By John Waters
Publisher

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court has again postponed a decision regarding Lajitas Resort. The resort has received several bids ranging from $13.5 million to $18 million.

The resort, which filed for bankruptcy protection in July, continues to operate fully.

The Bankruptcy Court has scheduled a hearing on December 7 to consider several motions, including one “Approving Bid Procedures in Connection with the Proposed Sale of Substantially All of the Debtors’ Assets.” If agreed upon, this would effectively transfer ownership of the resort.

In late November, Kelcy Warren, whom has bid $13.5 million for Lajitas, told The Gazette, “It’s been a strange process. I was the high bidder, there have been a series of postponements to allow another bidder to bid and arrange financing…. I love that part of the world and I love the people.” Warren added that his bid was not comprised of any debt and he thought any bid with a debt component would result in failure. Warren is CEO of Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners, LLC.

In other Lajitas news, in mid-November the Associated Press reported on the state of the funding for the Lajitas “Relief Route,” a story first reported in this publication in 2005 about a proposed highway bypass around the resort, funded in part by tax dollars.

Mark Crews, an official at the Texas Department of Transportation in El Paso, confirmed none of the earmarked funds have been spent. In an email, Crews wrote, “The $1.2 million is not in the hands of the state. It is a Congressional earmark specifically designated for the Lajitas Relief Route, and is still available.” The funds cannot be spent on any other project unless directed to do so by Congress.

In 2004, officials at Lajitas Resort sought an agreement with TxDOT to reroute 6,151 feet of FM 170 to bypass Lajitas at the resort’s expense.

In September 2005, as we reported, then-Congressman Henry Bonilla had inserted a $1.2 million appropriation to the Transportation Bill for what was technically the “Lajitas Relief Route,” also known as “The Bonilla Bypass.” The appropriation required a 20% match in funds, an amount TxDOT had not budgeted due to the surprise nature of the appropriation. Neither Lajitas nor TxDOT ever funded the 20%, and construction on the bypass never took place. At the time, the San Antonio Express-News condemned Bonilla for securing funding for a private entity and called on him to redirect the money to more worthy causes. Bonilla did not do so and the funds have remained unused. No longer in office, Bonilla is currently a consultant for the Washington D.C. lobbying firm, The Normandy Group.

The destiny of the funds remains unknown, as they are controlled by the federal government and Congress may un-designate the funds if it so chooses. If any new owner of the resort moves forward with the project, the $1.2 million in federal funding is still available, provided they or TxDOT fund the 20% match. In addition, TxDOT officials estimate the total cost of the project to be several million dollars, none of which has been budgeted.

Angela Barranco from Congressman Ciro Rodriguez’s office said their staff was researching the protocol for unused earmark funds and was considering a reprogramming of the money to another project in Brewster County.