One of the state’s highest-profile personal injury attorneys is bumping up his offer to secure the naming rights of what is currently known as the American Bank Center.
In a news release June 12, Thomas J. Henry wrote that his proposal now reaches $2 million paid annually for a 10-year term.
His previous bid called for $1.25 million paid annually for a 10-year term, and was later increased to $1.5 million paid annually over a 10-year term.
The $2 million paid annually over 10 years will be his final offer, Henry wrote.
“At $20 million, this is my best and final offer — and if someone can beat it, the taxpayers win. That’s always been my goal,” he wrote. “This isn’t about whose name is on a building — this is about making sure Corpus Christi gets the biggest and best deal possible. I want to lead by example, and encourage anyone who wants to bid on the naming rights to exceed my offer.”
The email falls on the heels of a June 10 Corpus Christi City Council meeting in which the prevailing vote supported awarding the naming rights to the “most responsible entity that offers the most funding to the city.”
American Bank’s naming rights contract for the complex is set to expire in the upcoming months.
A decision on who will be awarded the naming rights to the downtown Corpus Christi entertainment and business hub has recently led to a back-and-forth between Henry and some of the City Council members.
Henry has asserted that the process “has remained mired in needless delay and political interference,” while some council members have responded that the city — and the company contracted to manage the American Bank Center — must follow a process outlined in an agreement.
What factors should be taken into account in the decision has been a dividing point on the council.
Some council members have said Henry — cited by several officials as offering the highest price for the naming rights — should be awarded the rights based, at least in part, on dollar amount offered.
Others have asserted that the naming rights decision should go to the recommendation made by OVG, the company that manages American Bank Center, or what was described as “the best partner for the (facility) overall.”
The identity of the next-highest bidder and their offer was not immediately available as of mid-day June 12.
In a message sent to the Caller-Times last year, OVG representatives wrote that they were “leading the selection process for the naming rights partner, and the decision will be made in collaboration with the City of Corpus Christi.”
Some council members have questioned whether what they described as Henry’s litigation with the city — representing clients, not as himself — should rule him out.
Henry in an email described it as sounding “like small-minded politics.”
“My firm representing injured individuals against the city is not a conflict of interest,” he wrote. “Thomas J. Henry is not the litigant and doesn’t legally represent the city either.”
The process to select a new naming rights partner has stretched over two years, according to city staff.
What has been most important is that “the city of Corpus Christi has an independent and transparent selection process,” wrote Mayor Paulette Guajardo in a message to the Caller-Times on June 11.
“This process was put in place so that council members would not be subject to political influence,” she wrote.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Thomas J. Henry has upped his offer for American Bank Center naming rights. Here’s the bid
Reporting by Kirsten Crow, Corpus Christi Caller Times / Corpus Christi Caller Times
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