Report says Danbury DMV will close

The Danbury branch of the Department of Motor Vehicles on Lee Mac Avenue is reportedly going to close. The Danbury branch of the Department of Motor Vehicles on Lee Mac Avenue is reportedly going to close. Photo: Jason Rearick Photo: Jason Rearick Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Report says Danbury DMV will close 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

DANBURY -- A long drive and long lines.

That's what will be in store for motorists in Greater Danbury if the state closes the local Department of Motor Vehicles office as a result of the impending layoffs of up to 6,500 state employees.

WTNH-TV reported Wednesday evening that the Danbury office on Lee Mac Avenue is among the facilities that will be shut down.

Also on the reported hit list are DMV branch offices in New Britain, Enfield, Old Saybrook and Putnam, and photo license renewal centers in Middletown, Derby and Milford.

"I'm not happy with this, but I'm not surprised," said state Rep. Robert Godfrey, D-Danbury, who said he heard about the closing through various sources in Hartford.

A formal announcement would probably be made by the governor's office on Thursday or Friday, Godfrey said.

"This is just an illustration of what it means to cut," he said. "It means cutting things that people use a lot, but where else are you going to go?"

"It's certainly not something I welcome," said Rep. David Scribner, R-Brookfield, who noted that the Lee Mac Avenue office serves residents in a large geographical area, and the nearest branch that will remain open is in Waterbury -- about 30 miles away from Danbury and even farther from some surrounding towns.

"I have always advocated efficiencies, but we still have to provide a level of support and service to the public, especially at a time when you are raising fees and everything else," Scribner said.

More Information Miles to go Where's the closest DMV office to Danbury? 2210 Thomaston Ave., Waterbury Distance: 32 miles

One of the reasons the Danbury DMV office might have been included on the hit list, Godfrey said, is because the state leases the space it occupies.

"There's no question the public's going to be affected, but government will continue to operate," Roy Occhiogrosso, an advisor to Gov, Dannel P. Malloy, told WTNH. "It will be smaller, it will be cheaper, but the level of services that people have become used to, they simply won't be getting."

DMV officials reportedly visited the targeted facilities on Wednesday to notify employees who will be affected.

No time frame for the shutdowns has been announced, but Godfrey said it would probably occur by September.

"We had hoped that the state employees would help us out by making concessions, but they didn't," Godfrey said. "All we can do is let a bunch of them go, hope the unions change their by-laws slightly and the employees reconsider so we can avoid a lot of this."

Contact John Pirro at jpirro@newstimes.com or 203-731-3342