City offices could be closed to the public on Fridays that are
not furlough days as soon as April 23 thanks to a 4-3 vote by the
City Council on Monday.
City offices could be closed to the public on Fridays that are not furlough days as soon as April 23 thanks to a 4-3 vote by the City Council on Monday.
The council approved the idea without discussion during the meeting, though members had talked about the issue March 13 during a goal-setting session. Councilmen Craig Gartman, Perry Woodward and Bob Dillon dissented.
Human Resources Director LeeAnn McPhillips has labeled the non-furlough closures as “Power Fridays” and has expressed hopes that city staff members will be able to boost their productivity on those days. City offices are already closed on the first and third Fridays of the month while employees are on furlough as a cost-saving measure the City Council implemented last year.
“I think there’s a balance there,” McPhillips said Tuesday. “There are customers that we’re trying to serve that aren’t the ones who are at City Hall.”
City office closures are set to begin April 23, McPhillips said. In the meantime, city officials need to notify staff members as well as the public about the closures, she said.
A staff report that McPhillips presented Monday provided a long list of tasks that will be targeted for the Power Fridays. Those included program and special event planning, completing monthly budget reports, completing grant applications, fulfilling public information requests and working on special projects, such as the high-speed rail.
“While closing offices on the 2nd and 4th Fridays can be perceived as a reduced level of service, better results can be achieved for those customers relying on staff to complete work items such as contracts, staff reports, development agreements, correspondence, agenda packets, etc.,” McPhillips’ report said.
Staff members will continue to conduct building and public works inspections on those days, and public works will not be affected, McPhillips said. In addition, staff members can schedule meetings with members of the public on those days, she said.
The town of Los Gatos implemented similar department closures to enhance productivity last March, said Assistant Town Manager Pamela Jacobs. The front counters in the planning, building, finance and public works departments at Los Gatos Town Hall close to the public daily at 1 p.m., though staff in those departments still take phone calls and make appointments.
“It’s been very successful,” Jacobs said. “From the town’s point of view, it’s really helped with the productivity to just not have the walk-in traffic.”
But cities like Mountain View, San Jose, Milpitas and Morgan Hill have maintained regular business hours.
The Gilroy Police Department will treat the closures the same way that they treat furlough Fridays, Gilroy Police Chief Denise Turner said.
A sign on the front door of the police station will notify the public that they can press a button, and records staff will contact them.
“We do have a lot of staff work that we’ll be able to get done on that Friday,” Turner said. “This will really make it much better.”
However, not everyone is convinced of the closures’ merits. Gartman said the closures constitute a decline in customer service.
He particularly expressed concern about residents who do not frequent City Hall, such as people who wish to pay a utility bill or sign up children for recreation programs.
“Let’s not look at it from the developer standpoint,” he said. “Let’s look at it from the taxpayer standpoint.”
Councilman Bob Dillon agreed, saying it is better for City Hall only to be closed one out of every 10 days than one out of five.
Gartman also said he was puzzled that city staff members say they are swamped with work when virtually no development is occurring in town.
On the other hand, some administrators now must answer routine questions from the public that ordinarily would be handled by other employees as a result of staff shortages, Councilman Dion Bracco said.
Bracco, who supported the additional closures every other Friday, believes the new policy will help prevent residents from being confused.
“(Members of the public) can’t normally remember which day they’re working and which day they’re not,” Bracco said. “If they’re closed every Friday, then it’s simple.”
In addition, Mayor Al Pinheiro believes increased productivity resulting from the policy change will mean the city will not need to hire additional staff to accomplish those tasks.
Pinheiro, who presented the idea of the city office closures during the council’s goal-setting session, said he sometimes closes the doors of his insurance office to the public on holidays that his staff does not take off, allowing workers to get more business done.
As for the city’s closures, the mayor said he has yet to hear any feedback other than from fellow council members.
Similarly, Gilroy Chamber of Commerce President Susan Valenta has not heard concerns from local businesses, although she noted that it is still a brand new policy.
“Usually something like that starts to sink in when someone goes in on a Friday, and it’s not open,” Valenta said.
In the end, the city can change the new policy if it does not make sense, Pinheiro said.
“If it doesn’t work, we can always adjust,” Pinheiro said.
