Although the St. Paul Police Department headquarters remains open to the public, the department’s district offices closed to visitors “for the forseeable future” beginning Tuesday morning.

The changes are due to the new coronavirus.

“Like everyone, we’re concerned about COVID-19 and we’re taking aggressive steps to keep our officers and civilian employees healthy so they can continue to keep you safe,” the police department announced on its Facebook page.

The closures include both the Eastern District offices, 722 Payne Ave., and the Western District Offices, 389 N. Hamline Ave.

Both offices will remain closed to the public until further notice. Upcoming community meetings for all three districts — Eastern, Central and Western — have also been canceled.

People in need of services are asked to call 911 in case of an emergency, call 651-291-1111 for non-emergencies, file an online police report if possible, or email the district’s senior commanders directly: Senior Commander Kurt Hallstrom at kurt.hallstrom@stpaul.gov or Senior Commander Steve Anderson at steve.j.anderson@stpaul.gov.

At headquarters, 367 Grove St., visitors will be asked to practice social distancing in the public areas of the building, including the lobby, where people will be required to stand 6 feet back from the counter when talking to the officer behind the desk. Public fingerprinting services and public auctions have been postponed indefinitely. Auctions of vehicles scheduled to be held later this week and into the foreseeable future have also been canceled.

In addition, the department is asking people who need assistance with non-emergency needs to speak with officers over the phone rather than asking for officers to be dispatched for a face-to-face conversation. The number to call for non-emergencies is 651-291-1111.