Commissioners OK F1 contract changes

County commissioners unanimously approved changes to their contract with Circuit of the Americas, backing away from a previous pledge to widen a pair of roads in the area to four lanes.

The circuit also gave up asking the county to pay $205,345 for a wider water line that Austin’s water utility recommended.

In their original agreement in May, the county and circuit agreed to widen Elroy and Kellam roads to four lanes, a project officials have estimated would have cost $9 million to $10 million. The roads, currently two and three lanes respectively, were found to be wide enough during last month’s Formula One Grand Prix, the county’s transportation executive, Steve Manilla, said Tuesday.

The county may consider other improvements to roads in the area including widening some intersections or adding a third lane to Elroy Road, but those are several years off and range in cost from tens of thousands to tens of millions of dollars, Manilla said.

The AARP Foundation TaxAide program is seeking volunteers to help taxpayers who are seeking assistance preparing and filing their 2012 tax returns. Those interested in helping should email Marlene Reinschmidt at mreinschmidt@verizon.net. For more information, go to aarp. org/tavolunteer8.

The annual Hendrickson High School Breakfast with Santa and Holiday Extravaganza is scheduled for Saturday.

The event will include a pancake breakfast, crafts, photos with Santa, games and a silent auction.

Breakfast with Santa hours is from 8 to 11 a.m. and the Holiday Extravaganza will be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets range from $5-$12 for breakfast; admission to the Holiday Extravaganza is free.

All proceeds benefit Hendrickson’s Senior Celebration. For more information go to hhsseniorcelebration.org.