Pacifica city hall, services and facilities are open

during the week between Christmas and New Year. Some San Mateo county city services will close. 

Driving by the Pacifica community center (Crespi Drive), I was happy to see the center open, and their neon sign advertising lunch is being served to seniors. Today Silicon Valley Mercury News advised that Belmont, San Carlos, Daly City, and San Mateo city halls, many facilities, services will be closed for the entire week (12/24/10 through 1/2/11).  Of course this is a cost savings measure, but these holidays are also stressful for citizens, and there may be outstanding business that requires completion by the end-of-the-year. Glad to see the city of Pacifica will be "open and doing business" (except for Fridays 12/24 and 12/31) as described by city clerk, Kathy O'Connell.  This year Christmas day and New Year's day occur on Saturday. 
 
From Silicon Valley Mercury News 12/22/10.  Check out your library books and pay your water bills now, because cities across San Mateo County will be closing their facilities for up to 10 days starting this week in an effort to save money.  In San Mateo, only emergency facilities such as police and fire departments will remain open from Friday through Jan. 2. It will be the first time in memory that City Hall, the main library, the two library branches, the senior center and other recreation centers will all be closed during that span.

Belmont, San Carlos and Daly City will also close city facilities from Dec. 24 through Jan. 2. All cities say they will restore business as usual on the morning of Jan. 3. Even though Christmas and New Year's Day fall on Saturdays this year, all cities in the county say they will observe the holidays and close facilities on the Fridays beforehand, Dec. 24 and Dec. 31. In some cases, facilities will close early or all day on the Thursdays before the holidays, Dec. 23 and Dec. 30.

The cities also say they will have their public works crews on standby in case strong rains or wind cause emergencies. In most cities, the employees who typically staff the buildings will have to take unpaid time off, although in some cases they can take paid vacation days. Several cities have implemented mandatory furlough days as part of employee concessions, and a good chunk of the unpaid time off will come next week.  Belmont City Manager Greg Scoles said the closure is about timing, since fewer people typically walk into City Hall or other facilities during the holiday weeks.  And if cities are going to require furlough time, it makes sense to do it at a time when employees want time off anyway, officials said.Scoles said the closure is about timing, since fewer people typically walk into City Hall or other facilities during the holiday weeks. 

"Demand drops down significantly during this season," said Matt Bronson, assistant city manager of San Mateo. "That's why you'll see a lot of different agencies taking this opportunity to save money and let (their employees) enjoy the holidays with their families."  The big savings for cities, almost all of which are going through budget problems, are through employee pay reductions.  In San Mateo, for instance, three-quarters of city spending is on employees.  But the cities will also save some money on utilities and other costs. In San Mateo, the furloughs are part of cuts that will total $2.2 million this fiscal year.

Posted by Kathy Meeh