Potential State Government Shutdown Causes Spike in Daily Traffic at Maple Grove Licensing Center

The impending state government shutdown has led to a significant rise in daily traffic at the Maple Grove Service Center, the Hennepin County agency responsible for processing items such as motor vehicle licenses, passports and car tabs.

In recent weeks there has been about a 20 percent rise in the number of motor vehicle-related licenses processed each day at the Maple Grove location, said Steve Arradondo, the center’s assistant manager. The center now processes about 180 drivers licenses a day.

Kathy Schons, the Maple Grove center’s supervisor, said she has noticed people coming into the service centers because they are “trying to get ahead of the game with the shutdown.”

“Our wait times,” she said, “have gone from an hour to an hour-and-a-half during our busiest times--lunch hour and the end of the day.”

If the Gov. Mark Dayton and the Minnesota Legislature cannot reach an agreement on the state’s budget, then this Friday, July 1, will be the last day the Maple Grove center is open to the public until the budget issue is resolved. Some nearby centers will be open on Saturday.

The Hennepin County Board of Commissioners sent out layoff notices on Monday, June 27 to all 127 of the county’s service employees--the staff that man the licensing centers.

Arradando tried to take the potential closure in stride.

“We’re just operating as business as normal until further notice,” he said. “It’s out of our hands.”

Mary Elmore sat in the Maple Grove center’s waiting room Tuesday afternoon. She said the potential shutdown spurred her to renew her driver’s license before July 1 even though her license wasn’t due to expire until the end of August.

“I could care less if they shut down, but I want my license,” she said. “They need to get it together and they need to tax the rich.”