El Paso Times
Man’s death likely ‘homicide’
The death of a Cuban migrant “who experienced medical distress” while being held at an ICE detention center in El Paso is being investigated as a “likely homicide.” U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, said in a statement that “we have now learned...
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Mesilla Valley Balloon Rally returns to city
The Mesilla Valley Balloon Rally is returning to Las Cruces with an iconic figure joining the ballon lineup. Hot air balloons take flight from Jan. 16-18, and you can enjoy the magical, family-friendly event for free. In 2025, the balloon rally...
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Work continues to repair busted line
Work continues to repair a busted water line that left roughly 100,000 El Pasoans without water. Nine of the 15 reservoirs impacted by Saturday night’s outage were up and running, said Gilbert Trejo, vice president of operations and technical services...
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Neighbors raise stink over refinery’s odors
Some El Pasoans let officials with Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s El Paso oil refinery and the Texas environmental agency know they aren’t happy with the refinery and its application to renew its major air permit for another 10 years. “The fumes, you go...
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Furor continues over ICE shootings
Tensions remained high Jan. 9 after shootings involving immigration agents in Minneapolis and in Portland, Oregon, drew protesters to the streets and deepened fractures between federal and state officials. In Portland, a U.S. Border Patrol officer...
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New year brings new chance to eat healthy
It’s a new year, which means fitness and eating healthier may be among your goals. Typically, New Year’s resolutions last only a short time — only 36% make it past the first month of January, compared to 9% who successfully keep their resolutions...
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State lawmakers split over strike in Venezuela
Texas lawmakers are speaking out after U.S. military forces struck Venezuela and captured its president over the weekend. In the early morning hours of Saturday, Jan. 3, an ambitious military operation struck Caracas and resulted in the capture of...
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Military deportation flights paused in September
The administration of President Donald Trump carried out nearly 90 deportation flights on military planes in 2025, according to data compiled by the ICE Flight Monitor project at Human Rights First. The flights deported immigrants to nearly 40...
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‘WHO WE ARE’
In a crowded courtroom, El Paso victims’ families gathered to give testimony in the names of their loved ones killed in the Walmart mass shooting — closing a nearly six-year open wound. ● At a time when public controversy is marked by calls for...
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Mamdani promises new era for NYC
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Jan. 1 inauguration and block party reflected a diverse city looking to make good on the 34-year-old democratic socialist’s promises to address affordability. On a freezing New Year’s Day, the Democratic mayor took...
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Game news and notes
Arizona State, Duke compete at high level in 92nd edition of bowl game.
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Big events on calendar for 2026
As a new year dawns, many Americans are reflecting on 2025, a year marked by historic events including the inauguration of a president, the appointment of the first American pope, and major pop culture moments like the release of “Wicked: For Good” and...
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Subscriber-only eNewspaper
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‘We have not had any problems’
Juárez was bracing to get crushed in the middle at the start of 2025 as a Mexican border city at the crossroads of immigration routes when President Donald Trump returned to the White House. Considered safer and easier to reach than other spots along...
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Sun Bowl: A bright, but changing, future
From its debut in 1935 when the El Paso All-Stars beat Ranger High School, to this year when Arizona State takes on Duke, the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl has been in continual transition without losing the pageantry or the history that has defined the...
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Islamic State targets attacked in Nigeria
President Donald Trump said on Dec. 25 that the U.S. military had attacked Islamic State targets in Nigeria, claiming the group had been targeting Christians. In a post on Truth Social, the president said he directed the military to launch a “powerful...
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NMSU students and staff build new chile
Visitors to NMSU for months have seen the bustle of construction at the Engineering Complex, not knowing that inside staff and students have been quietly working on a project to wow Las Crucens to ring in 2026. A 17-foot chile wrapped in LED lights...
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Prosecutors say deportations are harming criminal cases
In West Texas, a man was indicted in September for assaulting Manuel Chairez-Montes, fracturing the left side of his face. But before District Attorney Sarah Stogner could take the case to trial, Chairez-Montes, who was undocumented, was deported to...
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Luminarias bring light, hope to Scenic Drive
Four thousand luminarias glowing along Scenic Drive guided drivers to the top, where Santa Claus and a live Nativity scene awaited El Pasoans during Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe’s 31st Annual Navidad de la Fe. “This is just our way of giving back to...
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911 calls from detention center raise concern
Immigrants held at the Camp East Montana detention center in El Paso regularly face injury, life-threatening illnesses and acute mental health crises, according to a review of 911 emergency calls placed at the nation's largest ICE immigration...
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‘I know they killed him’
Lucía Pedro Juan knew that she and her husband would not be returning to their southern Florida home. ● Her husband, Francisco Gaspar Cristóbal Andrés, stood across the room in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office. ICE agents separated...
