Who's Behind 'My Town Our Future' PR Campaign?
By Beatz Alvarado
Highlights:
- Exxon & Saudis launch pro-industry public relations campaign targeting industry workers and voters
- Core funders of campaign also donated to new pro-industry PAC
Exxon Mobil and the investment arm of the Saudi Arabian royal family – Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) – launched a public relations campaign in response to an “erosion in support for industrial expansion” in the Coastal Bend.
Together, they go by Gulf Coast Growth Ventures (GCGV) and they co-own the second largest ethane cracker plant in the world in Gregory, Texas. The massive $10 billion petrochemical complex turns fracked gas into plastic.
The public relations campaign, My Town Our Future, was launched by GCGV in response to a concern that growing anti-business rhetoric in broader Corpus Christi was starting to erode public support for industrial and manufacturing expansion across the Coastal Bend, according to a presentation to the Port of Corpus Christi Authority.
The presentation on the My Town Our Future campaign was delivered to port commissioners on Sept. 17, 2024 by GCGV President Paul Fritsch and Renwick (Renny) DeVille, the owner and principal of Harris Deville & Associates, the public relations firm hired to lead the campaign.
“The last thing the area wants to be viewed as is not friendly for business because at any one time those things can impact long-term investment decisions,” said DeVille.
GCGV is leading the charge alongside industry partners, chambers of commerce, and realtor and developer associations. Thirteen core funding partners are listed on the campaign website launched by the Louisiana-based public relations firm. Deville said the firm has delivered over 50 presentations locally on the campaign.
Core Funding Partners
- Associated Builders and Contractors – Texas Coastal Bend RGV Council
- Associated General Contractors
- Coastal Bend Home Builders Association
- United Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce
- Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation
- Corpus Christi Association of Realtors
- Port of Corpus Christi Authority
- San Patricio County Economic Development Corporation
- Texas Oil & Gas Association
- Texas State Aquarium
- Bath Group
- Coastal Bend Industry Association
- TFW Construction
The campaign’s intent is to create a narrative that credits industrial expansion for quality of life improvements, as well as to create a “positive business environment,” Deville said.
Legally, neither the firm, nor GCGV, can endorse political candidates but the campaign’s direct target audience are “14,000 industry employees, extended families and pro-business voters,” according to the presentation delivered by Deville.
“We’re not a political organization, but we recognize that politics and voting and creating a space that is pro-growth and pro-development is important,” Deville said. “So, when we talk about direct engagement and action, that is going to be the part where we encourage the 14,000 direct employees and their families to participate in the voting process.”
Those leading the petrochemical economy in the Coastal Bend have a large political footprint in local elections. In addition to the My Town Our Future public relations campaign aimed to mobilize area residents and industry employees to vote, a Political Action Committee heavily funded by similar key players was recently established.
Top contributors to the Coastal Bend Coalition PAC include Exxon Mobil’s Texas PAC and Gulf Coast Growth Ventures (GCGV). Other contributors include former Port of Corpus Christi Commissioner Al Jones, Koch Industries, Occidental Petroleum’s PAC, Valero, Lyondell Chemical’s PAC, among others.
The Coastal Bend Coalition endorsed eight candidates for Corpus Christi City Council seats.
