County continues rebuilding Ascarate Park building

MARK LAMBIEEL PASO TIMES The El Paso County Annex at 301 Manny Martinez will house the county tax office and agriculture department.

The million dollar reconstruction of a 60-year-old armory at Ascarate Park continues as the building is being transformed into a new County Tax Assessor-Collector's office.

The tax assessor-collector is expected to move from its current office at 500 E. Overland Avenue in Downtown to the former U.S. Army Reserve Center building at Ascarate Park, 6900 Delta Drive, by the end of March, said Monique Aguilar, the county's facilities manager.

Early in the year, county officials said they were expecting to complete the renovations by September. That didn't happen. On Monday, Aguilar said the building, which was donated by the federal government to the county, had to undergo major reconstruction because of its age. She said construction crews are replacing the electrical wiring, plumbing and making the building in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Aguilar said the project, which is being done in-house, will cost about $1.3 million. The money is part of the 2012 bond.

The move is part of the county's Master Space Plan which involves the relocation of several county offices, Aguilar said.

County officials have said the renovated facility will also house the county's AgriLife Extension Service office.

Aguilar said once the tax assessor-collector moves, the county's human resources office will move into the building on Overland.

Most recently, the elections department moved from the lower level of the County Courthouse to the third floor, where construction crews also are making room for a new administration and budget office.

Neither County Tax Assessor-Collector Victor Flores nor his chief deputy Frank Ortiz responded to a request for an interview on Monday.

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County continues rebuilding Ascarate Park building