The closure of City Hall public counter service for some departments on Fridays begins with Sept. 7.
It is a cost-saving move by the city of Walnut Creek. "The closures reflect the cumulative impact of staff reductions," states a city news release. "Since 2008, the number of City employees has been reduced from 391.5 to 340.5 equivalent full-time positions."
City Hall is at 1666 N. Main St.
From the city's press release:
By closing public counters at City Hall on Fridays, staff will be able to continue to provide excellent drop-in customer service Monday through Thursday while concentrating on other necessary duties on Fridays, said City Manager Ken Nordhoff.
No counter hour changes are occurring at other City facilities.
The following public service counters will be closed on Fridays:
- non-emergency Police Services on the first and second floors (of City Hall).
- Community Development (Planning and Building) and Public Services (Engineering and Traffic) on the second floor (note: this counter is frequently referred to as the “permit counter” or “development center”).
- Business License on the third floor.
In addition, the second floor Community Development/Public Service counter on the second floor will be closed every day between noon and 1 p.m. effective Tuesday, September 4.
The public will be redirected via signage to return Monday through Thursday.
Persons needing police assistance for emergency matters may use the red phone in the City Hall lobby to ask for help.
Phone calls to the main City lines (943-5800 and 943-5899) will automatically be routed to the phone tree on Fridays as the Police Services Officers and Volunteers in Police Services who normally answer these lines will be performing other duties on Fridays. Direct calls will continue to go to the person at that number.
