The South Padre Island City Council on Tuesday authorized the city manager to negotiate a contract with the highest-ranked firm from an RFQ process — Hunden Partners — to provide tourism and convention center development consulting for a possible convention-center annex on the privately owned 17-acre beachfront tract between Margaritaville and Bridgepoint (the Agora property).

Mayor Patrick McNulty and staff described the RFQ and interview process: a mixed committee of CVB members, city staff and council members interviewed three finalists and scored them individually. The interviews were conducted in a closed, committee setting to evaluate qualifications; staff said price negotiations occur after the qualifications-based selection and that the manager will bring any negotiated contract back to council for final approval.

Council members asked about potential conflicts of interest and public transparency. The mayor said neither he nor other committee members have an ownership interest in the property and that the negotiations are preliminary: "We have to hire someone to represent the city’s interests before we can start negotiating land or development terms," he said during the meeting. Several council members emphasized that any contract terms and any subsequent land or development agreements would return to council for public consideration.

The motion to authorize negotiation of a contract with the highest-ranked firm carried.

Why it matters: The city is exploring whether a convention-center annex could be integrated into a private beachfront development, which could affect local hotel tax revenue and long-term tourism strategy. At this stage the action authorizes negotiation only; contract price and scope will come back to council for approval.

What’s next: City manager will negotiate terms with Hunden Partners and present a proposed contract to council for approval, including cost, scope and schedule.