing anything," Interim City Manager Cary Westin said at the Aug. 29 City Council meeting when the pilot program was approved.

"Well, I think we are. We're opening the door now to be more inclusive with the community" and look at issues from both the business and community sides, he said.

The pilot program is "tapping the brakes on this before we bring back firm recommendations" to the City Council next year, Westin said. Most City Council members didn't seem anxious to impose regulations.

Short-term rental density limit sought

City Rep. Canales said he supports the 311 pilot program as a way to handle complaints. But he sees bigger issues that he believes need attention.

The biggest problem, Canales said, is "housing preservation" in neighborhoods where short-term rentals are heavily clustered. Several of those are in his district, he said.

"Multiple of the neighborhood associations in my district have taken formal or informal positions in favor of regulating the further proliferation of STRs (short-term rentals) within their boundaries to preserve" homes for permanent residents, Canales said in an email.

Neighborhoods with clusters of short-term rentals include Kern, Mission Hills, Sunset Heights, Rio Grande, Five Points, and Downtown, he said.

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What Canales wants the most is a density limit — a required minimum distance between short-term rental properties "to ensure that they are not heavily clustered within any particular area," he said. Such limitations have been done in other cities, including San Antonio and Las Vegas, he said.

However, he'd favor exempting short-term rentals already in operation from any density requirement under a grandfather clause, he said.

Canales also thinks short-term rentals should pay the city's 9% hotel occupancy tax. They already pay the state's 6% hotel tax collected by Airbnb and Vrbo.

Seoenz said short-term rental owners pay city property taxes. And city officials shouldn't tell rental operators where they can or cannot locate but instead let the market dictate if a short-term rental succeeds or not, she said.

Airbnb operator foresee little growth

Much of the short-term rental business in El Paso, home to the large Fort Bliss Army post, is tied to Army personnel who need a short-term rental while waiting for a more permanent residence or for their visiting relatives, Seoenz said.

The El Paso area has just over 1,900 Airbnb and Vrbo listings, a number that has stayed fairly consistent over the past year after exploding from 540 listings in 2019, according to online data from AirDNA, a Denver company tracking short-term rental data globally.

Seoenz put the number at about 1,600 because the AirDNA data duplicates some listings, she said. It's a number she doesn't foresee growing much because most of the El Paso market is made up of mom-and-pop operators with one or two properties, she said.

Vic Kolenc may be reached at 546-6421; [email protected]; @vickolenc on Twitter, now known as X.

For the last few weeks, UTEP fans were hopeful for any sign of life from their football team. A rare conference road win against FIU in Miami last Wednesday night offered them a small glimmer of hope that maybe all was not lost for 2023. Those dreams came to a crashing halt during the second half of last night's 28-7 loss against New Mexico State.

For the first 30 minutes of action at the Sun Bowl stadium, The 100th Battle of I-10 was anyone's football game. The Miners and Aggies were tied at seven during the break, and the home team blocked a field goal and hung in with their long time rivals to keep the contest close. However, NMSU came out in the second half and completely dominated their opponents.

Redshirt junior quarterback Cade McConnell found out that the Aggies defense was not going to let him throw all over the field the way he did seven days earlier. Instead, the crimson and white battered and bruises UTEP's starting QB all game long. As great as Kelly Akharaiyi, who exploded for eight catches and 223 yards in Miami, had just one catch for six yards against NMSU. Aggies quarterback Diego Pavia had his way with the UTEP defense and he looks like the kind of leader that can take them to the top of Conference USA.

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There were other troubling signs on the field last night. Both Akharaiyi and Maurice Westmoreland were called for unnecessary roughness penalties. Westmoreland's flag negated a third down stop in the first half and the Aggies would later score a touchdown on the same drive. As for Akharaiyi, his punch would lead to being ejected from the game in the fourth quarter.

The final score also is a clear indication of where both of these football programs are headed. The Aggies under head coach Jerry Kill are now 5-3 and just two wins away from returning to a postseason bowl game for the second straight year. The last time that happened was in 1959 and 1960, when they appeared in back to back Sun Bowls. In fact, NMSU has never lost a bowl game (4-0-1 all time). Coach Kill's team is filled with underclassmen (just six seniors) and he should be able to contend for a conference title if his team can stay healthy.

Meanwhile, UTEP now is 2-6 on the season, including a 1-3 mark in conference play. A season that was supposed to be the best year yet for head coach Dana Dimel has turned into an utter disaster. The Miners came into 2023 with a veteran club full of three and four-year starters. The team could not get out of their own way to start the season, making costly mistakes that cost them wins. It has been a story reminiscent of the last five seasons under Coach Dimel. An announced crowd of just under 20,000 fans attended last night's Battle of I-10 contest. The Miners will be lucky to get half that total as they finish up their home season against Western Kentucky on November 4th and Liberty on November 25th.

As for the fan bases, the Aggie Nation is in a rebirth when it comes to their football program and their success helped take some of the sting away from the horrific off the court issues that suspended their men's basketball season back in February. As for the Miner Maniacs, basketball season cannot come soon enough while Dana Dimel's future as head coach of the UTEP football program will be the biggest storyline over the next four weeks.