Tonight is 1st Ward Council Member Roberto Romo’s final Austin City Council meeting.

Monday, October 04, 1999

Tonight is 1st Ward Council Member Roberto Romo’s final Austin City Council meeting. In his honor, a 4:30 p.m. public reception will be held prior to the council meeting, and the council will vote on a resolution extending the city’s appreciation for his three years on the council as its last official act of the evening.

The Spanish-born council member adopted Austin as his hometown sometime after he started his career with international students at Riverland Community College in 1984. On Oct. 21, Romo announced his plans to return to Spain to care for his ailing mother. He’s taking a leave of absence from Riverland effective Oct. 17, but gives up his seat on the city council after tonight’s meeting.

"In my heart I desire to come back and get involved in my hometown – Austin," he said when announcing his departure. "I want to come back and make a difference in my city."

Mayor Bonnie Rietz said people interested in filling the 1st Ward seat until the 2000 election may pick up applications at City Hall after Thursday.

Also on tonight’s council agenda are the following items:

– Approval of a $65,000 payment for the former Wold Drug Store/Ertl’s Toys at the southwest corner of 2nd Ave. NW and Main Street. The purchase will eventually be paid for out of funds from the recently created Tax Increment Finance District No. 10. City officials are hoping to find a private developer to restore the historical building.

– Approval of Mayo commuter parking at Riverside Arena.

– Approval of a feasibility report for the extension of sanitary sewer and water for the Norman Park addition.

– A scheduled resolution to amend the portion of the City Code addressing minimum spacing of manufactured homes is still in committee and will be addressed at a later date.

Meetings of the Austin City Council are open to the public and to public comment. The 5:30 p.m. meeting will take place in Council Chambers on the lower level of the Municipal Building at 500 4th Ave. NE.