Border Demolition fined for night demolition work in Downtown El Paso (update)

Demolition of a building at San Antonio and Mesa in Downtown is underway. It's one of five buildings River Oaks Properties is demolishing on a Downtown block for possible future development. Preservationists had tried to get the city to stop the demolitions because they said the buildings are historically important for El Paso. ( Rudy GutierrezEl Paso Times)

Border Demolition & Environmental Inc., the company hired by River Oaks Properties to demolish five Downtown buildings, was ordered to pay $1,700 by the city for violating its demolition permits, city officials said.

Demolition began Tuesday night on a building at the corner of San Antonio and Mesa, one of five buildings River Oaks is demolishing on a Downtown block for possible future development.

Border Demolition's city-issued permits require demolition work be done between 6 a.m.-10 p.m. But the city received video evidence that demolition went beyond 10 p.m., Tuesday, Javier Camacho, a spokesman for the city Development Department said Thursday.

Mathew McElroy, director of the city Development Department, said Friday that initial information that River Oaks was fined was wrong. And the money Border Demolition has to pay is not technically a fine, he said. It's money Border must pay for city costs associated with the permit violation, he said.

Border Demolition officials have indicated the company will comply with all demolition permit requirements, McElroy said.

River Oaks officials did not respond Thursday to requests for comments.

A building at 109 S. Mesa has been torn down, and demolition continued Thursday on the adjacent building at 218 E. San Antonio. Three other adjacent buildings on San Antonio remained standing Thursday.

Meanwhile, historic building preservationists have turned their attention from fighting the River Oaks' demolitions to trying to get City Council to declare a moratorium on future demolition of Downtown buildings until a preservation plan can be put together.

"Ideally we would like a moratorium on the demolition of buildings over 100 years old Downtown until the city can appoint an independent commission" of experts who could review the city's Downtown historic district boundaries and buildings outside that district and devise a preservation plan, said Max Grossman, vice chairman of the El Paso County Historical Commission, a County Commissioners Court appointed body, and an assistant professor of art history at UTEP.

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Border Demolition fined for night demolition work in Downtown El Paso (update)