Minneapolis reduces 311 help-line service

Need to report a broken street light? Stray dog roaming your neighborhood? Just have a question about the city of Minneapolis?

These are some of the queries handled by 311, the city's popular non-emergency telephone answer line, but because of budget cuts the service's hours will be reduced 25 percent starting April 12.

The service, which operates weekdays from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., will shut down nightly at 7 p.m.

BELT-TIGHTENING

The change, approved by the City Council in December, will save $277,000 out of a $3.1 million budget, said Don Stickney, director of Minneapolis 311.

"Everybody had to come up with various scenarios to meet budget," Stickney said. "Only 5 percent of our calls come in between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. and so, as we looked at all the various priorities, it was something to meet our budget goals."

The 311 number got about 20,000 calls between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. in 2009.

"311 is one of the most important things we have done to contain costs and give better service to our residents," Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak said Monday.

"Considering the massive state aid cuts, we have to make tough choices like this, but my goal is to eventually restore the hours and expand them."

He said, however, that he was pleased that 311 will still operate longer than traditional business hours, so people can call after work.

The cut will eliminate five positions, reducing staff from 34 to 29. Of the five, one employee was laid off, one has found another city job, one is looking for another job, and two vacant positions will not be filled.

ALTERNATIVES

SNOW EMERGENCIES?

The 311 phone line handled 412,452 calls in 2009. About 70 percent were for information and the remainder were service requests.

The number of calls has leveled off as more people use the city's website, Stickney said.

A common nighttime call during the winter concerned snow emergencies, he said. That information continues to be available at 612-348-SNOW, but that automated line won't get much use until November.