A new player has joined the gas station game in Rhome.
After emerging from closed session last week, the Rhome city council approved entering into negotiations with QuikTrip on the gas station chain bringing a location to the city.
Northrop said Friday the gas station will be located near Taco Casa at the southeast corner of BC Rhome and U.S. 81/287 in the city limits.
The seven-hour meeting, which started Thursday evening and stretched into early Friday morning, included winding discussion that ventured down several bunny trails, including criticisms and eventually shouts about flowers.
But the council did vote on several important items for the city, including how meetings would take place in the future.
Considering mounting pressure for the Rhome City Council to return to in-person meetings, while also providing meeting access to those who have been tuning in virtually for more than a year, the council approved spending $6,000 to purchase audio/visual equipment to livestream meetings in-person meetings.
Mayor Pro Tem Elaine Priest said that it’s important to offer a live-streaming option, considering the current facility where council meetings take place that aren’t accessible to some residents as well as COVID-19 concerns.
On the other side of the debate, council member Ashley Majors has been pushing for the city to return to an in-person format for the past few months. Rhome is the only city council in Wise County still meeting virtually. Many of those cities have dropped a requirement to wear masks at the meeting.
“We’re going to in-person meetings sooner rather than later,” Northrop said.
Majors said Rhome could livestream the meetings now through Facebook Live, with someone in the audience holding up their phone during the meeting.
Council member Josh McCabe said that the Facebook option wouldn’t be inclusive to all residents, since some do not have Facebook accounts. He said accessing YouTube for meeting footage is more widely available.
After debating the cost of acquiring the necessary equipment, the council directed Northrop to pursue the technology.
Northrop said it would be difficult, but doable to get the equipment at that price tag.
In other business, the council:
- amended its fee schedule in its code of ordinances.
- raised wastewater rates.
- approved settling a dispute about a violation with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality involving chlorine levels.
- entered into an interlocal agreement between Region 8 Education Service Center and Rhome to address damages from the winter storm.
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