The El Paso Matters Podcast

Despite an increasing stormwater fee that El Paso Water customers pay to fund flood-control projects, segments of the city still experience periodic flooding and inundation. El Paso Matters reporter Diego Mendoza-Moyers and assistant editor Pablo Villa discuss Diego's recent interview with a top El Paso Water executive about flash floods and what the utility is doing to limit flooding. You can read Diego's reporting at elpasomatters.org.

Nearly six months after President Donald Trump was sworn into office, his administration has created a new immigration enforcement regime throughout the U.S. that has led to an increase in deportations and a major decline in the number of migrants attempting to enter the country through the southern border with Mexico. On this episode of the El Paso Matters Podcast, host Diego Mendoza-Moyers talks with El Paso Matters CEO Bob Moore and the outlet's editor Cindy Ramirez about their recent reporting on immigration-related issues in El Paso and what to expect going forward. You can read Bob and Cindy's reporting on immigration at elpasomatters.org.

In a new era of college athletics where schools will now directly pay their college athletes, there are new challenges and opportunities for a mid-tier school like the University of Texas at El Paso. ESPN 600 radio hosts Steve Kaplowitz and Adrian Broaddus join El Paso Matters staffers Diego Mendoza-Moyers and Pablo Villa to explain how UTEP will manage directly paying its athletes, and how the school might fare in the years ahead as it transitions to the Mountain West Conference. You can read Pablo's reporting on NIL and local athletics at elpasomatters.org and listen to Steve and Adrian at krod.com.

Star quarterback Jake Fette, a senior at Del Valle High School in El Paso, is a top-five player at his position in the nation. After committing to play at Arizona State University a year ago, Fette is among the highest-profile athletes from the borderland to navigate the new collegiate sports environment where the best players get paid top dollar -- a major shift from a handful of years ago, when compensating athletes could land a school in deep trouble. El Paso Matters editor and reporter Pablo Villa talks through his coverage of Fette's recruitment journey, and the shift that other top El Paso high school athletes are having to navigate compared with past generations of El Paso athletes. You can read Pablo's coverage at elpasomatters.org.

As funding comes together to advance the I-10 deck park in Downtown El Paso, Paso del Norte Community Foundation CEO Tracy Yellen joins the show to discuss why the project should be a priority for the city to construct. El Paso City Council Rep. Chris Canales follows in the second half of the episode to discuss his skepticism of the project. You can read El Paso Matters' reporting on the deck plaza at elpasomatters.org.

El Paso Independent School District's board of trustees on Tuesday approved the retirement of Superintendent Diana Sayavedra, who accepted a voluntary separation agreement, weeks after an election created a new majority on the district's board. The trustees have said little about why they ousted Sayavedra. But her exit comes as the district wrestles with a budget deficit and a plan to close numerous aging schools amid dwindling enrollment. El Paso Matters Education Reporter Claudia Silva joins the podcast to talk through Sayavedra's dramatic departure.

Two brothers in El Paso decided to buy an abandoned Boeing aircraft with visions of renovating it. Months later, they're still figuring out what to do with it.

Voters selected new school board members to represent areas in El Paso and Socorro Independent School districts. The new faces are set to govern EPISD, where administrators are planning to close eight school campuses next year, and at SISD as teacher layoffs are impending for the financially-challenged school district. El Paso Matters education reporter Claudia Silva discusses what the school board election could mean for public education in El Paso amid declining student enrollment and inadequate state funding. You can read Claudia's reporting and listen to a previous episode about public education in El Paso at elpasomatters.org.

People directly affected by the August 3, 2019 shooting at an El Paso Walmart faced the gunman in court this week. Some victims forgave the shooter -- even hugging him -- while others spoke of their broken families still left mourning nearly six years later. The shooter now will spend the rest of his life in a Texas state penitentiary after El Paso's district attorney chose not to seek the death penalty in the case. You can read reporting about the end of the most significant criminal case in El Paso's history at elpasomatters.org.

A deck park that would span five blocks and cover I-10 in Downtown El Paso is estimated to cost $207 million to build. City officials are starting to form plans to fund the project and philanthropists are expected to put up tens of millions of dollars. El Paso Matters Reporter Diego Mendoza-Moyers discusses with assistant editor Pablo Villa updates from this week about the project, and what to expect going forward. You can read Diego's reporting at elpasomatters.org.