Lake Isabella DMV Office to Close for Brief Period for Renovation Work

CORRECTION:
(Corrected to read 14 work-day closure instead of 6 work days. Please also note reopening date of Dec. 6th. Some media incorrectly reported a different reopening date. )

Sacramento-The Lake Isabella office of the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will be temporarily closed for 14 working days at the end of business November 10, 2004, for renovations to improve access for disabled customers and to modernize public restrooms. Other repair work will include interior painting and the replacement of old office flooring. DMV officials say the easiest way to accommodate this work is to shut the facility for a brief time. The office will reopen for business on Monday, December 6, 2004.

According to DMV records, the 14-year old office has not had any sort of major renovation work since it opened in 1990. The facility is located at 5520 Lake Isabella Boulevard, Suite G-1, in Lake Isabella.

The Lake Isabella office is one of several offices slated for maintenance, repairs and/or renovation work during 2004. DMV usually closes about a dozen offices each year for varying lengths of time to make infrastructure repairs of some sort or for equipment installation.

The Lake Isabella office employs 2 full-time employees and 1 part-time worker who handle more than 27,000 transactions each year. During the brief renovation project, technicians will be loaned to nearby DMV offices to help handle customers diverted because of the construction project.

DMV officials say they carefully monitor the workload of surrounding offices on a day-by-day basis and move technicians to where they are most needed when an office is closed because of projects such as this one. The offices where Lake Isabella DMV customers will be steered are:

Ridgecrest, 540 Perdew Avenue, Suite A,68 miles away

Bakersfield, 3120 F Street, 50 miles away, and

Bakersfield Southwest, 7000 Schirra Court,-58 miles away

In a continuing effort to shorten lines and wait times, the DMV wants customers to understand there are a number of options currently available to them, which if properly utilized, can dramatically reduce the number of transactions handled in any field office on a face-to-face basis. That means shorter lines and wait-times. For example, most routine services the DMV provides can be done by mail; instructions for mailing license or registration renewals are included with the notifications sent out by the Department. Customers can use checks or money orders to renew by mail.

The Internet is also useful for handling many transactions as well, including driver license and vehicle registration renewals. All that's needed is DMV paperwork and a credit card. (Note: The $4 "convenience" fee charged for credit card usage was discontinued on July 1, 2004.) The DMV Website may be accessed at www.dmv.ca.gov. Personalized license plates, boat registration, scheduling for DMV appointments, refund requests, and checking on driving school licensing can also be handled electronically.

But if a face-to-face transaction is necessary, appointments are always encouraged---either by phone at 800-777-0133 or again, over the Internet. Both options are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.