Olmos Park officials expect to wrap up a multimillion-dollar, seven-year city infrastructure project by month’s end with final phases of street and sewer refurbishing nearing completion.

Engineers updated the Olmos Park City Council during its May 16 meeting about the project, begun in 2000, that involves repaving city streets, replacing curbs, refurbishing sewers and realigning water meters for front-yard access to meter readers.

Undertaken in four phases, the $9.2 million project included an additional $1 million in change orders, but council had budgeted for such increases, said City Manager Amy Buckert. Mayor Gerald Z. Dubinski, Sr., estimated the San Antonio Water System kicked in another $5 million for sewer work.

Buckert said work should be completed by the end of May. Engineers displayed a map of city streets, with unfinished work represented by highlighted arteries: East Olmos Drive; Olmos Drive; Park Drive; Ironwood Drive; Park Hill Drive; half of East Thelma Drive; Trevitt Drive; and Annie Avenue. The latter is among streets requiring change orders, as were Olmos, Park and Trevitt Drive, Buckert said.

Dubinski said he was particularly pleased at the sewer replacement. “Some of those sewers were 80 years old and not in good condition at all. It was time the whole thing be refurbished,” he said in a later interview.

In other business, council members appointed attorney Don Philbin and architect/engineer Wade Giddens to a building committee providing input for a new City Hall. Discussion on replacing existing city quarters at 119 W. El Prado Drive dates to 1999, when a space planner advised future needs required doubling the current 5,000-square-foot space. Such talk has gained steam in the last six months since commissioning Sprinkle Robey Architects for input.

Aside from being cramped, city quarters are not compliant with federal Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines, Dubinski said. He added city leaders have several options, including demolishment and reconstruction of a multi-story edifice at the same site or buying new real estate to accommodate staff. The latter option includes an offer by a husband-and-wife pair of residents, Glen and Jan Ayers, to sell a 4,500-square-foot home across the street from current city space for municipal use, Dubinsky said.

A special City council meeting, presented in a town-hall format to encourage community input on the city hall plans and provide a primer on the infrastructure project, was scheduled for Wednesday at Trinity University’s Chapman Auditorium from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The council meeting’s end was somewhat bittersweet, as members bid farewell to longtime council member Robert Price — unseated by political newcomer Sean McNelis, 41, during the May 12 election – and Ronald J. Hermann, who resigned for health reasons.

“Their single motivation was doing what was best and right for the community as a whole … true public servants,” said Councilman Ronald G. Tefteller.

Council voted to appoint Hermann’s handpicked successor, resident Jeff Judson, to serve the remainder of his term. Owner of a namesake firm, Judson works in the area of public policy analysis and coalition building. All council members voted for the recommendation, except for Harriett Oppenheimer, who was absent. She and Joe Izbrand retained their incumbent council seats at the last election.

Despite defeat, 75-year-old Price said he would remain civically active: “It’s been mostly my pleasure to serve on this council for 10 years,” he joked. “I’ll continue to be there for the city and help in any way I can.”