Running head: URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

Urbanization in the Sun City

Paul Nathan Aguirre III
English 1312
The University of Texas at El Paso

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

El Paso Diversification
The city of El Paso is populated by over 670,000 people and is constantly growing in
diversity. El Paso is in the ongoing process of urbanization which leads to more people settling
here to find more job opportunities as the city life spreads to the outskirts, or otherwise, rural
areas. Civil Engineering has had a huge impact in the diversification of the University of Texas
at El Paso (where Civil Engineering is offered) and the city of El Paso as well. Civil Engineering
impacts the city by providing structural advancements through design, construction, and the
maintenance of the environment. Such structures include buildings, bridges, dams, roadways,
parks and more. With all the new structures and installations going around the city, such as the
Southwest University Ballpark, located in downtown El Paso, and the construction occurring at
UTEP, there seems to be more controversy spreading amongst the locals. There are many genres
built specifically to accommodate a certain subject or to prove a valid argument. The two genres
that will be appearing in this paper will include a newspaper article and a scholarly journal
article. Each genre will provide information on how civil engineering has caused the expansion
of urbanism around the El Paso community and why it is essential for an expanding city.
Differentiation between Genres
These specific genres show more promising information, and they seem to have more to
offer than the other genres offered. They can provide adequate information and can explain what
is really going on around the community that includes some sorts of civil engineering. The
characteristics that make these genres different from one another are clarity, and precision.
Scholarly journal articles are a reliable source that can provide you with adequate information,
and newspaper articles are reliable as well, considering that the information is local. The two
genres show great signs of communication about the subject/topic. A newspaper article can show

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

what is really going on in El Paso and around the local area. It can provide information on what
the city is going through (urbanization wise) and what people around the area think of the matter.
A newspaper article can inform you of what events recently happened, who supported/attended
the event, and what type of reactions were revealed . A newspaper article gives you the
perspective of what the community is feeling and the opinions of the locals. An example of what
a newspaper article can offer can be shown through comments that were written in the
Prospector Daily article on citizens opinions about what the new ball park has done for the
downtown area:
I havent seen so much hustle and bustle in downtown in the evening in a long time.
Although the parking for our patrons and staff is not the best, its great for the citys
growth. We at EPIC love it, Castillo said. The games have definitely been impacting
my patrons and we do get a few after-gamers come in for some drinking and
dancing.(Soto).
A newspaper article will be a great source, but will be very opinionated. The information can be
reliable and is essential genre for this topic.
The first big step has taken place and many citizens are starting to realize that urbanism is
taken place now and will be the future. (ASCE) A scholarly article can provide history on the
city of El Paso and how it has grown and changed over the years. It can provide depth in what
civil engineering did for the city and what projects helped the city expand. A scholarly journals
information will probably be the most reliable source for any research paper. The information
will be safe and will use adequate information and statistics to validate what the writer is trying
to point out. There are many scholarly journals available, and many past writers information

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

will be included. That being said, the writer will have a variety of information from just one
scholarly article.
The difference between the two genres is mostly public opinion, quality, and quantity of
sources. A newspaper article will be a journalists writings that may include many citizens
views/opinions, while a scholarly journal will usually be the writings of many mens past ideas
supporting the ideas of another mans own writings. The key factors that will separate these two
genres will be audience, purpose, and the use of ethos, pathos, and logos.
Differentiation between Genres (Audience)
Many questions will be asked by the audience. They will want to know how civil
engineering helps urbanization in El Paso. They will want to know the reasons why urbanization
is good for a city like El Paso. I will explain my research in detail and try to answer those
questions as clear as possible. They might understand that urbanization will expand the city and
could lead to more recreational events and other things associated with that. I will show why
structures like the new baseball stadium lead to urbanism and could lead to other structures to
bring more opportunities for urbanization. Many questions have to be answered and will be
answered. The main question being; why civil engineering is a step towards urbanization and
why is it important to El Paso?
The audience, which will mainly concern the citizens or locals of El Paso, will want great
detail in this subject matter. The two selected genres will answer their questions and provide
them with a great outlook on the subject. The scholarly journal written by the American
Society of Civil Engineers - , Journal and Urban Planning and Development, claims that urban
planning and development will take time and will benefit a city through many individual project
or structures for the community and for the future. Structures such as the Southwest University

