After kicking around the idea of moving Buffalo’s downtown Department of Motor Vehicles main office for months, the control board has approved an efficiency grant to make the move happen.
The more than $1 million project covers new equipment and remodeling vacant parts of the Rath Building to hold the office, currently located at 77 Broadway. The county currently leases the space for the downtown DMV office. County Clerk Kathy Hochul has estimated that the move will pay for itself in five years, since the county-owned Rath Building can host the site rent free.
The new facilities, which Hochul is looking to have open by May of next year, will include a waiting room with seating and television to watch instead of the dreaded long lines for which DMVs everywhere are famous. There will also be childcare available for customers while they’re doing business.
“This is a great opportunity to save over $1 million in five years while restructuring our services in a more customer-friendly environment,” Hochul said.
The downtown location currently processes more than 200,000 transactions each year, but Hochul is betting that number will jump with people looking for new enhanced licenses. She said she’s hopeful the new location will better accommodate the added volume while still reducing costs.
“Working in collaboration with the county executive, the control board and the county legislature, we’ll create real cost savings while dramatically improving the delivery of our services to our customers,” Hochul said.
Another political nod
Also of note this week, Erie County Legislator Michele Iannello, D-Kenmore, received an endorsement from County Comptroller Mark Poloncarz. Both were first elected to county office in 2005 after that year’s budget debacle.
Poloncarz said he’s confident Iannello will work to tighten up state spending and pointed to her experience in the legislature as the key motivation behind his endorsement.
“Every candidate in this race will say they will reform Albany, but only Michele has reformed government,” Poloncarz said.
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