City consolidates 3‑1‑1 and water customer service into central services fund; cross‑training, capacity limits noted

Director Tina Paez told the council that the city consolidated its 3‑1‑1 call center and the Public Works water customer service call center into a single unit budgeted in the central services revolving fund, and that the move will shift roughly $6.8 million of general fund costs out of the general fund for FY‑26.

"The consolidation of 3‑1‑1 and the Public Works Water Customer Service Call Center…3‑1‑1 absorbed 107 employees into its organization from Public Works," Paez said during the presentation. The consolidated 3‑1‑1 budget includes the 175.9 full‑time equivalents added from the water customer service group and keeps the department’s average speed‑of‑answer target at two minutes.

Paez said the city expects longer average handle times for water customer service calls because those calls frequently require problem resolution on the phone rather than handoffs; she told council members the department will develop additional performance measures to reflect the new workload mix once the group has time to settle into the consolidated operations.

Councilmembers asked whether the consolidation changed total headcount and whether any positions were eliminated outside of the retirement incentive. Paez said the consolidation increased the call center roster (no net reductions beyond retirement losses) and that the enterprise fund will reimburse the central services revolving fund for the water customer service portion of costs.

Paez and councilmembers discussed cross‑training opportunities: the city plans to cross‑train water customer service agents as backup for 3‑1‑1 surges during major events or disasters. "Our goal for the consolidated call center is to cross train these employees," Paez said, adding that cross‑trained employees could supplement 3‑1‑1 during hurricanes or mass‑event surges. Councilmembers cautioned that recruitment and training for call‑center agents take months; Paez said recruitment commonly takes two to three months with an additional similar period for training, producing a temporary capacity gap for critical frontline services.

Council questions also covered funding flows: the enterprise fund will reimburse the central services revolving fund for the water call center employees, Paez confirmed. The department plans to monitor new measures and report back on call handling, cross‑training outcomes and any required requests to backfill critical roles under the hiring freeze.