Delaware County closing office building on Fridays

A central Indiana county facing steep budget cuts will be shutting down its main government building on Fridays and cutting the work week of nearly 150 employees.

The Delaware County commissioners voted 2-1 on Monday to begin the Friday shutdown this week and to also eliminate six paid holidays for county workers.

Commissioner Donald Dunnuck says the county's "dire times" forced the decision.

The County Council voted last week to cut three hours from the work week of employees who don't work for emergency services or the courts, The Star Press of Muncie reported. The council decided to spread the 32-hour work week for the employees over four days.

Authorities estimate the shutdown will save several hundred thousand dollars toward about $8 million in planned cuts.

Commissioner Larry Bledsoe voted against the Friday closing plan, maintaining that it doesn't amount to enough savings.

"Our two biggest bills are payroll and health care," Bledsoe said. "We've not addressed those."

Delaware County Building will now be open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Thursday — an hour longer each day for some offices. Hours for the Delaware County Justice Center will not change from the current 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The six holidays cut by the commissioners — Presidents Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Good Friday, Columbus Day, Veterans Day and the day after Thanksgiving — will leave county employees with eight paid holidays, including two election days.