Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : City Hall May Close on Alternating Fridays : Government: Proponents say plan is more efficient than operating with half the regular staff on Mondays.

Supporters of a proposed new city work schedule say City Hall would run more efficiently if it were closed every other Friday rather than operating with half the regular staff on Mondays.

If approved by the City Council tonight, the new routine would close city offices on alternating Fridays and operate on other days between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. It would take effect in late March or early April. Currently, half the staff is off every other Monday.

Modified work schedules are part of Santa Clarita’s efforts to meet South Coast Air Quality Management District standards. The AQMD requires businesses with 100 or more employees to reduce the number of car trips to work by encouraging car pooling, public transportation or bicycling.

Santa Clarita has about 185 full-time employees and has given its workers every other Monday off since January, 1992. The modified schedules have employees working 80 hours over nine days rather than 10, thereby reducing the number of trips to and from their offices. Schedules were staggered so each department was half-staffed those days, theoretically allowing employees to cover for one another.

About 55 to 60 vehicle trips are believed to have been avoided weekly with the altered workweek, and an additional 20 to 25 trips were saved through car-pooling and other incentives.

Although the program succeeded in its efforts to help with air quality, city department heads say it’s been a problem for residents trying to contact city employees, has slowed productivity as employees cover for missing workers, and has limited when staff meetings can be scheduled.

“Frequently, whenever a member of the public calls or comes in to City Hall for certain services on . . . Monday, they find that the person or persons they need to see are not available,” said Ken Pulskamp, assistant city manager, in a written report to the council. “It is both difficult and confusing to explain to the public that staff works an 80-hour period while the appearance under our current system is that they are frequently missing from their posts.”

Department heads believe the new schedule will accomplish the same results without the problems. City employees would not receive additional time off under the new routine.

The move would also coordinate city schedules with Los Angeles County Public Works, Regional Planning and other offices that are closed every Friday.