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Brown shooting suspect found dead
PROVIDENCE, RI – Though the suspect connected to the deadly Brown University attack and the fatal shooting of an MIT professor was found dead in New Hampshire, the questions and fallout have only begun. Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez...
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No love for El Paso in Yelp’s ’25 top tamales
While El Pasoans know we can serve a delicious tamal, the Sun City was overlooked when it came to a recent list of best places to get tamales in the United States. ● Yelp rounded up the top 25 must-try destinations for the Mexican staple in a list...
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Photojournalist Velasquez reveals top 2025 photos
My top photos of 2025 work together as a collection that showcases my love for capturing moments in sports and presents them as fine art. In these moments during my assignments, I’ve set myself free to express creatively through motion, returning to...
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‘SWEET EXPERIENCE’
Nursing graduates were pinned by loved ones during a tradition-filled ceremony at EPCC’s Administrative Services Center Auditorium, marking their transition from students to professionals. The pinning ceremony signifies the completion of the...
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Public meeting set for oil refinery air permit
Two years after Marathon Petroleum Corp. filed for a 10-year renewal of the major Texas air-pollution permit for its El Paso oil refinery, the Texas environmental agency has finally set a date for a public meeting on the matter. The public meeting,...
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ON WATCH
JUÁREZ, Mexico – A new eye is set to open over the Borderland. The Sentinel Tower is nearing completion, as the protective coverings are slowly coming off, exposing a sleek glass structure that marks the skyline of Juárez. The security tower is set to...
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Abrego Garcia released from detention facility
In a whiplash series of events, a federal judge on Dec. 12 blocked an effort to have Kilmar Abrego Garcia returned to custody a day after his release from Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention. On Dec. 11, District Judge Paula Xinis ordered...
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Guatemalan immigrant held at ICE detention facility dies
A Guatemalan immigrant held at ICE’s Camp East Montana immigration detention facility has died in an El Paso hospital. Francisco Gaspar Andres, 48, was pronounced dead on Dec. 3, an ICE news release stated. The official cause of death is pending, but...
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Girl inspires holiday Cozy Item Drive to help the homeless
The boxes of pillows, blankets and coats that filled the gazebo of West El Paso’s Madeline Park tell a story of compassion fundamental to the 6-yearold child that inspired it. Ezme Ferris is more than meets the eye as playing on swings one moment...
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Need a date night idea?
Now that swim season is over, the Elmont resort-style swim club is turning its focus indoors and changing things up to draw El Pasoans to its restaurant Evaga Desert Kitchen. The restaurant, at 240 W. Castellano Drive, has started Sushi Wednesdays,...
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Arizona State, Duke to face off
The 2025 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl ended with the expected and the unexpected for its 91st matchup, as nearby Arizona State will make the short trip to El Paso to take on ACC champion Duke in a rematch of the 2014 game. The Sun Devils were a natural fit...
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Homan calls secure border lifesaving
The message from Border Czar Tom Homan during his Turning Point USA address at UTEP was simple: a secure United States-Mexico border saves lives in both countries. Homan’s controversial visit to the University of Texas at El Paso Thursday, Dec. 4,...
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HOLIDAY COUNTDOWN
El Paso will have lots of holiday spirit this season with lots of fun events, some for the whole family and some just for adults. No matter what day of December, if you want to get out and enjoy a holiday event, you can find a fun thing to do. The...
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‘She gave us hope for a better future’
Alicia R. Chacón, the first woman elected El Paso County Judge, was remembered at her funeral as a trailblazer who fought for Hispanic rights and left a lasting legacy. “She devoted her life to meaningful service,” Father Arturo J. Bañuelas said at...
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Paul Foster firm eyes 5K acres of EP Water land
El Paso billionaire Paul Foster apparently is looking to do more housing development in Northeast El Paso, where he and his partners are developing the huge Campo Del Sol community. A company tied to Foster in the summer submitted a letter of intent...
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RETAILERS BUY IN
The biggest shopping day of the year, Black Friday, is here and thousands of El Pasoans will begin their holiday shopping this weekend. Borderland shoppers will probably have their list ready of what stores they want to hit for sales and gift ideas...
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Planning begins for new water facility
It takes many years and millions of dollars to design, build, and operate an El Paso water-treatment plant. El Paso Water officials have begun the long road toward adding a third treatment plant to make more Rio Grande water available during the...
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Black Friday rush shifts later, online
The usual Black Friday rush at stores like Academy Sports & Outdoors never happened this year. The location at 801 South Mesa Hills Drive was like many businesses that offered online gift deals starting on Thanksgiving and even earlier hours for...
