CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A contentious debate over transparency erupted at Tuesday's Corpus Christi City Council meeting as members clashed over whether to hear a police department presentation about developer Phillip Ramirez and the controversial $2 million Homewood Suites hotel incentive.
The council ultimately voted 5-3 with one abstention to postpone agenda item #31 until mid-February, but not before accusations flew about political motivations, selective investigations, and transparency failures.
"This is honestly ridiculous, and it is not being transparent," argued Mayor Paulette Guajardo, calling the postponement contrary to promises of transparency. They insisted the public deserved to know immediately that a multi-agency criminal investigation had exonerated Ramirez.
"I don't want to be associated with postponing a report that's been provided. That's been worked on by our police department and is ready to share with the public," Councilman Scott said.
Supporters of postponement fired back, arguing they wanted to present both the police report and an expected independent attorney report simultaneously to avoid contradictions and ensure comprehensive information.
The debate grew increasingly heated as council members traded barbs about political motivations and selective investigations.
Critics pointed out that the police probe targeted only Ramirez criminally, not council members, the mayor or other officials involved in approving the deal. References were made to depositions, deleted files and unrelated issues during the contentious discussion.
The Mayor at one point said, "Everyone sitting up here that's going to vote to hold off on this, you should really be ashamed because y'all talk about transparency, you talk about being open with the public," while Councilwoman Vaughn said, "don't tell anybody up here to be ashamed because they don't support something that's wrong."
Guajardo apologized to the police department for having police sit through the meeting, only to have the item tabled.
The police report, completed in December, concluded that no criminal charges would be filed against Ramirez related to allegations that he presented altered FEMA floodplain documents to justify unexpected costs for the downtown hotel project.
Opponents of the delay argued that postponing the presentation appeared as suppression, especially after the agenda posting had built public expectation for the report's release.
They emphasized that the police report was already completed, ready for public consumption, and backed by multiple agencies, including the FBI, Texas Rangers, U.S. Attorney's Office, and local district attorney's office.
"The presentation was factual from a reputable source, not political, and the public deserved to know the exoneration promptly," opponents argued during the heated exchange.
The postponement will delay the presentation until the independent attorney report is expected in mid-February. That report stems from council votes in September and October 2025 to hire outside counsel to investigate fraud allegations.
The $2 million incentive represents the first time Corpus Christi used Type B sales tax funds to subsidize a hotel. The council approved the incentive for developers Deven Bhakta and Phillip Ramirez of Elevate QOF, LLC in 2024.
Ramirez's attorney, Jeff Lehrman, confirmed in a December 17, 2025, statement that law enforcement agencies had "completely exonerated" Ramirez.
WATCH THE DEBATE IN FULL HERE:
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