Clerk of Court: Resource shortage forces temporarily closing of Lakeland office on May 8

The Ledger
·2 min read
The Polk Clerk of Courts office at 930 E. Parker St., Room 240, Lakeland, is one of three locations where people can pay old fines during Operation Green Light and have their driver's licenses reinstated.

The Polk County Clerk of the Circuit Court office in Lakeland will temporarily close starting May 8 because of resource shortages, Clerk of the Court Stacy M. Butterfield said in a news release.

Court proceedings and jury trials will continue at the Lakeland Government Center at 930 E. Parker St., but the clerk's service lobby will not be open to customers, the release said. A drop box will be available at the entrance of the Government Center for customers to submit paperwork for evictions, small claims and traffic cases, as well as documents that need to be recorded.

Operations in Lakeland will resume once the office has overcome the resource challenges and is able to provide superior service, the release said.

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Many of the clerk’s services are available online at www.PolkCountyClerk.net. Customers are encouraged to visit the website as their first option, the release said. Residents may also call the customer service center at 863-534-4000 or visit the Bartow or Northeast offices.

The clerk’s office in the new Northeast Government Center also opens May 8 at 200 Government Center Blvd. in Lake Alfred. The current government center closes permanently on Friday.

“This is not an ideal situation, and it is counter to my priority to make services as easily accessible as possible,” Butterfield said in the news release. “We unfortunately do not have enough trained team members to staff the Lakeland office. We are doing everything we can to solve this and resume operations as quickly as possible. I apologize for any inconvenience and thank everyone for their patience.”

Butterfield and other Clerks of Court have lobbied the Florida Legislature for a change in the formula that determines the funding for their offices.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk Clerk of Court: Lakeland office temporarily closing on May 8