CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — With the search for a permanent CEO for the Port of Corpus Christi about to get underway, talk of the resignation of the former CEO still lingers.
Sean Strawbridge resigned on May 16, and his final day was Wednesday.
3NEWS reported on Wednesday that commissioners reached a final separation agreement with Strawbridge. It's an agreement that 3NEWS was the first to lay eyes on, and it went into effect Thursday.
What seems to be most at issue is the port's willingness to pay Strawbridge $1.6 million, not something usually done for someone who plans to leave voluntarily.
When 3NEWS spoke to Port of Corpus Christi Chairman Charlie Zahn, he said that the money is a way of tangibly recognizing Strawbridge's contributions to the growth of the port over his eight years.
He also said that most of the commissioners who serve the port agree.
"I’ll tell you this, that the agreement itself was approved by a majority of commissioners, who did what they thought was in the best interest of Sean Strawbridge and the Port of Corpus Christi," he said.
However, one commissioner does not think the agreement is in the port's best interest.
Diane Gonzalez, who began her term in January of the year. She voted against it, and told 3NEWS that rather than negotiate a new way out for Strawbridge, they should have stuck with what she said was in his original contract -- an agreement to pay his salary for one year.
“The employee resigned, and in the event of a resignation, the employee would receive one year of salary, which is $575,000. This is three times what the contract called for. It’s like a $1 million gift from the Port of Corpus Christi," she said.
Gonzalez said that the port needs a new level of transparency, and believes that will come with newly appointed interim CEO Kent Britton.
In the meantime, port commissioner have hired Shey-Harding Associates to help them in their search for a permanent CEO.
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