For Information Contact:
Brian Adey
798-5800
Griffo:
Two County Departments Move
Into
Other
Offices Relocating to
Oneida County Executive Joseph A. Griffo today announced that two county offices are completing their relocations into county-owned facilities at 235 Elizabeth St., the building that also houses the Law Library.
Griffo said that the Office of Mental Health and the Office for Aging & Continuing Care will occupy office space on the second floor of the building. The public entrance for these offices is on Burnet St., just around the corner from the Law Library entrance.
Both offices were relocated from leased space. Mental Health moved from 287 Genesee St. and the Office for the Aging and Continuing Care relocated from 520 Seneca St. “Consolidating offices in county-owned space saves taxpayers the cost of paying rent,” Griffo said. “These moves help us keep our major presence in downtown Utica and continue to invest in the upkeep of our current county-owned buildings.”
Office For Aging & Continuing Care Director Kenneth Abramczyk said the office will move its office on Friday, December 10th. He also said that a special area for Office For Aging & Continuing Care clients is being set up on the 1st floor of the County Building at 800 Park Avenue. He said the area will be open for business on Monday, December 13th, 2004. The area will be handicapped accessible and will be manned by Office For Aging case workers from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM Monday through Friday.
Abramczyk said the Office For Aging & Continuing Care telephone number will remain the same, 315-798-5456, and that case workers will continue to visit their clients on a regular basis as usual. He noted that computer and telephone disruptions are possible during the first few days of the transition.
Griffo said the move will not impact services to seniors. “Most seniors contact the Office for the Aging and Continuing Care by phone, so that our caring and concerned staff can come to them for a home visit and discuss the kinds of ways in which we can help seniors live in autonomy, dignity and independence. Many other seniors who need assistance contact our staff at Senior Dining Sites served by visiting teams that cover the Utica area, Rome area, Northern Oneida County and Southern Oneida County.”
Griffo said the Office for the Aging & Continuing Care will be joined by
other departments when renovations are finished on the first floor Social
Services Center.
“We want to streamline the process for people who need services,” Griffo
said. “By bringing together representatives of several departments, we can
help customers who may need help from a number of departments, and serve
them in one area without making them go from floor to floor or from building
to building. The mission of
Oneida County government is to serve the people in the most effective and
efficient manner possible. This is one more step toward that goal.”
Griffo noted that later this month, the Oneida County Health Department will complete its move from 520 Seneca St. to the County Office Building. Administrative Offices have moved to the 8th floor. Environmental Health, Epidemiology and Finance are on the 9th floor; Early Intervention and the Physically Handicapped Children’s Program are on the 3rd floor. Homecare and Maternal/Child Healthcare will be located on B2 when the move is completed later this month.
Griffo said that space for the move was partially created by Griffo’s
decision to move the budget office from the 8th floor of the
County Office Building to excess space in his 10th Floor office.
“By reducing staff in my office we were able to relocate the budget
office up here,” Griffo said. “We are going to maximize the usage of
every bit of space we own so that we can reduce rental costs and save
taxpayers money.”