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

Ballpark, located in downtown El Paso can be the start of the spread urbanization around the
city. This information provided by the scholarly journal is just a sample of what the audience
will read.
The newspaper article, Downtown businesses see minor increase with new baseball
stadium, shows a better perspective, considering that the citizens are expressing their own
opinions. Jose Soto writes about many citizens positive opinions on the stadium, and how
businesses have been doing even better since the stadium has been built. The newspaper article
will support its claim towards the subject of urbanism better towards the citizens/audience than
the scholarly journals claim of urbanism only because the newspaper article will most likely grab
the audiences attention. A newspaper article will be more appealing to a reader because of the
strategies that are used. They will use blown up photos and a giant font caption that reads
something about the topic. A scholarly journal will seem less appealing to an audience and really
wont catch a readers attention as well as a newspaper article. For the audiences preference, a
newspaper article will be most logical.
Differentiation between Genres (Purpose)
The purpose is connected to the audience and the writer. The purpose is why the writer is
bothering to explain their topic to their audience and why it matters. What does civil engineering
have to do with urbanism and why are you bother to make an argument? When the people of El
Paso accept urbanism and accept structures that can lead to urbanism, then the city will diversify.
When the city diversifies, then the citizens/locals wont complain about having nothing to do
around the city of El Paso. There will be more recreational options available in an expanding
city, and that is where civil engineering is thrown in. With the construction of the Southwest
University Ballpark, people around the area werent too happy about the idea of the city

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

approving the ballpark. The citizens of El Paso thought that the ballpark would be a waste of
money and that there wouldnt be too much revenue made with the parks presence, but that in
fact was just opinion. In reality, the parks presence has impacted the downtown area thus far. An
article on The Prospector states that the local downtown attraction has proven to be both
entertaining and lucrative for El Pasoans (Soto 2014). Writer Jose Soto also claims that the
businesses surrounding the ballpark have also seen positive results. Game goers have an array of
options for their wining and dining experiences. The ballpark is located in close proximity to
several restaurants, bars and hotels, which have been profiting since the ballparks opening.
When the ballpark is not only getting sold out but also having other businesses around the area
benefit from it, it shows just how much one structure can impact a community, and help that
community grow.
A scholarly journal will have valid statistics and will explain why urbanization is
important for any city, regardless of its situation. As the American Society of Civil Engineering
stated before, urbanism takes time. The more time it takes to make decisions on structures for the
community means there is more time to review every detail. Not many people realize how
careful civil engineers have to be with every single detail of a structure. When designing a
particular structure, civil engineers have to keep in mind that peoples lives could be at risk if
there is a flaw or set back. When a bridge is built many innocent people inside vehicles pass
through each minute, each hour of everyday, so their safety is strictly enforced. The design must
be 100 percent flawless and made to with stand wear and tear as future years pass. Civil
Engineers have to put everyones safety first then they can start planning. They have to know
what materials have to be used and if they are the right materials for that particular project. Civil
engineers dont get a pass for a mistake, and they have to make the right choice for many criteria

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

without one thing out of place. Its like solving a Rubik cube, everything has to be solved to
perfection and thats what makes a civil engineer an important part of structural developments
towards urbanism. For purpose, I believe that a scholarly journal will be more beneficial
considering the information provided.
Differentiation between Genres (Ethos, Pathos, Logos)
A scholarly journal is going to be logical and will have factual information that can lead
to what can be expected. A newspaper article may vary, but it can have some logic and what
peoples opinions are. Logos would probably be most effective way in writing this paper, but
ethos and pathos can be include. A scholarly journal may show less pathetic appeal, while a
newspaper article can show a lot of emotional response from an audience because newspaper
will do a lot to grab ones attention. Many emotions can be considered with a newspaper article,
depending on the matter at hand. I wouldnt consider pathos too much for this paper, but it may
be useful. Scholarly journals and newspaper articles will always provide enough evidence, and it
has to be right, if it is a legitimate source. Much factual information will present its self and it
would be great to use ethos for this type of paper. The more factual evidence that presents its
self, the more people will stop to consider it. The two genres are very similar with providing
factual information and difference in opinion. The scholarly journals may have broader
information and more past information included, while the newspaper articles will have more
hands on information on related information in El Paso. If the genres were missing any of these
components, then it takes away from what that genre can offer. It can show you what genre can
possess broader information and which may be the better genre to lean on.
Which Genre Works Best?

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

Though these genres may have their different perspectives, I personally feel that they
would be best for my topic research and would be very essential to my work. The insights from
the scholarly journal and newspaper article resources will provide what is indeed fact about civil
engineering and what are the locals views on urbanization. These sources will inform the reader
more about the topic and will be very reliable considering they are safe sources. After all the
time debating on which genre will be best to lean on, the scholarly journal articles will be the
way to go. The decision was difficult and the genres really had to be broken down. The scholarly
journal just offered slightly more key elements.

URBANIZATION IN THE SUN CITY

9
References

American Society of Civil Engineers. (1983). Journal of urban planning and development.
Retrieved from http://0-ascelibrary.org.lib.utep.edu/journal/jupddm; http://0search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/direct.asp?db=a9h& jid=UPD&scope=site; http://0search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/direct.asp?db=mth& jid=UPD&scope=site
Soto, Jose: Downtown businesses see minor increase with new baseball stadium, (June 24,
2014). Retrieved from
http://www.theprospectordaily.com/showcase/2014/06/24/downtown-businesses-seeminor-increase-with-new-baseball-stadium/