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Slain Guard member praised for her service
President Donald Trump said Nov. 27 that U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, of the West Virginia National Guard, died after being shot the previous day in an ambush near the White House, a shooting that drew claims from his administration of Biden-era...
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Black Friday crowds to find fewer deals
NEW YORK – Unprecedented numbers of Americans are expected to hit stores this Black Friday, but they are likely to curtail their spending as they find fewer bargains from tariff-hit retailers. Marking the biggest turnout ever for the five-day stretch...
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Senior Fund helps El Paso man remain independent
For Valentin Quintero, the Rio Grande Area Agency on Aging’s Senior Fund represents a Borderland gift of independence and safety. Quintero, a diabetic of 32 years, contracted COVID-19 in June 2020, initially spending 15 days in the hospital before...
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Speaking Rock rolls out new steakhouse
While the restaurant business remains one of the toughest industries, Speaking Rock Entertainment Center is taking a gamble on its newest addition, 1682 Steakhouse, tucked in a corner of the venue. The steakhouse, which just opened, is tiny for now,...
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A Winter Wonderland
For its first Christmas in Downtown El Paso, La Nube is turning parts of the science museum into a Winter Wonderland. It will run from Saturday, Nov. 22, through Jan. 4. “We’ve been open for about a year and a half now, and this is really the first...
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Tech company FTI expanding to El Paso
A Wisconsin electrical components manufacturer is building a factory in East El Paso that’s expected to create 200 jobs. Faith Technologies Inc.’s 500,000square-foot factory in East El Paso County is scheduled to be operational by summer 2026,...
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Wyler Tramway Phase II to add modern tram, trails
The next phase of the Wyler Aerial Tramway revitalization is kicking off. Lawmakers, state officials and business leaders announced the launch of Phase II in the revitalization process during a news conference Tuesday, Nov. 4, which received a $7...
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New boom in West Texas
The artificial intelligence-fueled data center construction boom is spreading through West Texas, where oil and gas development has held economic sway for decades. Big data centers are planned near Fort Stockton and Barstow, Texas. Both areas are...
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RETURN TO UNCERTAINTY
PALENQUE, Panama — A man in a white T-shirt and surf trunks stood on a small pier calling out names from a list. ● Rows of men, women and children, sweat trickling down their faces in the sweltering tropical heat, stepped forward one by one. Each...
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How village in Panama enriched by migrants had to adapt
No roads lead to this tiny Indigenous community deep in the jungle of the Darién Gap, where a tsunami of U.S.-bound migrants has abruptly slowed to a trickle. ● The only way to reach the village is by piragua, a flat-bottomed wooden canoe powered by an...
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USDA says it’s working to comply with SNAP order
The Trump administration is working to comply with a federal judge’s order to provide full Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for November amid the government shutdown, as per a Nov. 7 memo from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The...
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‘IT DEFINITELY HELPS EVERYONE’
The Lincoln Park area is seeing new life as businesses unite to offer El Pasoans diverse entertainment options including art, beer, food, music and more. Gabriel Marquez, owner of Mystic Desert Studio, 3900 Rosa Ave., Suite B, said the J&K Present...
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El Paso County sees 10.7% turnout in statewide vote
Voters across Texas have approved an array of new constitutional amendments. Roughly 15% of the state's 18.4 million registered voters turned out to cast ballots in the Nov. 4 election, which featured 17 statewide propositions covering the gamut of...
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El Paso Water negotiating for historic sanatorium
A more than 100-year-old building that decades ago was a tuberculosis sanatorium might become part of El Paso Water’s extensive real estate portfolio. The almost 28-acre property is located at 7000 Alabama St., in Northeast El Paso, with the Fort...
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Burger keeps it simple
Burger, a recently opened eatery near San Jacinto Plaza, was inspired by one thing above all else— the love of a good burger. Anthony Ortiz, who owns the restaurant with his best friend Ana Trevizo, said he eats hamburgers on the regular. Among his...
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Why U.S. is flying deportees to Mexico’s southern tip
TAPACHULA, Mexico — At 1:20 p.m. on Aug. 20, an Airbus 320 passenger jet landed at the Tapachula International Airport. Instead of the typical commercial travelers who arrive daily at this sweltering tropical city in Mexico’s southern tip, the plane...
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HEADED SOUTH
FCIUDAD HIDALGO, Mexico errying migrants across the murky waters of the Suchiate River was a lucrative job for Alexis Vargas. ● Vargas floated groups of migrants across the informal border crossing between Guatemala and Mexico on a makeshift raft made...
