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Port Arthur council recesses into closed session on lawsuit, personnel reviews and proposed wind-solar lease
Summary
The Port Arthur City Council recessed into a closed executive session May 6 to get legal advice on a federal lawsuit, conduct performance evaluations of appointed officials and discuss a proposed ground lease with Diligence Offshore Services LLC for wind and solar facilities; the council reported no actions when it reconvened.
The Port Arthur City Council recessed into a closed executive session Tuesday, May 6, 2025, to seek legal advice on a pending federal lawsuit, conduct performance evaluations of appointed city officials and discuss a proposed ground lease for wind and solar energy facilities, the mayor said.
The mayor opened the session by reading statutory bases for the closed meeting, saying the council would meet under provisions of Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code and would specifically discuss attorney–client advice, personnel matters and economic-development negotiations. "We are now ready to go into our closed executive session," the mayor said as the council began the recess.
The items the mayor listed included seeking legal advice on a civil case identified in the meeting as "Kirk Thomas versus City of Port Arthur and Flozell Roberts," which the mayor said is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas; performance evaluations for appointed officials including the city manager, city attorney and city secretary; and economic-development negotiations with Diligence Offshore Services LLC over ground leases on Pleasure Island (referred to in the meeting also as Treasure Island) for development of wind and solar generation facilities. The mayor described the parcels discussed as "approximately 13.8 acres, 900 acres and 13.61 acres," language that was spoken in the meeting and that appears to have been transcribed with some irregular formatting.
After the council recessed to closed session at about 4:09 p.m., it later reconvened in open session. The city attorney reported, "No, mayor. Thank you," when asked whether any items from the executive session required action. The mayor then declared the executive session closed. The meeting record shows no vote or formal action was taken during open session on those items.
Under state law, actions that require a vote must occur in open session; the council said any action arising from the closed deliberations would be taken in open session following the meeting if necessary. The meeting transcript does not record any motions, votes, or formal directions arising from the closed session.
