CHEEKTOWAGA, NY - Pistol permit holders in Erie County will soon be forced to only go to downtown Buffalo to get the services they need.
This is how things were done before a pistol permit satellite office in Cheektowaga opened last year. A year later, that office in Cheektowaga will soon be shutdown temporarily.
A sign outside the Cheektowaga pistol permit office in Cheektowaga town hall says "closing of satellite site." The last day of operation is Wednesday, August 16th -- "Sorry for the inconvenience."
The Erie County Clerk's office says the temporary closure is due to staff shortages.
"I know there's a lot of disappointment in that office closing," said Dean Adamski, the owner of DD's Ranch in Alden, who says a lot of his customers use the Cheektowaga pistol permit office, which only has hours on Wednesday.
"It's definitely a convenience for them to go to Cheektowaga rather than go downtown, pay for parking, try to find parking, get on the Thruway when it's backed up in the morning," Adamski said. "A lot of people will wait until Wednesday just to go to the Cheektowaga office."
The pistol permit office opened over a year ago, to handle growing paperwork, as a result of the SAFE ACT.
Since then, pistol permit holders have been able to add and remove firearms from their personal files, update their personal information, or submit an opt out form, to make sure their personal information is kept private.
"They were extremely happy about that office when it opened; they're extremely not happy now that it's closing," Adamski said.
The Erie County Clerk's Office says pistol permit office hours at their location in downtown Buffalo will remain the same -- open everyday except Wednesdays, weekends and holidays. A spokesperson for the clerk's office says it's hoped that the Cheektowaga pistol permit office will be reopened later this year.
The pistol permit office has been key in answering questions for people, especially about the Pistol/Revolver License Recertification, which because of the SAFE ACT, recertification is due in January 2018, for permits issued before January 15th 2013.