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Texas DACA recipients await ruling on work permits
At 16 years old, Ivonne Cruz felt hopeless. She was a single mother and an undocumented immigrant, working the register of a Dallas McDonald’s. Her career options seemed slim, but she told herself that if she worked hard enough, she could achieve her...
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‘I love all forms of art’
El Paso almost lost one of its top artists to San Antonio 20 years ago. ● Luckily for the Sun City, a job ad in the newspaper led to Moises “Moi” Garcia staying in the Borderland with his wife, Jessica. ● And that decision has led to some of his work...
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Council rejects plan to remove political video
El Paso City Council has rejected a plan to remove a political video from the El Paso International Airport. The City Council was split on a plan to work with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Federal Aviation Administration...
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Growing tradition in Juárez
JUÁREZ, Mexico — Brilliant orange flowers blanket the northern edge of Juárez, just across from El Paso, standing in vivid contrast to the gray concrete and rusted red metal of the nearby border wall. The sea of orange cempasúchil, or Mexican...
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Dare to enter the ‘Tunnel of Terror’
Clowns haunted drivers as West El Paso’s Tommy’s Express, transformed into a spooky “Tunnel of Terror” Halloween car wash. “What we do is we, basically turn our car wash into a haunted experience. People still get a car wash,” said Taylor Monzon, the...
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Tommy’s Korean Express opens new location
Two experienced restaurateurs are bringing Korean comfort food to the forefront with Tommy’s Korean Express at two locations. Business partners Chef Tommy Hwang and Sung Song, who own three Grove Brunch Cafe restaurants, opened the Tommy’s Korean...
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‘POLITICAL LIMBO’
Elena Ramírez is watching closely the changes to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program by the administration of President Donald Trump. Ramírez is concerned that the detaining of DACA recipients and other rollbacks to former...
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Kissing Cactuses
El Paso artist Christin Apodaca is acclaimed for her murals across the Borderland that celebrate the region’s natural beauty and culture. ● And while art lovers can see many of her massive works in public spaces in El Paso, she also captures the desert...
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‘I took after my father’
El Paso native Robert Rios’ induction into Lowrider Magazine’s Hall of Fame is a testament to the skills he honed over the years and to the legacy of love for the culture that he shared with his father. The Andress High School graduate will be honored...
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‘An uphill battle’
As the health care workers approach the small collection of makeshift shelters along the train tracks that cut through the northern Mexico industrial hub of Ciudad Juárez, the people who gather in this place to use drugs prepare for their...
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‘THEY ARE STARVING’
MRICHWOOD, Louisiana onths after leaving immigration detention, Camila Muñoz can still remember the ice-cream scooper used to ladle food onto plastic trays and the “sour feeling” after every meal. Hunger. “You have to eat no matter what, or the night...
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From mochi donuts to Tanghulu
Crunch & Chill, a new shop with crunchy, fruity treats, is one of the newest additions to El Paso’s growing array of Asian street snacks. The shop opened two months ago and is introducing Tanghulu, traditional Chinese snacks, and ribbon ice cream to...
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‘I love my country’
Protesters in inflatable dinosaur, unicorn and frog costumes were among the more than 1,000 El Pasoans who gathered at Edgemere Linear Park as part of the nationwide “No Kings” protests against the policies of President Donald Trump. “No one can say...
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MARCHING FORWARD
For as long as she can remember, Aubrielle Garcia’s father has been in the military. However, she’s grateful for what balancing military life and high school activities has shown her when it comes to living a busy life. “I think it’s really teaching...
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Worries grow about federal pay, benefits
WASHINGTON − The government shutdown entered Day 17 on Oct. 17 with no end in sight, as concerns grow about federal workers, including the military, missing paychecks and as benefits such as food assistance run out. The Pentagon shifted funding to...
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Finding most popular Halloween costumes
Wondering what costumes will be popular this Halloween? Can you still be a sexy cop or firefighter? Are inflatable costumes still a thing? Can you still pull out the Ghostface mask from the closet and go trick-or-treating? ● A thorough review of your...
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Meta to build $1.5B data center in Northeast El Paso
Meta, the company that operates Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, will invest at least $1.5 billion to build a large data center complex in Northeast El Paso. Meta representatives announced the company’s El Paso project Wednesday, Oct. 15, during an...
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Entrepreneur is force behind Sunland Park Racetrack sale
A large Pennsylvania casino real estate company recently grabbed headlines with its announcement of plans to buy Sunland Park Racetrack & Casino’s real estate assets for almost $184 million. But Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc., or GLPI, won’t own...
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ICE Camp East Montana grows
Here are the most recent aerial views of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Camp East Montana detention facilities currently under construction at Fort Bliss in El Paso. The detention center on the U.S. Army post is set to be the largest in...
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